Kawasaki H2R - on the drag strip

We sent our tame photographer to shoot Al Fagan's day at Santa Pod. The full H2R feature is in the new issue, out now! By the way, you can tell the trackside music was coming out of their speakers, right? I haven't put that on, just wanted to point that out.

[@aeror115]

I love this bike! It’s my favorite one for the track

[@richardprosser5026]

I have a h2 with brocks stage 2 kit. Standard height and wheel base. Used launch control for the first 3 runs and went 10.4, 10. 5 and 10.6 Way too intrusive. Turned it all off and ran 10.0s. Finally getting a 9.91. Speeds were 158-160mph. Getting off the line is the problem. Deffo could get a 9.7 with more practice.

[@Smzxe]

H2R just ran 9.4 Vs F1 Redbull RB8

[@sushi_edits225]

@@Smzxe and that too in unfavourable weather conditions

[@cheeesefunnel]

the H2r will not do well at the strip unless you make it a stretch

[@racer774]

If you haven't figured it out by now, when doing a burnout, whether on a bike or in a car, you ONLY want to moisten the tire(s) a bit and then roll completely out of the water before you begin the burnout. There are many benefits for doing it this way. The tire is heated much quicker which is easier on the engine, you don't sling water up under the fender or frame which will drip down onto the tire while staging, your tire doesn't roll through anymore water after it begins to heat up, your clutch doesn't get additional heat from overworking your engine by doing an extended burnout in water. I do my burnouts in 2nd gear. Thank you for your magazine. I enjoy it very much.

[@Twobarpsi]

Perfect advice!

[@broccoli-fn5406]

This is the dodge demon of the motorcycle world

[@richardprosser5026]

I used to race a z1r back in 1990. It was turbo, nitrous and 1425 cc. Ran 9.33 in the finals at Avon park at 156mph. So the potential for the h2 is great. Tie the front end down and lengthen it will see 8.5s at 170mph I would reckon. Doing 8.1s in the states

[@abymathew295]

yeah..that what happens when you get 250+ horsepower on your rear wheel....how do u control it...

[@xxdanthedinoxx1058]

That bike is monster I’ve seen people control it they get insane numbers

[@MrGsxr10001]

Dude! you can go rev rev rev rev and dump the clutch! That's why you cant get from 0 -90 you don't know what the bikes gonna do because your leaving at an unknown rpm. You need launch lessons. Go talk to Rickey LOL!

[@silverviper2184]

How much does the rider weigh? Whats the track elevation?

[@LS1able]

Ricky gadson runs 9.35 on a stock 14r

[@twopoke]

I was there on the day, epic bike... But not built for the quarter mile.... Not long enough to attempt to tame the front!

[@asicaery7881]

I ran a 10.1 on an H2 lol its a hard ass bike to drag race with

[@MotoLexy]

I would have thought the wheelie control would have made it run at it's full potential a bit faster than 10.4

[@bravo1412]

gewicht auf der Vorderrad ist das porblem! a 1992 fzr 1000 goes a 10.4 on the 1/4mile wiht 230kg and 145hp. a 2000 600cc bike goes 0-60 arround 3 sec a 1990 1000c goes 0-60 3 sec and the in 2020 a bike with 350hp goes 0-60 in 3 sec! some old bikes from the 1990 are messured 2.6-2.7 sec 0-60 but with 230-250kg. more kg on the from wheel make you faster!

[@llerradish]

I only been to the dragstrip once and the best I could do was a 10:4 @138 mph on a stock 2012 ZX14R maybe I will do better next time. I would really like to run a 9:99 or better.

[@dg8062]

Longer swingarm and a dunlop drag max radial and you would be right there in the low 9's, flirting with high 8's. So many mods for this bike by now.

