Element
Parking Attendant
Posts: 18
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posted July 22, 2011 11:04 PM
How does the S1000R perform with respect to the ZX-10R? (in 2 -parts)
How does the S1000R perform with respect to the ZX-10R? (two parts)
PART I - 2010 Model
I wrote this up a few months back, but waited to post this until the 2011 IOMTT racing was over so I could compare both years race and practice data. Posted in two parts, for 2010, and 2011.
Firstly, the outright "Dainese Superbike" race's fastest-ever lap speed is currently held by the 2010 ZX-10R ridden by Connor Cummins at and average speed of 131.51 MPH or 211.64 km/h. This is just a tiny fraction off the all-time fastest ever lap. In superbike race spec last year's 2010 Kawasaki ZX-10R was the fastest bike and it vastly out performed the then new BMW S1000Rs. A quick look at the figures from the 2010 IOMTT (Isle of Mann TT), focusing on the differences between the ZX-10R and S1000R (i.e. the other bikes in the races are not included here):
2010 SUPERSTOCK 1000cc
TT 2010 - ALL SESSIONS - TT SUPERSTOCK - PRACTICE - FASTEST LAPS
Finish Position | Bike No. | Rider | Machine/Entrant | Lap# | Lap Time | AVE Speed (MPH)
2 5 Keith 1000cc BMW / W A Corless/Jackson Racing 17 39.26 128.229 Fri, 4th June Practice
NOTE: This result of Keith Amor's is the fastest lap the S1000R has ever achieved at the TT, during both 2010 and also 2011, and it was a superstock-spec machine that did this early practice session in 2010. This is an outlier result because no one has been able to consistently reproduce this sort of speed or lap time since on an S1000R.
3 12 Ryan Farquhar 1000cc Kawasaki / KMR Kawasaki 17 40.52 128.076 Wed, 2nd June Practice
7 3 Ian Lougher 1000cc Kawasaki / Blackhorse Kawasaki 17 56.15 126.216 Wed, 2nd June Practice
9 10 Conor Cummins 1000cc Kawasaki / McAdoo Kawasaki Racing 17 59.61 125.812 Tues, 1st June Practice
12 29 Mark Buckley 1000cc Kawasaki / OTSS Racing 18 12.58 124.319 Thurs, 3rd June Practice
19 19 James Hillier 1000cc Kawasaki / Bournemouth Kawasaki 18 30.57 122.305 Fri, 4th June Practice
26 23 Derek Brien 1000cc Kawasaki / Hunky Dory Racing 18 35.70 121.743 Wed, 2nd June Practice
28 17 Mark Miller 1000cc BMW / Fuchs BMW 18 37.35 121.563 Fri, 4th June Practice
45 53 Paul Shoesmith 1000cc BMW / Speedfreak Ice Valley 19 08.76 118.239 Thurs, 3rd June Practice
66 54 Hudson Kennaugh* 1000cc BMW / Longshot Kawasaki 20 02.27 112.976 Fri, 4th June Practice
70 78 Maria Costello 1000cc BMW / CSC Racing / Tony Morris 20 10.55 112.204 Thurs, 3rd June Practice
Note: All of the above (except Keith Amor's result which was Superstock spec) were also entered as "Superbike" practice times, so there's a recording error present, and its not clear which race category these results should actually be in. Either way, as you see, the BMWs were much slower, on average than the 2010 ZX-10Rs.
So to the actual SUPERSTOCK race results;
2010 THE ROYAL LONDON 360 SUPERSTOCK RACE - Provisional Result Sheet
Finish Position | Bike No. | Rider | Machine/Entrant | Lap# | Lap Time (4 laps with pit stop) | AVE Speed (MPH)
2 12 Ryan Farquhar 1000cc Kawasaki / KMR Kawasaki 01 10 42.63 128.060 Silver
3 10 Conor Cummins 1000cc Kawasaki / McAdoo Kawasaki Racing 01 11 14.12 127.117 Silver
6 5 Keith Amor 1000cc BMW / W A Corless/Jackson Racing 01 11 50.25 126.051 Silver
7 3 Ian Lougher 1000cc Kawasaki / Blackhorse Kawasaki 01 12 10.97 125.448 Silver
12 19 James Hillier 1000cc Kawasaki / Bournemouth Kawasaki 01 13 20.45 123.467 Silver
21 17 Mark Miller 1000cc BMW / Penz13/SK Support 01 14 39.63 121.285 Bronze
27 53 Paul Shoesmith 1000cc BMW / Speedfreak Ice Valley 01 15 22.51 120.135 Bronze
29 44 David Hewson 1000cc Kawasaki / The Other Bike Shop 01 15 28.91 119.965 Bronze
32 23 Derek Brien 1000cc Kawasaki / Hunky Dory Racing 01 15 34.27 119.823 Bronze
33 54 Hudson Kennaugh* 1000cc BMW / Longshot Kawasaki 01 16 40.58 118.096 Bronze
38 42 Michal Dokoupil 1000cc Kawasaki / AIR Kawasaki 01 17 34.31 116.733 Bronze
FASTEST RACE LAP = 4 Ian Hutchinson 17 mins 18.91 secs 130.741 mph
This lap was on a CBR1000RR (and the race winner) and the fastest ever lap by a SUPERSTOCK bike that was only marginally slower than the all-time SuperBike lap record. It was significantly faster than the fastest 2010 Kawasaki (that took 2nd place).
