P86
RIDE REVIEW I 2022 YAMAHA YZF-R7
Y
ou've really got to feel for the new Yamaha
YZF-R7. Given the same name as the leg-
endary YZF-R7 OW02 of 1999 and 2000,
the machine, closely linked to Yamaha's brilliant
MT-07, has its back against the proverbial wall
even before it's been allowed to show its wares.
The original YZF-R7 ran for only a couple of
years and was raced by Haga, Gobert, et al,
serious legends of the sport. Yamaha said nam-
ing this new iteration an R7 came after multiple
focus groups felt names like the MT-07R or RT-
07 would be too confusing for buyers and calling
it a YZF-R07 would mean they'd have to rebrand
the remaining bikes in the R-series lineup to suit.
Yamaha YZF-R01 doesn't really have the same
ring to it as YZF-R1, does it?
Not only does the R7 have an unfortunate
name, it comes to market at a time when the
sport bike world is still hurting over the death
of the R6. But make no mistake, the R7 is not
YAMAHA'S MT-07 HAS BEEN ONE OF THE SMASH HITS OF THE
LAST DECADE, BUT CAN IT THROW ON SOME CLOTHES AND HOLD ITS
OWN AS A SPORT BIKE? WE HEADED TO GEORGIA TO FIND OUT
It does good wheelies in case you were wondering.
YAMAHA'S
NEW CLOTHES
