It’s that time of year when we award the biggest prize in Australian motorcycling

Welcome to AMCN’s Motorcycle of the Year for 2025, presented by National Motorcycle Insurance – the most anticipated test for readers, staff and the industry alike! We have called upon the expertise of our team of experienced testers, here in Australia and overseas, to determine the standout new motorcycle model of the year – as judged against our tried and tested criteria.

We’ve selected a cross-section of new models that showcase the present state of the industry and the huge choice Australian riders have across all market segments. After testing all the major new releases over the past 12 months, we’ve narrowed our choice down to the 10 you will discover over the following pages.

As we did last year, rather than be compromised by exactly what models are available from importers in time for a single all-in test, we’ve rated these individually by the experts who first rode them. Let the judging begin!

 

Selecting the best

Here’s how we judged the best of a year’s new releases to choose Number One!

To determine our coveted MOTY award, we pulled together a selection of new models that showcased what the options were for Aussie buyers in 2025. It covered a cross-section of genres. For example, a Chinese four-pot screamer with way more tech than the sale price would indicate.

Then a Japanese triple that transformed WorldSSP racing. How about a German retro adventure bike that actually rocks on an enduro course? Or an Italian single-cylinder that almost guarantees you’ll lose your licence if you ride it like its maker intended?

Not to mention a British perfomance naked that really offers you three motorcycles in one. That’s just a few of the new models that have stuck in our minds and found a place in our hearts after a year of riding everything we could chuck a leg over. After much debate we’ve chosen our top 10, then consulted those who first rode them in real-world tests. It may be a cross-section of bikes but we asked the same main questions of them all: Did this new model nail its design brief? Is it breaking new ground? And, most importantly, is it slicing through the marketing malarky to truly deliver for the waiting buyer? Let’s find out…

JUDGING CRITERIA
  • Build Quality Does it feel like a fortress on wheels or something you’d find in a flat-pack kit?
  • Innovation Is it pushing boundaries, or just slapping on some shiny paint and calling it a day?
  • Design Brief Did it nail the assignment, delivering to the rider what it promises to do on the tin?
  • Relevance of features Does it have tech you’ll actually use, or just stuff to impress your mates at the pub?
  • Value for Money Not just price, because a well-equipped expensive bike can still represent top value.

THE FINALISTS

…in alphabetical order

 

THE JUDGES

The crew charged with 2025’s MOTY judging

Hamish Cooper – Age Old enough
Dep Ed Hammer started riding back in the Seventies on a Triumph 3TA, but we won’t hold that against him. Since the late 1980s until 2015 he tested nearly every new model released. In recent years he’s scaled back the launches but still rides a range of dirt and road bikes.

Damien Pelletier – Age 47
Digital Editor Damo’s passion for bikes began as a teen thrashing a KX 125, then evolved through MotoGP-inspired track days. Still an ADV enthusiast, he still holds a soft spot for Kawasaki, despite owning a BMW K 1300 R.

David Watt – Age 41
Wattie arrived at AMCN a decade or so ago as runner-up in the Cover Hero comp and never really left. If he was Italian we could nickname him ‘Multistrada’. This ex-racer can – and will – ride anything to the limit and is a lynchpin of our everyday testing.

Adam Child – Age 49
Rock-solid performer, whether it’s in print or punting the latest model around a MotoGP track or some crazy backroad in the Spanish mountains. A racer at club and even at IoM T level, ‘Chad‘ is our go-to guy for international launches that require those skills.

Kel Buckley – Age 44
Perhaps Australia’s most experienced moto-journalist, Kel has tested and judged the best and worst over more than two decades. She works at the coal face of motojournalism and even likes getting her hands dirty in the workshop keeping her Yamaha TRX850 going.

Chris Jones – Age 47
Chris has lived and breathed bikes since age five. From tearing up trails to conquering road rides, his passion spans trials, enduro and five Finke Desert Race finishes. With 29 bikes owned and counting, Chris embodies the spirit of two wheels: living life wide open and full throttle.

Tara Morrison – Age 21
Columnist with a gift for telling it like it is, Tarzy is on a learning curve for both motojournalism and racing. But she’s already achieved wins in both, representing us overseas, winning twice at PI and competing in WorldWRC.

 

A new king!

The bike that turned WorldSSP on its head takes our chequered flag

Make no mistake about this. Our 2025 winner passed the post first by a nose. But Yamaha’s YZF-R9 is a worthy winner on several levels. Rather than simply re-clothing an existing model, Yamaha pulled out all the stops to fill the gap between the YZF-R7 (the top-selling road motorcycle in Australia in 2024) and its fire-breathing YZF-R1. The brief given to its R&D team was to produce a motorcycle with a 50/50 track/road focus.

That Yamaha achieved this is commendable. That its factory racing team took the 2025 WorldSSP title on debut, winning 14 out of 18 races, is nothing short of incredible. That 11th title made Yamaha the most successful manufacturer in WorldSSP history. That’s all well and good, but how did the R9 perform in Aussie conditions? Our tester took it to the limit at Sydney Motorsport Park’s tight and twisting 1.8km Amaroo South Circuit. After tweaking its suspension and rider modes to gain a two-second-a-lap improvement, he took it to the open road. There he found it fulfilled its design brief just as well.

The R9 was always a hot tip for the win – but its opposition certainly wasn’t copping it sweet in defeat. Triumph’s 2025 Speed Triple RS is definitely no consolation prize. With 180.5hp, class-leading Öhlins Smart EC3 suspension and a full suite of advanced rider aids, it’s Triumph’s most powerful and refined naked ever. From slippery roads to damp tracks, the bike’s electronics and cornering ABS make it deceptively easy to push hard, while the new lightweight wheels, one-piece handlebar and sharper styling give it a more agile, aggressive presence. Fast, fun and versatile, it’s a triple-threat that proves runner-up can still feel like the main act.

But honestly, who cares about fancy electronics when you can have 155hp for well under $20k? Our third-place getter – the 2025 Honda CB1000 Hornet SP – is without question the bargain-basher of the year, blending brutal mid-range torque, flickable handling and a raucous inline-four that’s as raw as it is fun. At 212kg, it feels light and nimble in traffic, comfy on long rides, and is packed with character that punches well above its price. Yes, the rider aids are a little bit basic (which, if we’re being honest, many people actually find appealing in these days of tech for tech’s sake), and traction control can be bossy, but with this much punch and style, the Hornet SP doesn’t just ride… it slaps a grin on your face and won’t let go.

Check out the scores below to see just how close the voting was and the strengths and weakness of our Top 10. BTW, we can’t wait to compile our MOTY 2026!