T
he year is 1998. Yamaha
launches the first edition
of the YZF-R1. The world's
press is gob smacked, and the
company can't keep up with
demand. Waiting lists blow out to
six months for salivating custom-
ers—and Yamaha's rivals have
been caught with their pants
down.
The 1998 Yamaha YZF-R1 is
the granddaddy of the modern
Superbike. Until its release (and
for some time after it), Super-
bikes were classified as 750cc
four-cylinder machines and
1000cc twins. World Superbike
would keep these rules until the
end of 2002, but in reality, the
world had moved on in 1998. The
R1 saw to that. The R1 also saw
the death of the '90s liter-class
hyperbike (an over-exaggerated
term common at the time for any-
thing bigger than a Superbike),
which arguably began when Teo
Baba released the mighty 1992
Honda CBR900RR Fireblade.
Sport bikes at the time were
primarily designed as road bikes,
not racers with lights. The R1
was the first to take this way of
thinking and junk it. Comfort was
reduced to the bare minimum in
the name of pure speed. Even
things like a handy trunk under
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III ARCHIVES
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STORY BY RENNIE SCAYSBROOK
25
Compared to anything
else in 1998, the Yamaha
YZF-R1 was light years
ahead.
PHOTOS: YAMAHA
YEARS OF THE
YAMAHA YZF-R1
