Is The Yamaha R9 Still Coming? Here's Everything We Currently Know About The Bike

Yamaha sport bikes are some of the best on the road. Over the years, Yamaha has made several iconic motorcycles, and the reputation of its flagship bike, the R1, is well established. Unfortunately, it seems the R1 might not be around much longer. Yamaha reportedly said the R1 and R1M will not be updated for the newest European "Euro 5+" emissions requirements, which means it will likely be unavailable to European consumers in the near future. The R1 will still be available as a track-only bike, but not for riding on the street.

These moves aren't unprecedented. Yamaha discontinued another legendary sport bike a few years ago, replacing the R6 with the R7, while offering R6s only for track use. 

So, with some uncertainty around the R1 and it's future, it's only natural that Yamaha sportbike fans are waiting for the reveal of the newest addition to the lineup, which will likely be the R9. 

There's already all sorts of speculation about the R9 and its place in the Yamaha lineup, but what do we really know? Is it really a replacement for the R1? What kind of power will it provide? Will the current R1 be the last proper liter bike from Yamaha before emissions kill it off entirely? Let's sort through the details. 

There are no official photos of the R9 just yet so we've included photos of the current R1 and the MT-09 (pictured above) for reference.

Currently, there are four "supersport" bikes listed on Yamaha's website: R1M, R1, R7, and R3. Those are the only full-fairing sport bikes you can get from Yamaha right now. As mentioned above, the R6 was discontinued a while back because it didn't meet European emissions standards and the R1 is likely the next victim of that process. It'll live on in racing form, but if you're looking for something to ride on the street, the R1 won't be available much longer.

As for the R9, Yamaha hasn't announced any official specs or photos of the R9 yet, though the name has been trademarked. A few years ago, Yamaha filed trademark applications for the R9 name, along with some other R-branded motorcycles. According to motorcyclenews.com, the R9 will replace the R6 in the racing world, but that's about all we know so far. We can take some speculative leaps and state what we think will happen with the R9, but there isn't much solid information on the bike itself.

The R6 was replaced a few years ago by the R7. Instead of four cylinders like the R6, the R7 went with Yamaha's two-cylinder, CP2 engine. The R1 currently uses a four-cylinder engine, but with Euro 5+ emissions standards, that's not likely to be the case with the R9. Instead, the R9 will likely use Yamaha's CP3, which is a three-cylinder engine currently powering the XSR900 and the MT-09. The MT-09 produces about 117 horsepower and 68.5 lb-ft of torque. It's a healthy amount of power, but R1 owners are used to 197 horsepower, which is much more than the CP3 engine makes in any Yamaha application right now.

Thankfully, the CP3 engine provides excellent mid-range torque and impressive riding dynamics, which should convert some liter-bike purists. It's also likely a high-performance version of the R9 is potentially in the works. 

With the price-savings of using an already-developed engine, the R9 could be priced considerably lower than the R1's $18,399 asking price too – making it more accessible to the masses. We don't know exactly when the R9 will be revealed, but we can speculate a bit on that as well. The trademark for Yamaha's R9 was filed a few years ago, but the deadline for Euro 5+ standards is the beginning of 2025. That will likely trigger the end of commercial production for the R1, and start the clock on the arrival of the R9.