KTM’s Track-Only Sportbike Coming Soon

KTM is set to reveal an ultralimited track-only sportbike on July 20 which promises Moto2 levels of performance, but with a production run of just 100 machines. And while this is not yet confirmed, every indication suggests the bike will be an officially adopted version of the Kramer GP2-R.

Kramer, formed in 2009 by former KTM engineers, specializes in building trackbikes based around the Austrian firm’s engines, starting with the 690 LC4 single and more recently adding the GP2-R based on the KTM’s parallel-twin LC8c engine.

Related: 2011 KTM 125 Duke at INTERMOT 2010 - Video

KTM’s official teaser video, revealed on the firm’s Facebook page, doesn’t give much away, only saying the bike will be as quick as a Moto2 racer and confirming the limited production numbers, but it does show an image of the frame and a silhouetted shot of the whole bike’s rear end. On examining both, every visible detail aligns with the idea that it’s based on the Kramer GP2-R—itself a bike that’s named after the Moto2 performance level it offers on track.

The frame, while painted in KTM orange instead of the black or bright green that Kramer tends to use on its bikes, looks identical to the GP2-R’s trellis. It’s a chrome molybdenum steel chassis with a simple, triangulated trellis design, and the chassis tubes on both the KTM and Kramer frames follow exactly the same pattern. On the KTM version you can even see the mounting lugs on either side for crash bobbins—identical to those on the Kramer GP2-R.

Moving to the silhouetted rear shot of the KTM from the Facebook teaser, you can see the swingarm adjusters, while barely visible, appear to match the Kramer design, and when the image is lightened you can even see that the bellypan mounting bolts are in precisely the same spot. Whether the KTM uses the same fairing as the Kramer remains to be seen, as there’s a good chance it will instead follow the design of the firm’s real Moto2 racers.

If, as it appears, the new KTM is a rebranded version of the Kramer GP2-R, then the specs are already available. The bike uses a 130 hp tuned version of the 890cc LC8c engine from the Duke 890 in a package that weighs just 140 kilograms (309 pounds) in ready-to-ride form. Given that the minimum weight limit for a Moto2 bike is 217 kilograms (479 pounds) including the rider, that’s the same as a Moto2 racer if the rider weighs a plausible 77 kilograms (170 pounds).

Given Kramer’s close ties with KTM it’s no surprise the GP2-R uses WP suspension, and the KTM sportbike will follow suit. A close-up in KTM’s teaser video shows the bike’s rear shock with a classic white spring that’s something of a WP hallmark, along with a remote reservoir with dual adjuster screws. Kramer uses the WP Apex Pro 7746 shock, and the image in the KTM video appears to show the same unit.

That means it’s a safe bet the KTM will also use the Apex Pro 7543 fork chosen by Kramer, and it makes sense that with the same suspension setup, KTM will also adopt the Dymag wheels used by Kramer to ensure the unsprung mass doesn’t change.

While the trackbike shows a renewed interest in race-replica machines from KTM, it’s far from the limited-production, track-only version of the RC16 MotoGP machine that the firm promised to make several years ago. That project appears to have fallen by the wayside, and ever since canceling the RC8 superbike, KTM boss Stefan Pierer has maintained that KTM will not get involved in building road-going superbikes. However, there have been suggestions in the past that the 890 LC8c engine could be adopted into a sportbike, and the new track-only model might be a toe in the water to see how much demand might exist for such a model. All will be revealed at 4 p.m. Central European Time, July 20.