[@NOS-ZL1]

Slip clutch start and a bit of a short sift to 2nd and feather the wheelie in 3rd and you’ll be in the 9.8s Your launch AND trying to force the horse power down to early is killing you. Less power is faster in some cases. Your bike has tons of power. It’s not even realistic to think you can use it all with stock wheelbase and a strap. Good luck my friend. 👍

[@dark_bull67]

Meanwhile the 765lt doing 9.5's without breaking a sweat

[@BIGTONKAA69]

9.3s

[@alexnutcasio936]

Plaid Model S is doing 9.2 at 153…….

[@GyroPyro121212]

With an automatic transmission, no skill, and 3% as much fun.

[@Smzxe]

😂 H2R ran 9.4 let's see 1/2 mile or 1 mile race H2R will drop Chiron 765 or Agera RS 😂

[@Cruz474]

I would invest in a wheelie bar

[@jonc1901]

So frustrating! You did your best, good try though. Too bad she won't easily run 9s out of the box

[@davidtomkins4242]

It's the same issue with lairy tvrs, the ferrari f40 and old school lamborghinis. Too much power for the back wheels to put down on the tarmac (in a standing start)

[@cedricvreekamp1928]

H2R might be one of the few bikes that's quicker with a fat driver en is really need a longer sway bar for drag racing

[@everydayirace]

+Cedric Vreekamp A heavier rider would raise the bike's center of mass, which will make it even slower.

[@elcamel1216]

I hear that sneaky Baron in the background

[@bismillahmashallah]

Baron von grumble?

[@elcamel1216]

+Middleastbeast yup

[@turdbucket5424]

What a HANDFULL that bike is...

[@odetdpseconddletdpseta9343]

No, just a handful for this rookie.

[@justaboy9552]

3:56 HAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHA

[@BlueHokage]

Shame there isnt much use for the H2R in Britain, because of trackday noise compliance. Also, im sure the robots living inside of KZbin will still write you up for not muting the trackside music ;-)

[@fastbikes]

+BlueHokage New exhaust coming soon for it from Kawasaki will make it track-day friendly.

[@pitchforkpeasant6219]

Track day noise compliance? Noise compliance? Why?

[@ANGELOFDEATH666DEI]

Why this car come in two wheels?

[@bismillahmashallah]

Needs to be lowered and extend the rear

[@akshayoval9624]

Longer swing arm ...✌️

[@therealmrcheese]

can you not just put a dB killer on it so its quiet enough for the track?

[@lou30088]

This is what happens when you take a track only bike to a drag strip !!!!! Too much power in a short wheel base !!!!! I ran a 6.4 1/8 mile on my 2002 Suzuki gsxr1000. I lowered it 3 inches front and rear,

[@trekreview]

This bike is cool for the "experience" but give me a zx14 any day and I will walk that H2.

[@DanielBrown-yw5zc]

NOT

[@odetdpseconddletdpseta9343]

No you won't maybe on qtr mile drag strip, but take it to the track and you will get your ass handed to 2 times over.

[@trekreview]

@@odetdpseconddletdpseta9343 I am talking about drag racing.

[@burntnugget1854]

Before now i used to think any bike could do drag in under 10 but now i realize how easy it is to wheelie due to all that torque and light weight...maybe if a fat person rides it idk loll

[@NoBadReply]

It's very much possible once you get the KTC under control... Gadson did it with his "hybrid" and most still speculate its a H2R motor. I say its all H2 with H2R full system, ECU and cowling. kzbin.info/www/bejne/iXOzZGqJoJagnbc Great job keeping her under control while wheelie-ing down the strip. Keep at it and you will get it. Try strapping down the front to offset the wheelies a bit might help. Another thing would be to change the sprockets. Try and reach out to Gadson and see if he would offers a fellow H2R owner some pointers. [e-mail]1-888-750-6847

[@fastbikes]

+NoBadReply Not our bike, we had to run it as is, not sure Kawasaki would have appreciated us fiddling too much and, hey, kind of made it more interesting not being fully specced for the strip in some ways! Sure H2 owners will appreciate your comments and tips though, ta!