So on to the Superbike practice laps;
2010 SUPERBIKE 1000cc
ALL SESSIONS - TT SUPERBIKE - PRACTICE - FASTEST LAPS
Finish Position | Bike No. | Rider | Machine/Entrant | Lap# | Lap Time | AVE Speed (MPH)
3 10 Conor Cummins 1000cc Kawasaki / McAdoo Kawasaki Racing 17 29.63 129.405 Fri, 4th June Practice
12 3 Ian Lougher 1000cc Kawasaki / Blackhorse Kawasaki 17 49.31 127.024 Fri, 4th June Practice
13 12 Ryan Farquhar 1000cc Kawasaki / MSS Colchester Kawasaki 17 51.09 126.813 Fri, 4th June Practice
18 29 Mark Buckley 1000cc Kawasaki / OTSS Racing 18 12.58 124.319 Thurs, 3rd June Practice
23 19 James Hillier 1000cc Kawasaki / Bournemouth Kawasaki 18 24.67 122.958 Fri, 4th June Practice
29 23 Derek Brien 1000cc Kawasaki / Hunky Dory Racing 18 35.70 121.743 Wed, 2nd June Practice
32 17 Mark Miller 1000cc BMW / Fuchs BMW 18 37.35 121.563 Fri, 4th June Practice
37 31 Rico Penzkofer 1000cc BMW / Penz13.Com Racing Team 18 47.09 120.513 Fri, 4th June Practice
NOTE: the ZX-10R's were again much faster on average than the S1000Rs.
To the actual superbike race results (two races);
RACE 1
2010 - THE POKERSTARS SUPERBIKE TT RACE - PROVISIONAL RESULT SHEET
Finish Position | Bike No. | Rider | Machine/Entrant | Lap# | Lap Time (6 laps with pit stops)| AVE Speed (MPH)
7 3 Ian Lougher 1000cc Kawasaki / Blackhorse Kawasaki 01 48 45.20 124.895 Silver
10 12 Ryan Farquhar 1000cc Kawasaki / MSS Colchester Kawasaki 01 50 02.81 123.428 Silver
17 31 Rico Penzkofer 1000cc BMW / Penz13.Com Racing Team 01 51 58.68 121.299 Bronze
24 44 David Hewson 1000cc Kawasaki / The Other Bike Shop 01 53 58.87 119.167 Bronze
25 17 Mark Miller 1000cc BMW / Penz13/SK Support 01 53 59.12 119.163 Bronze
30 53 Paul Shoesmith 1000cc BMW / Speedfreak Ice Valley 01 55 08.04 117.974 Bronze
36 65 Fabrice Miguet 1000cc Kawasaki / Team of Paris 01 56 44.06 116.357 Bronze
45 72 Hudson Kennaugh* 1000cc BMW / Longshot Kawasaki 01 59 53.67 113.290
FASTEST RACE LAP - 10 Conor Cummins 17 mins 12.83 secs 131.511 mph
This was on a ZX-10R and is the fastest-ever lap of this course in this superbike race, but DNF-ed the race due to clutch failure, hence is not listed above, but was leading the race up until that. In the next Superbike race he had a near fatal accident while running second, and DNF-ed that race (below) as well. He hit a stone wall while flying through the air at over 130mph, but did recover (enough, not fully) from the massive injuries to race again in 2011. These guys are all putting everything on the line to get these lap times and speeds (even the inexperienced slow riders). Several riders have been killed in the last 2-years alone, and many have been seriously injured. No one is spared. This is the most aggressive motorbike racing there is, and that's what makes the IOMTT the best possible real-world performance test of any new bike on a no-BSing public road.
