New Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR breaks cover at WSBK test ahead of launch

Sathurshan

November 20, 2020

Just ahead of the official launch, the all-new 2021 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR breaks cover during WorldSBK winter test.

2021 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR

The incoming 2021 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR breaks cover ahead of its official launch which is set for 23rd November 2020. The new Ninja ZX-10RR has been recently spotted during the WSBK winter test at Jerez with Jonathan Rea behind the wheel.

WSBK Winter Test Results:

Jonathan Rea ( Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) 1’38.324s
Toprak Razgatlioglu (PATA YAMAHA WorldSBK Official Team) +0.515s
Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) +0.562s
Garrett Gerloff (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Junior Team) +0.847s
Leon Haslam ( Team HRC) +1.527s
Andrea Locatelli (PATA YAMAHA WorldSBK Official Team) +1.553s
Lucas Mahias (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) + 1.870s
Alvaro Bautista (Team HRC) + 1.907s
Kohta Nozane (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Junior Team) +2.345s
Isaac Viñales (ORELAC Racing VerdNatura) +2.568s
Loris Cresson (OUTDO Kawasaki TPR) +4.862s

In fact, photos of upcoming year’s Ninja ZX-10R and ZX-10RR leaked out via Australian type-approval paperwork earlier this month. In case you missed this, here they are.

Yes, finally the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R range is getting a facelift! Although the WSBK ZX-10RR is covered in the team’s winter test livery, the overall design still stands true to the earlier leaked photos.

2021 Model updates:

The flagship Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R range is visually changing big for 2021. From the updated H2-style headlamp to the centrally mounted ram-air intake, angular fairings and bodywork, the incoming Kawasaki ZX-10R range is indeed tasteful.

On the tech side, we do not have any official details yet. However, we managed to pick up a few details from the latest reports and recently leaked type-approval paperwork. According to reports, the frame and most of the engine would be carried forward from the ongoing model. However, Kawasaki would most likely tweak the exhaust, braking and suspension setup.

As Europe is entering Euro 5 emission rules next year,  the engine on the 2021 machine would be revised to meet Euro 5 stands. However, sources suggest the engine output would remain the same but with a few changes in the rev range. The current ZX-10R and ZX-10RR push 200 bhp and 201 bhp respectively at 13,500 rpm, but for 2021, the rev range would drop to 13,200 rpm in the ZX-10R and hike up to 14,000 rpm in the ZX-10RR. As for the electronics, the ZX-10R range would get a new TFT dashboard as well as a tweaked electronic package with a few updates.

Source: YoungMachine, CycleWorld