Yamaha has unveiled its 2025 flagships, the YZF-R1 and R1M for the global market, which gets cosmetic and other updates. The R1 has been Yamaha’s litre-class flagship for ages, and the motorcycle continues to be on sale, but unfortunately, it’s not road-legal.
2025 Yamaha YZF-R1 and YZF-R1M updates
In terms of what’s new with the motorcycles, the litre-class duo get carbon-fibre winglets inspired by the M1 race bikes. This is not just visually appealing, but Yamaha says that they add downforce while cornering and exiting corners.
Now moving on to mechanical updates, the new R1 gets updated KYB forks which are fully adjustable. Yamaha claims that the new forks are re-tuned to offer better stability on the road. The higher-spec R1M, on the other hand, gets the top-of-the-line Ohlins forks. Adding to the updated suspension are Brembo Stylema callipers for better stopping power.
The engine on the R1 continues to be a 998cc, liquid-cooled four-cylinder engine that makes 200bhp and 113Nm of torque. The engine is mated to a six-speed gearbox. The two litre-class siblings are loaded with electronics and a six-axis IMU.
Now, coming to the sad news. The 2025 Yamaha R1 and R1M do not comply with the Euro 5 norms, meaning they cannot be sold in Europe as road-legal motorcycles, and in India as well. However, they are made for track use only. In the USA, where the norms are a bit relaxed, they can be registered for the road.