RACE 2
2010 - THE DAINESE SENIOR TT - PROVISIONAL RESULT SHEET
Finish Position | Bike No. | Rider | Machine/Entrant | Lap# | Lap Time (shortened to 4 laps with pit stops)| AVE Speed (MPH)
2 12 Ryan Farquhar 1000cc Kawasaki / MSS Colchester Kawasaki 01 11 02.36 127.467 Silver
4 3 Ian Lougher 1000cc Kawasaki / Blackhorse Kawasaki 01 12 01.57 125.721 Silver
12 31 Rico Penzkofer BMW / Penz13.Com Racing Team 01 14 05.81 122.208 Bronze
19 29 Mark Buckley 1000cc Kawasaki / OTSS Racing 01 15 01.70 120.690 Bronze
21 44 David Hewson 1000cc Kawasaki / The Other Bike Shop 01 15 32.69 119.865 Bronze
23 53 Paul Shoesmith 1000cc BMW / Speedfreak Ice Valley 01 15 48.70 119.443 Bronze
24 54 Hudson Kennaugh* 1000cc BMW / Longshot Kawasaki 01 16 18.29 118.671 Bronze
25 17 Mark Miller 1000cc BMW / Penz13/SK Support 01 16 29.69 118.377 Bronze
FASTEST RACE LAP - 4 Ian Hutchinson 17 mins 13.01 secs 131.487 mph
Again, this was won by a CBR1000RR, indeed Ian Hutchinson won all three 1000cc races in 2010 on the Fireblade. Notice that even after almost two weeks of practice and setup and two races, that the fastest BMW still only managed 12th place and 122.208 mph average speed. This S1000R average lap speed is only 92.9% of the current Superbike lap record speed (131.578mph set by John McGuinness on a Honda CBR1000RR in 2009). It is a very uncompetitive result, as even the Superstock S1000R go to 92.4% of this record speed. However, Keith Amor's Superstock S1000R practice best lap did get to 97.3% of the outright Superbike lap record average speed, and also got within 97.4% of the outright SuperStock lap record. But as pointed out, no other S1000R got anywhere near that level, so Amor rung everything he could out of it to get this result, and has not repeated it since.
So the question is; will the S1000R get any better in 2011? (Keith Amor switched to the Honda CBR1000RR for 2011's superbike races). But the most embarrassing thing for the BMW S1000R's is this;
SUPERSPORT RACE1 600cc
Fastest Lap [in this race] - 5 Keith Amor 17 mins 50.28 secs 126.909 mph
SUPERSPORT RACE2 600cc
Fastest Lap [in this race] - 9 Michael Dunlop 17 mins 42.52 secs 127.836 mph
i.e. both of the 600cc SuperSport race's fastest laps produced MUCH FASTER race-lap speeds and times than even the fastest of all the S1000R race-laps! But the fastest S1000R rider, Keith Amor, was almost a second faster per race-lap on his CBR600RR than he was on his own S1000R.
But it's even worse, because the 600s aren't on race slicks and the superbikes are!
How much clearer could it be?
The S1000R was a disappointing flop at the 2010 TT despite the BMW S1000R logging the fastest straight-line speed of all the bikes racing at the 2010 TT, i.e. this implies it has the motor, but it does not have steering and cornering stability. The bottomline is the S1000R's design is flawed and it's power and speed can't make up for it's directional instability (or line-changing inability) and resulting slowness in corners, when pushed hard. As a result it's actually a comparatively slow bike that even the 600cc's can kick around. BMW did not "get it right" the first time, as many presumed.
So forgive this little rant; I'm less than impressed with magazine "track & road tests" which consistently fail to identify and describe the relative weaknesses of bikes and seem to basically award a class or group 'win', based on superficial topend horsepower and speed, electronics switching, styling and marketing ACRONYMS. That sort of slop is not a test of SPORT performance.
These are SPORT bikes!
They are specifically designed to turn every sort of corner, fast and stable, and go over both smooth or crappy pavement and bumps, and to accelerate and decelerate, a lot, very smoothly, as quickly as possible. So the 'testing' has to be relevant to what the bike was designed to do.
Magazines largely aren't being honest or properly testing the bikes. And this is all wrong to me, because it dishonors those who HAVE "got it right", and go unrecognized via these fake and pretentious 'tests', as what are really lesser machines, factories and designs, are fawned-over by magazine tester/writer sycophants.
It isn't right and defeats the purpose of a competition and its benefits, and resulting incentives. If magazine 'tests' don't reflect the actual performance of the bikes, then where's the incentive for manufacturers to engineer and build a stock machine with genuinely exceptional or actually steadily improving performance in each new iteration? You'd hope the factories always will, but if they didn't, do you think these magazines would be equipped to realize the incremental performance differences? I don't think so.
Test competitions should routinely have the best SPORTS bike winning and recognized or else it's not a real competition, it becomes meaningless. The result is worse than worthless, as it is damaging. The factory and designers and builders can not benefit from fake competitions with irrelevant 'testing' and subjective feedback if the truth of the performance differences can not be teased-out.
Given magazines are incapable of that level of real testing (and clearly they are) they should admit/accept this fact. Ok do the group-comparisons and surveys but don't pick favorites and call them a feckin 'winner'. Just give the naked facts minus hype and some expert rider impressions. Quit the pretenses. RR stands for "Road-Racer" or "Race-Replica", and only a series of real road-races could ever pick the 'winner'. Only that can do real and appropriate justice (or not) to the skill (or not) of the designers and factory, and to the quality-control and reliability of a skilled workforce, that made it so good (or not). That honors REAL TESTING and negates the fake pseudo-testing we get now.
