Future Ducati MotoGP rider tests Chinese brand's new Superbike

Footage has emerged of future MotoGP riders Dani Holgado and David Alonso testing CFMoto’s highly-anticipated V4 SR-RR superbike.

Holgado, who will join the Gresini Racing team alongside Joan Mir at the end of this season, was joined by future Honda rider Alonso, as well as Aspar Moto3 rider Maximo Quilles. 

The test was carried out by CFMoto and the Aspar race team, with the bike dressed in a camouflaged livery in order to hide details of the new prototype.

The test also comes off the back of CFMoto’s V4 SR-RR reaching a top speed of 315.82 km/h (196.2 mph) earlier this summer.

To give you an idea of just how fast that is, the all-time MotoGP top speed record, set by Jorge Martin aboard his factory Aprilia RS-GP at Mugello earlier this year, is only 32.8mph faster.

The bike’s claimed top speed of 196.2mph means it is now the top speed record holder for a Chinese combustion engine motorcycle.

While the V4 SR-RR will arrive on the market at some stage, there’s a bigger picture to all of this with regards to racing.

With MotoGP moving to 850cc engines in 2027, and the V4 SR-RR likely to arrive as the company’s new flagship race bike, the 997cc machine could be heading for a future in WorldSBK.

If that happens, CFMoto would become the first Chinese manufacturer to compete in the premier class of world championship racing, thus making the V4 SR-RR the first bike to achieve that feat as well.

It’s no secret that CFMoto has interest in competing beyond Moto2 and Moto3, with both MotoGP and WorldSBK rumoured as possibilities previously.

However, the route to MotoGP appears to be a much tougher prospect at the moment, especially since KTM’s spot in MotoGP looks to be safe with the Austrian company overcoming its recent financial crisis.

That’s not to mention that KTM recently agreed to the new manufacturers commercial agreement alongside Ducati, Aprilia, Honda and Yamaha, keeping all five brands in the sport for the next five years.