Many Triumph fanboys have lamented the loss of the brand’s iconic Daytona 675. Like the R6 after it, the Daytona was a victim of decreasing demand and increasing emissions regulations. After 12 years on the market, the House of Hinckley was forced to pull the fully-faired sportbike in favor of its naked counterpart, the Speed Triple. Despite the passionate pleas, Triumph loyalists didn’t exactly flock to the showrooms for the Daytona Moto2 765 last year.
Daytona diehards march on, however. With the introduction of the 2021 Speed Triple 1200 RS, the Triumph faithful started imagining the hypernaked turned into a liter class sportbike. One such visionary is digital artist Kardesign Koncepts. From the MT-09 to Ducati’s Streetfighter V4, the designer’s portfolio explores motorcycle design alternatives. Now, Kardesign turned their attention to Triumph’s flagship roadster, resulting in the Daytona 1200 concept.
Starting with the ergos, Kardesign swapped the top clamp-mounted handlebars for clip-ons and moved the mirrors up to the front fairing. The foot pegs, however, stayed in the lower position found on the naked bike and the subframe perches the rider at the same height. Cosmetically, the designer refined the tail unit and seat along with a more angular take on the gas tank. The front fairing falls in line with the Daytona Moto2 765’s design, but also integrates the 1200 RS’s LED lighting and air intake. Lastly, the digital designer routed the exhaust pipe up to expose the single-sided swingarm.
Will Triumph cave to the demands of Daytona fanatics and produce a Speed Triple-based sportbike? Highly unlikely. In spite of that, does Kardesign’s rendering accurately capture Triumph’s latest technology and aesthetics in an imaginative way? Certainly. The design exercise carries on the legend of the Daytona and if it does nothing more, I’m sure Kardesign would be okay with that.
A World Of Pure Imagination:
Sources: MotoBlog, Kardesign Koncepts