Surely this is the only relevant and valid sort of testing or ranking process for such bikes?
And quit the pretense that a subjective numerical 'score', can be converted to a definitive 'quantitative' rank. It dishonors what the bike's are trying to achieve, via design, and is shallow nit-picking at its worst. How many times have you read a comparo where the magazine writer said all the bikes 'tested' would make anyone happy? If so, what's the meaning and function of a subjective rank, in a 'test'?
Frankly, if the potential buyer can not make a sound and informed choice based on the facts, specs and data they should not be riding a sports bike at all. Test rankings are petty crap. I don't agree with the current marketing trends of encouraging stupid people (Homer-Consumer-isticus) to ride sport bikes as though they're some sort of fashion-accessory. If you don't have a primal-level burning urge to ride sport bikes you really shouldn't get one. And if you have that in you, you sure don't give a damn about some magazine's test '(w)ranking'.
When a race-prepped CBR600RR or YZF-R6 (on treaded tires) can easily out-pace an S1000R Superbike (on race slicks), something is clearly very wrong with magazine "performance testing" if 95% of the magazines award the S1000R an open-class 'win' in 2010, and in 2011. You do not need 1000cc power to go really quick, indeed, almost all fast riders at the IOMTT say they prefer the fun of riding their hotted-up 600cc bike instead. Can they all be wrong?
At the risk of tilting at windmills, it's not right that magazines carry-on endlessly with OEM blather, and is a practice that should not encouraged. A designed package either performs or it doesn't. It takes TIME and RISK to determine this, and that's something the magazine's 'testers' aren't interested in.
OEMs get annoyed with the magazines as they provide the magazine a new bike, to 'test', and then do not do a REAL PERFORMANCE test and comparison. The OEM invests millions in the new model's improvement, and to quality-control of components so it's also reliable and lasts, and to construction, only to have a half-arse magazine not even do justice to it's designed intent!
It's not right.
The informed public is also getting annoyed when a manufacturer promises a "207 horsepower" bike, that turns out to be a ~160 horsepower bike (in North American spec). That's not just epic-dumb and self-defeating, it's a cynical corporate culture that engages in carefully considered lies specifically to mis-inform and mislead.
Again, it's not right or acceptable.
This all occurs because of this pubescent focus on horsepower, bling and hype. The magazines and OEMs all focus on that, rather than on meaningful SPORT PERFORMANCE. So I always encourage people to step back and compare the measured performance data, and results, not just 'specs' and claims in almost useless magazine non-tests.
A dyno tells you almost nothing relevant to how the bike actually performs. The dyno is for optimizing and charting engine power with modification and takes the guesswork and time factors out of air : fuel mixture setting. It just happens they can generate before and after graphs to indicate success of failure of changes.
But a dyno will not show you that a sweet little warmed over CBR600RR on treads, can kick the crap out of a race-prepped S1000R Superbike, on slicks. Remember that next time you look at a dyno graph and try to convince yourself you're looking at real performance differences. Because you largely aren't.
CONCLUSIONS:
The SuperBike-Spec 2010 BMW S1000Rs consistently under-performed against the Japanese 1000s, and was significantly slower than most front-running 600cc bikes. This shows conclusively that more power is not faster, it's often slower. The design and refinement of the bike is far more important that its engine's power.
The 2010-2011 BMW S1000R was an excellent first attempt at a competitive 1000cc sportbike. but BMW have a long way to go to make it consistently perform like the Japanese bikes routinely do. BMW will get there, but not with their current iteration. It requires a careful chassis/frame redesign with a new model before it'll be able to compete at a similar level of sport performance.
--- ENDS ---
____________
Natural selection always gets it right over time, and you are the byproduct of about 4 billion years of it, so do try not to prove it wrong ... mmmkay?
  
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Element
Parking Attendant
Posts: 18
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posted July 22, 2011 11:05 PM
PART II - 2011 Model
Evaluation of the 2011 IOMTT (Isle of Mann TT) 1000cc results for the BMW S1000R and ZX-10R;
First the good news, the new 2011 ZX-10R convincingly won the 1000cc Superstock IOMTT race in 2011 (I strongly suspected it could this time) after getting podiums several times in recent years. Michael Dunlop's very first (complete) flying-lap in practice the new ZX-10R went faster than any new bike has. Dunlop said he was confident it was capable of averaging 132mph per lap (i.e. smashing the old lap record).
