Triumph Update: “We’re Still Working On MX Bikes, And Uhhhh, That’s Pretty Much It”

[advrider]

So whatever happened to Triumph’s big off-road motorcycle development project? Where are our new enduros, our new motocross bikes? This week, the British-based manufacturer released a statement saying the project is ongoing, but it didn’t give away much more than that.

According to a release from Triumph Motorcycles, pro motocross legend Ricky Carmichael and enduro star Ivan Cervantes have just wrapped up a week-long test at Triumph’s UK factory, working with the company’s test pilots as well as the R&D team. And, that’s pretty much it. You can read the whole release here; it gives very, very little away, with Carmichael and Cervantes just spouting the company line about how happy and excited they are.

Well, they’ve both been around for a while, and they know better than to spill the beans. Any real info in the release—and again, there isn’t much to work with here—comes from Steve Sargent, Triumph’s Chief Project Officer:

It was a pleasure to have both Ricky and Ivan with us for a whole week and to continue to take full advantage of their experience with the development of our off-road prototypes. Having both legendary motorcycle racers together to contribute to such a crucial phase of the bike’s development is invaluable. Together we share a single-minded ambition to launch motorcycles that are 100% capable of winning, that bring something new and different to riders in both worlds, that encompass all of Triumph’s expertise and capability, and that leverage everything Ricky and Ivan know about winning and developing bikes that deliver consistently race after race.

It’s most interesting to see talk of being “capable of winning.” Triumph doesn’t compete against other manufacturers in MotoGP, World Superbike, etc. (it manufactures the spec engine in Moto2, but has no competitors there). If Triumph builds a dirt bike and enters it into Supercross racing or other series, it would be an uncharacteristically bold move for Hinckley. But, with a new global Supercross series starting in a few months, maybe the time is better than ever—as long as the new bike is as competitive as Triumph says it will be.

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