[@kwikasfakih2402]

Gadson's bike is for sure a H2R motor. I don't fully understand why people are always running 10's with these bikes. I have a H2 with just exhaust and ECU flash making 240 HP (About the same as the H2R, maybe more). I routinely hit mid 9's with KTRC turned off with no launch control (Video on my channel). Maybe they had bad track conditions, but I don't see how that makes a 1 second difference.

[@stephenhayston4314]

Wheel base is to short for a drag bike

[@bismillahmashallah]

Doesnt the s1krr run 9.9 lmao

[@1stelas]

i would like to see a comparison between the and pgm's 2 litre v8,334hp 211nm 214kg wet weight full tank

[@grabir01]

Tesla runs 9.08 out of the box.

[@sukhpoonib]

Speed and power alone is no fun

[@Tannnnman]

Let’s go Brandon

[@shawnrahimi7966]

300+ hp bike with stock height and wheelbase, what do u expect???

[@odetdpseconddletdpseta9343]

Jip, wtf did he expect, you're on target!

[@TL1000S97]

Interesting video :) 7.2++ in 1/8 is very, very slow I'm afraid. Will be beaten by any competent drag racer with any 600RR++ *stock* bike. Which this video also clearly show in the first race. Totally "whipped" by a much less powerful bike. Seems like this "monster" is not very easy to launch/control on the strip. Credit for the rider to get his best with TC off. :) But this video is sort of consistent with my "closed road" testing with my (ex)B-King before/after tuning. Best times (0-60, 1/8) was with stock motor(2.7, 6.6).. "coasting" thru 10.6 at 1/4. After bigbore and 200+ rearwheel HP I actually got *slower* times to 1/8, but much higher trap speed at 1/8. 1st and 2nd gear very difficult to modulate power. :( So it's all about gettin' the power down/to forward momentum for good times at the strip. You can only use so much power as the physics/skills allows you. :)

[@MrAndyS]

Seems pointless to me a bit if Al can't get a decent time the average rider deffo won't, I was getting similar times on a carb'd R6 and I'm only a intermediate rider

[@fastbikes]

+MrDjhellfire Good point, though as he says, a total bitch to launch and still spinning and trying to wheelie over the line. There's often something to be said for not having too much power, though we know for sure which would be a more visceral experience mind you! Good going on your R6 times too chap.

[@MrAndyS]

+Fast Bikes Magazine thanks, love the mag

[@1Dezan]

Just for giggles, I would love to see this bike with a longer swing arm, and a proper drag slick. first with the factory sprockets , then custom shorter ones:)

[@davidtomkins4242]

Maybe if Al was heavier, the front wouldn't lift so much....?

[@fastbikes]

+David Tomkins With 240+bhp at the wheel it wouldn't have made a big difference, but we're sure he'd of enjoyed the getting heavier part! Nom nom nom...

[@kellyboyd5889]

+David Tomkins Heavier driver raises the center of gravity... meaning more wheelies.

[@dazzsuzuki]

the rider needs some more practice , i have a 300 bhp gsxr 1000 that will wheelie a 1/4 mile in 10.2 on stock wheelbase (will go quicker next year !) or 9.88 with it extended 5 inches , it has no traction control or anti wheelie and unlike the h2r , its road legal !!

[@princefancybum4605]

Fuck me you actually have videos on your channel that back up your claims. That must a first for KZbin

[@Mr864sc31]

You should seriously consider drag racing classes, that's number 1. 2ndly and more importantly, that bike isn't set up for drag racing! To get the max performance you're going to have to lower, stretch and strap that bike down!

[@NZ2STROKE]

Strap the front down

[@rixfpv4470]

lol ill race u in first gear i top out @175kph in first gear

[@odetdpseconddletdpseta9343]

What, do yo drive a Tesla? Ok.

[@daddygovernment4900]

this is kinda embarrassing. such a power bike posting slower times than all literbikes

[@odetdpseconddletdpseta9343]

No just an idiot that uses it in a capacity that he does not understand.

[@PastorManningPhD]

Not impressed, can anyone do this bike justice?

[@durbansfinestbiker0312]

Bro! Nobody can get this bike right! Too scared! Too intimidated! All safety features on!