IOMTT Superbike Practice Lap 2011
Michael Dunlop 2011 ZX-10R
MPH km/h Min : Sec
130.024 209.253 17.24.64
Kawasaki, as you would expect, have actually improved the design with the new model. But reliability was somewhat in doubt after some mechanical failures. The good news is that like the current ZX-6R, the engine and chassis responds positively to modifications, tuning and setup (something the S1000R apparently does not respond well to), and this indicates the basic design and engineering was indeed developed for racing, then was de-tuned for the showroom.
2011 SUPERSTOCK 1000cc
TT SUPERSTOCK PRACTICE - ALL SESSIONS - FASTEST LAPS
Finish Position | Bike No. | Rider | Machine/Entrant | Lap# | Lap Time | AVE Speed (MPH)
1 9 Michael Dunlop 1000cc Kawasaki / Street Sweep 17 24.63 130.024 Fri, 3rd June practice
7 7 Ryan Farquhar 1000cc Kawasaki / KMR Kawasaki / Manx Gass 18 00.33 125.728 Fri, 3rd June practice
9 12 Ian Lougher 1000cc Kawasaki / Blackhorse / Kawasaki Motors UK 18 04.72 125.220 Fri, 3rd June practice
10 17 James Hillier 1000cc Kawasaki / Bournemouth Kawasaki 18 09.44 124.677 Fri, 3rd June practice
11 19 Luis Carreira 1000cc Kawasaki 18 13.41 124.224 Fri, 3rd June practice
13 15 Dan Kneen 1000cc Kawasaki / Marks Bloom Racing 18 17.96 123.710 Fri, 3rd June practice
15 8 Adrian Archibald 1000cc BMW / AMA Racing Team 18 20.39 123.436 Tues, 31st May practice
16 13 Daniel Stewart 1000cc BMW / Wilcock Consulting 18 22.01 123.254 Wed, 1st June practice
17 23 Steve Mercer BMW / W A Corless / Jackson Racing 18 26.84 122.717 Fri, 3rd June practice
19 31 Mark Buckley 1000cc Kawasaki / Energy Armor Racing 18 32.86 122.053 Fri, 3rd June practice
20 10 Conor Cummins 1000cc Kawasaki / McAdoo Kawasaki Racing / Gortreagh 18 34.52 121.871
22 54 Stephen Thompson 1000cc BMW / T & R Motorsport 18 37.35 121.563 Fri, 3rd June practice
24 34 Simon Andrews* 1000cc BMW / Ice Valley BMW Motorad 18 38.48 121.439 Fri, 3rd June practice
25 30 Stefano Bonetti 1000cc Kawasaki / Speed Motor 18 39.71 121.307 Wed, 1st June practice
26 33 Paul Shoesmith 1000cc BMW / Ice Valley BMW Motorad 18 41.19 121.146 Wed, 1st June practice
27 21 Davy Morgan 998cc BMW 18 48.63 120.348 Fri, 3rd June practice
28 22 Mark Parrett 1000cc BMW / C & C Ltd / Vines 18 51.25 120.069 Fri, 3rd June practice
29 29 Ian Pattinson 998cc BMW / Ian Pattinson 18 51.87 120.003 Wed, 1st June practice
31 27 John Burrows 1000cc Kawasaki 18 55.48 119.622 Tues, 31st May practice
34 61 Steve Heneghan 1000cc BMW / Quattro Plant Motorsport 19 00.84 119.060 Fri, 3rd June practice
35 50 Scott Wilson 1000cc BMW / Diamond H Servlite 19 01.65 118.975 Tues, 31st May practice
NOTE: There were a LOT more BMW's in 2011 than in 2010, and they did improve their average speeds and times a bit, with the fastest BMW1000R getting to within 94.9% of the fastest practice speed, set my Michael Dunlop on a 2011 ZX-10R, but six other ZX-10Rs were faster than the fastest of the S1000R's, in practice. The overall speed of the ZX-10Rs was also a bit faster, and they out-paced the Hondas for the first time, in a long time.
