KTM Super Duke 1290 revealed

THE KTM Super Duke R 1290 isn’t a secret. It was shown as a concept bike last year and has been spied on test several times since. But the production model was shown to dealers in America and these pictures have been posted online by an employee of the Kiska design agency that styled it.

Last month we posted pictures of a prototype KTM 1290 SuperDuke and now this is the real thing.

Posted on the derestricted blog (blog.derestricted.com), operated by one of Kiska’s graphics designers, these shots are a reaction to the grainy cameraphone images emerging from the dealer meeting, and show the bike in all its glory.

Ok, so we’re not taken by the paint scheme (Stars? Check. Stripes? Check. Eagle? Check. All clichéd American 4th-of-July and apple pie tests passed…) but the bike itself looks better than the spied prototypes suggested. And with nearly 1300cc of RC8-derived V-twin punching out something approaching 200bhp, it’s going to be a lunatic.

You probably won’t be able to actually get the blue one in the UK, and somehow a British-oriented version would be worse still (what logo would they have on the tank to replace the eagle? A pot of tea? The Queen’s head?) we’re guessing paintwork along the lines of the original orange concept bike – pictured with the blue production version – will be offered.