2007 Triumph Speed Triple - Prepared For Takeoff

We've all been excited for naked models of flagship sportbikes in the past. The funny thing is that the manufacturers have simply cried wolf so many times that most of us don't pay much attention any more. Detuned motors thrown in heavy frames with some straight bars slapped on is far from an unfaired edition of the real thing that we'd like, yet that's usually what hits the market.

An unclothed model of the award-winning Daytona 675 was certainly expected, but would it just be yet another softened sportbike or something that we could actually get geeked about? Thankfully, the Brits went against the grain and designed a bike that will give the naked middleweight class a swift kick in the shorts.

The Daytona 675 is such a bad ass in comparison to its company in the 600 class that even a slightly softer version for the street wouldn't be bad-provided it wasn't dumbed down too much. When we first spotted the Street Triple in the production line we noticed the lower spec front suspension and brakes and naturally expected the worst though. To make matters worse the seat height is slightly lower and after getting a leg over it seemed that yet another disappointment was about to expose itself.

We're happy to report just the opposite however, because though the initial signs seemed perhaps a bit bleak they were soon forgotten. Just seconds after pulling away on the rain-drenched English tarmac it was obvious that the Street Triple was going to behave more like its Speed Triple big brother than some anemic and feeble cousin of the Daytona. The basic anatomy of the borrowed 675 frame and swingarm are exactly the same, and though the seated position is obviously more upright than a sportbike it remains aggressive for this style.

Triumph UK's Product Manager, Simon Warburton, chimed in a quick quip regarding the one-inch lower rearsets when he mentioned that the pegs will touch down on the street, but you'd have to be hitting it pretty hard to worry about such matters. Old Simon's known to be pretty handy on a bike though, so we kept his advice in mind.

There was just enough of the seemingly perpetual English dampness on the roads to keep ground clearance limitations from being explored, but we pushed enough to allow the Street Triple to defend its seemingly low-spec front end. The brakes are beyond competent and don't struggle whatsoever to slow the package down, thanks largely to the same pad composition and rotors used on the Daytona. While the nonadjustable forks would be an issue on trackdays, during our spirited backroad ripping we couldn't really fault it, and it was actually better behaved than the fully adjustable Speed Triple. Simply for sake of appearance we'd consider sourcing a trashed 675's front end at some point to really get the most from the bike if trackdays or serious stunting is in its future-and with this motor they should be.