So to the race result;
2011 - THE ROYAL LONDON 360 SUPERSTOCK RACE - Provisional Result Sheet
Finish Position | Bike No. | Rider | Machine/Entrant | Lap# | Lap Time (4 laps and a pit stop) | AVE Speed (MPH)
1 9 Michael Dunlop 1000cc Kawasaki / Street Sweep 01 11 13.69 127.129 Silver
7 15 Dan Kneen 1000cc Kawasaki / Marks Bloom Racing 01 12 27.28 124.977 Silver
9 8 Adrian Archibald 1000cc BMW / AMA Racing Team 01 13 13.00 123.677 Silver
10 17 James Hillier 1000cc Kawasaki / Bournemouth Kawasaki 01 13 30.54 123.185 Silver
11 34 Simon Andrews* 1000cc BMW / Ice Valley BMW Motorad 01 14 06.50 122.189 Silver
12 10 Conor Cummins 1000cc Kawasaki / McAdoo Kawasaki Racing / Gortreagh Printing 01 14 14.60 121.966 Silver
13 19 Luis Carreira 1000cc Kawasaki 01 14 16.06 121.927 Silver
14 12 Ian Lougher 1000cc Kawasaki / Blackhorse / Kawasaki Motors UK 01 14 32.76 121.471 Silver
16 23 Steve Mercer BMW / W A Corless / Jackson Racing 01 14 52.50 120.938 Bronze
17 30 Stefano Bonetti 1000cc Kawasaki / Speed Motor 01 14 57.05 120.815 Bronze
19 29 Ian Pattinson 998cc BMW / Ian Pattinson 01 15 07.61 120.532 Bronze
20 22 Mark Parrett 1000cc BMW / C & C Ltd / Vines 01 15 13.51 120.375 Bronze
21 33 Paul Shoesmith 1000cc BMW / Ice Valley BMW Motorad 01 15 23.43 120.111 Bronze
22 21 Davy Morgan 998cc BMW 01 15 24.14 120.092 Bronze
23 27 John Burrows 1000cc Kawasaki 01 15 29.44 119.951 Bronze
25 58 Michael Russell 998cc Kawasaki / Top Gun Racing 01 16 06.73 118.972 Bronze
31 38 David Hewson 1000cc Kawasaki / Ch'Ien Acupuncture Clinic 01 17 33.75 116.747 Bronze
32 44 Steve Heneghan 1000cc BMW / Quattro Plant Motorsport 01 17 39.84 116.595 Bronze
33 50 Scott Wilson 1000cc BMW / Diamond H Servlite 01 17 40.02 116.590 Bronze
FASTEST RACE LAP - 9 Michael Dunlop 1000cc Kawasaki / Street Sweep 01 11 13.69 127.129 [2011 ZX-10R]
This is a HUGE win for Kawasaki, as they also dominated the Honda and Suzuki, and again showed the BMW S1000R is not competitive, at the top.
2011 SUPERBIKE 1000cc
Firstly, the practice times;
TT SUPERBIKE PRACTICE - ALL SESSIONS - FASTEST LAPS
Finish Position | Bike No. | Rider | Machine/Entrant | Lap# | Lap Time | AVE Speed (MPH)
4 9 Michael Dunlop 1000cc Kawasaki / Street Sweep 17 24.63 130.024 Fri, 3rd June practice
11 17 James Hillier 1000cc Kawasaki / Bournemouth Kawasaki 18 09.44 124.677 Fri, 3rd June practice
12 19 Luis Carreira 1000cc Kawasaki 18 13.41 124.224 Fri, 3rd June practice
14 7 Ryan Farquhar 1000cc Kawasaki / KMR Kawasaki / Manx Gass 18 14.94 124.051 Tues, 31st May practic
16 15 Dan Kneen 1000cc Kawasaki / Marks Bloom Racing 18 17.96 123.710 Fri, 3rd June practice
17 10 Conor Cummins 1000cc Kawasaki / McAdoo Kawasaki Racing / Gortreagh 18 19.22 123.568
18 8 Adrian Archibald 1000cc Kawasaki / AMA Racing Team 18 24.01 123.032 Wed, 1st June practice
NOTE: Archibald blewup his new 2011 ZX-10R's engine during practice and used a BMW 1000R spare bike for the race.]
19 23 Steve Mercer BMW / W A Corless / Jackson Racing 18 26.84 122.717 Fri, 3rd June practice
21 31 Mark Buckley 1000cc Kawasaki / Energy Armor Racing 18 32.86 122.053 Fri, 3rd June practice
23 54 Stephen Thompson 1000cc BMW / T & R Motorsport 18 37.35 121.563 Fri, 3rd June practice
25 34 Simon Andrews* 1000cc BMW / Ice Valley BMW Motorad 18 38.48 121.439 Fri, 3rd June practice
26 30 Stefano Bonetti 1000cc Kawasaki / Speed Motor 18 39.71 121.307 Wed, 1st June practice
27 33 Paul Shoesmith 1000cc BMW / Ice Valley BMW Motorad 18 41.19 121.146 Wed, 1st June practice
28 22 Mark Parrett 1000cc BMW / C & C Ltd / Vines 18 51.25 120.069 Fri, 3rd June practice
29 29 Ian Pattinson 998cc BMW / Ian Pattinson 18 51.87 120.003 Wed, 1st June practice
33 61 Steve Heneghan 1000cc BMW / Quattro Plant Motorsport 19 00.84 119.060 Fri, 3rd June practice
34 50 Scott Wilson 1000cc BMW / Diamond H Servlite 19 01.65 118.975 Tues, 31st May practice
This 2011 Superbike paddock is again full of BMWs, but again they have failed to deliver the performance levels of the Japanese makes. The 2011 ZX-10R positively demolished the BMWs once again, with the fastest of the BMWs show no improvement from last year's disappointing results. They simply didn't get any faster, and the SUPERSTOCK spec S1000R is STILL lapping faster that the superbike spec machines! This is pretty bad because they are still significantly slower than the 600cc bikes as well! All those people who invested big-bucks in a BMW, should have had a close look at last year's results and not wasted their money building a super-expensive S1000R superbike, that's probably slower than an ordinary showroom model.
