The 2021 Triumph Speed Triple RS gets a famed name back in the performance game

Back in 1994, when John Bloor resurrected Triumph from the ashes of the British motorcycle industry, two jobs were essential: build something that would in no way be mistaken for the antiquated, unreliable, air-cooled twins that the original Triumph kept building into the 1980s while the rest of the industry had moved on, and build bikes efficiently, to control the costs of starting up such a capital-intensive industry. The original Speed Triple played a big role in meeting both those objectives.

The original 885 cc, liquid-cooled, three-cylinder engine showed that this was a new Triumph, building modern motorcycles, not just digging some leftover parts out of the old bins. To keep costs under control, Triumph built different models just by changing a few parts around that engine. This was the era when British riders on a budget were inventing the “streetfighter” genre. Basically, they’d take a crashed sport bike, strip off the rashed plastic, bolt on a handlebar for a more upright riding position better for navigating urban streets, bolt on an aftermarket headlight and have a performance bike on a fish-and-chips budget.

The Speed Triple was a factory-built streetfighter, complete with a round headlight that looked like an aftermarket part you’d pick up at the swap meet to finish off your project. It wasn’t that much different from a Daytona sport bike, which had a fairing and clip-ons. But more than any other model, the Speed Triple became the image of the new Triumph in the company’s early days.

The new Speed Triple RS carries on the styling of one of Triumph’s most iconic models. Unfortunately, it also carries on Triumph’s recent tradition (shared with too many other motorcycle manufacturers these days) of thinking every bike should be available in gray. Triumph photo.

The new Speed Triple RS, stronger and lighter

The 2021 Triumph Speed Triple RS just unveiled is still recognizably a Speed Triple, though the progress made in 27 years would have been beyond imagination back in 1994. Consider the fact that the 2021 Speed Triple RS’s power-to-weight ratio is double that of the 1994’s model. And while some riders no doubt dreamed of that back in 1994, I’m sure they never imagined a Speed Triple with lean-angle-sensitive traction control and anti-lock brakes, wheelie control, cruise control and five electronic ride modes.

But back to the power and weight. Triumph says the new bike makes 177 horsepower and weighs 436.5 pounds wet. That kind of power virtually demands electronic rider aids, and while that turns off some riders, the Speed Triple has become a more focused, more exclusive model. It had to do that to survive. As motorcycles like the KTM Super Duke 1290, the Ducati Streetfighter V4, the Aprilia Tuono Factory and even the supercharged Kawasaki Z H2 raised the stakes, the Speed Triple, once considered a high performance naked bike, fell further behind. Maybe only a few buyers were going to purchase these naked bikes that were pushing 200 horsepower and $20,000, but as halo bikes, they burnished their respective brands, even in small numbers.

With sticky Metzeler Racetec RR tires and a track mode among the electronic settings, the new Speed Triple is obviously built for performance, not practicality, so it can compete with other halo naked performance bikes. Triumph photo.

So to get the Speed Triple back in the game, Triumph pumped up the power and layered on all the tech, from the electronic rider aids mentioned before to fully keyless ignition to the TFT display with connectivity. Components are top-shelf, from the Öhlins suspension to the Brembo Stylema brake calipers. The bike is priced accordingly at $18,300 in the U.S. market.

My Speed Triple, shown in 2014. It’s still on the road now, with more than 117,000 miles on the odometer.

One of more than 100,000

Of course I have a long-standing interest in the Speed Triple. My 1997 is not the original model. It’s the second generation, which added fuel injection, the aluminum frame and the twin round chrome-shelled headlights that really came to define the look and style of the Speed Triple (and later Street Triple) line. Some people never got over it when Triumph later replaced those round headlights with more modern styles on the Speed and Street lines.

When I bought it, one year old, in 1998, my Speedy was still considered a solid performer. It was not the fastest thing, by a long shot, but it had a bit of a reputation. But even if mine weren’t 24 years old with more than 117,000 miles on the odometer and burdened with a lifetime of being poorly maintained by me, it would still perform like a slug compared to the new 2021 bike.

The round headlights may be gone, but some of the trademark features introduced on my 1997 are still there, like the single-sided swingarm and 190-section rear tire. The side-mounted exhaust returns after being tucked under the tail for many years. Triumph photo.

And while I say the new Speed Triple is still identifiable for what it is, the fact is that it does represent a departure. Triumph has sold more than 100,000 Speed Triples, from helping resurrect the marque back in 1994 through many generations since. But the 2021 Speed Triple won’t sell in big numbers, and Triumph knows it. That’s why it’s only available in top-of-the-line RS trim. It’s for those who want all the features, all the power, all the tech. People who might consider buying something absurd like a Ducati Streetfighter V4. Riders with more modest or practical tastes — and that would include me — will buy the Street Triple.

No, the new Speed Triple won’t sell in big numbers but it very well may serve its real purpose: Getting the name back in the game.