2021 KTM 450 SMR
R I D E R E V I E W
P68
This domination gave rise to bikes
like the KTM Duke series and later the
SMR street bike range, but as super-
moto's popularity fell off a cliff at the
start of the previous decade, KTM
pulled back and the 450 SMR fell by
the company wayside in 2013.
But they weren't entirely out of the
game just yet.
After purchasing Husqvarna in 2014,
KTM found a way to dip its toes in the
supermoto water by releasing my bike
(the FS 450) to see if the demand was
still there. Turns out, it was.
Coupled with the rise of supermoto as
a road race training tool and the plethora
of social media videos of guys like Pol Es-
pargaro and TM's own French S1GP god
Thomas Chareyre sending it sideways any
day of the week, supermoto started riding
back into the public consciousness—
enough that KTM saw a market they could
put a machine in to compete against their
sister brand, Husqvarna, and Italy's TM.
(Above) The same
engine as the 450
SX-F sits in the SMR
frame but final gearing
has been lengthened
from 13:49 on the
SX-F to 14:45. (Above
left) Traction control
and twin engine maps
have been a thing on
KTM/Husqvarna's for
a while now. (Below)
If you didn't want to
thrash it so hard, you'd
just stare at it.