MORAL OF STORY; buy a ZX-10R or a 2012 Fireblade.
So, to the actual superbike races (two of them);
RACE 1
THE DAINESE SUPERBIKE TT RACE - Provisional Result Sheet
Finish Position | Bike No. | Rider | Machine/Entrant | Lap# | Lap Time (six laps and pit stop) | AVE Speed (MPH)
5 9 Michael Dunlop 1000cc Kawasaki / Street Sweep 01 49 01.53 124.584 Silver
NOTE: his ZX-10R came in 5th place, after losing 45 to 50 seconds in the pits in a screwed-up tire change, where he fell from 5th place back to about 16th place, but still managed to claw it back to 5th place (two DNFs in front of him to helped too). If not for that he would definitely have placed at least 3rd on the podium.
8 17 James Hillier 1000cc Kawasaki / Bournemouth Kawasaki 01 50 11.01 123.274 Silver
9 8 Adrian Archibald 1000cc BMW / AMA Racing Team 01 50 26.81 122.981 Silver
NOTE: this is the best-placed S1000R and comes in 9th, from the same guy who blew up his own new 2011 ZX-10R engine during practice.]
12 23 Steve Mercer BMW / W A Corless / Jackson Racing 01 52 24.73 120.830 Bronze
13 31 Mark Buckley 1000cc Kawasaki / Energy Armor Racing 01 52 59.41 120.212 Bronze
14 30 Stefano Bonetti 1000cc Kawasaki / Speed Motor 01 53 07.59 120.067 Bronze
15 33 Paul Shoesmith 1000cc BMW / Ice Valley BMW Motorad 01 53 16.17 119.916 Bronze
16 28 Stephen Thompson 1000cc BMW / T & R Motorsport 01 53 40.54 119.487 Bronze
17 29 Ian Pattinson 998cc BMW / Ian Pattinson 01 53 46.69 119.380 Bronze
20 22 Mark Parrett 1000cc BMW / C & C Ltd / Vines 01 54 20.90 118.784 Bronze
24 50 Scott Wilson 1000cc BMW / Diamond H Servlite 01 55 34.31 117.527 Bronze
25 58 Michael Russell 998cc Kawasaki / Top Gun Racing 01 55 35.41 117.508 Bronze
28 44 Steve Heneghan 1000cc BMW / Quattro Plant Motorsport 01 56 27.22 116.637 Bronze
FASTEST RACE LAP - 5 Bruce Anstey 17 mins 13.88 secs 131.378 mph
Anstey was on a CBR1000RR but DNF-ed (from 2nd place) after it lunched a valve while within spitting distance of the lap record ... shit happens. And note that the fastest BMW only managed 93.6% of the pace of the fastest bike in this race.
So to the second superbike race (a week later);
RACE 2
THE POKERSTARS SENIOR TT RACE - Provisional Result Sheet
Finish Position | Bike No. | Rider | Machine/Entrant | Lap# | Lap Time (6 laps and pit stop) | AVE Speed (MPH)
6 9 Michael Dunlop 1000cc Kawasaki / Street Sweep 01 47 27.35 126.404 Silver
NOTE: The ZX-10R came 6th as while in 3rd place Michael Dunlop over-shot a corner and went back three places. This race is even slower than the Superstock race because of poor grip levels and wind, after a rain storm had delayed the race start for 5 hours.
9 17 James Hillier 1000cc Kawasaki / Bournemouth Kawasaki 01 49 36.47 123.922 Silver
11 31 Simon Andrews* 1000cc BMW / Ice Valley BMW Motorad 01 50 32.17 122.881 Silver
12 15 Dan Kneen 1000cc Kawasaki / Marks Bloom Racing 01 51 00.91 122.351 Silver
13 7 Ryan Farquhar 1000cc Kawasaki / KMR Kawasaki / Manx Gass 01 51 37.89 121.675 Bronze
15 33 Paul Shoesmith 1000cc BMW / Ice Valley BMW Motorad 01 52 27.76 120.776 Bronze
16 24 Mark Buckley 1000cc Kawasaki / Energy Armor Racing 01 52 39.75 120.562 Bronze
17 30 Stefano Bonetti 1000cc Kawasaki / Speed Motor 01 53 14.07 119.953 Bronze
20 34 Stephen Thompson 1000cc BMW / T & R Motorsport 01 53 39.79 119.501 Bronze
21 58 Michael Russell 998cc Kawasaki / Top Gun Racing 01 54 09.82 118.977 Bronze
22 29 Ian Pattinson 998cc BMW / Ian Pattinson 01 54 37.99 118.489 Bronze
27 38 David Hewson 1000cc Kawasaki / Ch'Ien Acupuncture Clinic 01 55 47.67 117.301 Bronze
28 44 Steve Heneghan 1000cc BMW / Quattro Plant Motorsport 01 55 55.97 117.161 Bronze
29 50 Scott Wilson 1000cc BMW / Diamond H Servlite 01 56 05.04 117.008 Bronze
FASTEST RACE LAP - 1 John McGuinness 17 mins 14.89 secs 131.248 mph
This was on a CBR1000RR and was close to lap record speed and time. Note that once more the fastest BMW only managed 93.6% of the pace of the fastest bike (exactly the same % gap as in the first superbike race!) So the pattern is fairly clear, the S1000R is just as slow in 2011, as it was in 2010, and has made zero detectable progress, despite there being many more of them, and a whole lot of money invested in them.
