Sportbikes are among the coolest things on two wheels. And for many of us, it’s precisely because of these crotch rockets that we—myself included—got hooked on motorcycles.
The bikes are now faster, safer, and more technologically advanced than ever before, as even affordable beginner sportbikes rock tech we could only dream about two decades ago. That's allowed the middleweight segment of the class to explode both in popularity and size, as manufacturers and customers alike flock to the group. A good example of this could be the RC 700 from the Cyclone brand of Chinese manufacturer Zongshen.
At a glance, it could be easy to think that this thing was a liter-class supersport thanks to its super-sharp fairings and aggressive stance. In fact, if you squint hard enough, you could very well be looking at a BMW S 1000 RR from the side, or a CBR1000RR from up front.
In reality, however, the Cyclone RC 700 “borrows” its design and architecture from a rather familiar player in the sportbike segment: the Honda CBR650R. And it could very well upset the middleweight sportbike world. At least, I think so.
The RC 700 is rocking a four-banger with a similar construction as that of Honda’s, but the displacement has been cranked up to 674 cubes. Zongshen doesn’t give us any claimed power ratings, but it’s safe to assume that around 100 horsepower (like that of the CBR650R) is being put down.
As for technology, well, the RC 700 features all the premium features we’ve come to see as the norm, with a full-color TFT display, multiple ride modes, ABS, and traction control all giving the bike a substantial spec sheet.
It seems, however, that Zongshen ditched the single-sided swingarm we saw in the concept RC 680 unveiled last year. That's a shame, really, as that bike looked pretty sleek.
As of the moment, it seems that Cyclone is selling the new RC 700 only in the Chinese market. However, if it proves to be a sales success, it’s more than likely that we’ll see it enter the global market in one form or another. After all, Zongshen has ties with Italian moto giant Piaggio.
In the past, we’ve seen Piaggio employ Zongshen’s technology in some of its brands such as Aprilia and Gilera. And so the notion of the RC 700 making its way to the global market under more familiar branding is by no means far-fetched.
But again, like most Chinese-made motorcycles on the market today, it can be all too easy to fall for the allure of fancy tech at low prices. And while these bikes will more than likely prove to be reliable, we still don’t know if they can stand the test of time as well as their Japanese, American, and European counterparts.
Yet, the RC 700 seems to be poised to upset a lot of household names. At least if they can stick the landing.