If people were paying attention to the actual performance and results from 2010, they would not have invested in the under-performing Beamer.
--
This pattern clearly illustrates why checking data and performance results matters, as you can save heaps of money and time and avoid poor choices. The S1000R is not a winner. And worse, it apparently can not be made into a winner, via tuning it, and modifying it. It's a flawed design and only a re-designed model can remedy the weak points. These weaknesses only appear when you have to push the chassis hard at speed, and this is also why it has failed to come to the fore in WSBK.
Adrian Archibald is an experience racer and if anyone was going to make the BMW go fast it would have been him (or Keith Amor) but the closest he could get was two creditable 9th places, this year. But when you combine all the practice and race lap times you find this;
SUPERSTOCK
The BMW S1000R's fastest lap was only the 15th fastest SuperStock lap - overall.
15 8 Adrian Archibald 1000cc BMW / AMA Racing Team 18 20.39 123.436 Tues, 31st May practice
SUPERBIKE
The BMW S1000R's fastest lap overall, was only the 19th fastest Superbike-spec lap time.
19 23 Steve Mercer BMW / W A Corless / Jackson Racing 18 26.84 122.717 Fri, 3rd June practice
Plus there are precisely eighteen 600cc laps (on treaded tires with ~85 horsepower less) that lapped significantly faster than the very fastest S1000R lap time.
In other words, if every competitor at the TT this year was made to ride a 2011 BMW S1000R, they'd set lap times and average speeds like those of 2003. That's how far off the pace the S1000R is compared to the current (less powerful) Japanese bikes. That's a H U G E performance gap that can't be bridged with setup tweaks.
The actual performance design of a bike matters a lot in TT racing because there's a long-list of DEAD and severely injured riders from these events, over the past century, and also this decade (plus a couple killed in 2011). So the last thing the rider needs is to waste their time and resources and risk their life on a bike that does not handle well at the top of its performance envelope, so will NEVER BE ABLE TO WIN against a better-balanced design. Plus it holds them back from learning enough to be in a better position to win during future races.
At present that's the Fireblade, with less peak-power and no fancy electronics, but with a staggeringly well sorted and refined chassis design, and the ZX-10R, with more power and new electronics, but a chassis that also generally works better than earlier models. As the saying goes; anyone can get to within a second of lap records, but getting the final second beat is much harder. And that's the problem BMW have, they got close with the first iteration but to finesse it to go as fast as the Japanese bikes only comes from competition, refinement, and re-designing a better model.
Close, but no cigar.
Honda are about to release a new Fireblade which will build on what's already right about it, and this will put the S1000R even further behind (and yes, it will be cheaper).
If I were BMW I'd seriously consider talking to someone like Greg MacDonald at Computrac here in Oz. He's a go-to-guy for precision geometry and chassis design and quantitative (6-axis laser) measuring and diagnosing of exactly why (not guesses) a bike doesn't perform at the highest level, and routinely tunes designs and setups to be able to go noticeably faster.
Finally, despite the regrettable electronic-neutering path Kawasaki took (in North America) it's obvious from the above that they've designed a seriously competitive sport bike. Indeed, the record race-prepped superbike laps only a small faction faster than a decorked ZX-10R stocker with race plastic. i.e.
Lap time percent the current superstock model achieves compared to the current Superbike Lap record (CBR1000RR) over the IOMTT course:
1. CBR1000RR 99.3%
2. ZX-10R 98.9%
3. GSX-R 96.1%
4. S1000R 93.8%
5. YZF-R1 92.5%
That's a real 'comparo', and note that only the ZX-10R and CBR1000RR superstockers tend to lap faster than the fastest supersport bikes ... so much for more power, huh?
--- ENDS ---
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Natural selection always gets it right over time, and you are the byproduct of about 4 billion years of it, so do try not to prove it wrong ... mmmkay?
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