The Tech 3 MotoGP team entered the premier class in 2002 as a Yamaha satellite team. World-class riders such as Andrea Dovizioso and Ben Spies came up through the Tech 3 ranks before landing factory seats. However, a race-win eluded the France-based team during its tenure with Team Blue.
When Tech 3 principal Hervé Poncharal ditched Yamaha for KTM in 2019, many criticized the decision, as Team Orange wasn’t competitive at the time. In 2020, Poncharal was vindicated when Portuguese rider Miguel Olivera nabbed the Tech3 KTM Factory Team its first win. Oliviera followed up that victory with another trip to the top step at his home race and the final round of the 2020 season.
With the team on high going into the 2021, Tech 3 revealed its new livery. Boasting a KTM’s eye-catching orange and bold branding, the Tech 3 livery became a fan favorite in the 2021 season. To celebrate the team’s success, KTM France is releasing the ultra-limited KTM 890 Duke Tech 3 Edition.
Limited to 100 units, the naked bike will feature a Tech 3-inspired livery, a belly pan, and a seat cowl. An Akrapovic exhaust also adds a track-worthy bark, but under the skin, the 890 largely remains the same. The liquid-cooled 890cc parallel-twin still pumps out 113 horsepower and the sharp-handling chassis still lives up to the Super Scalpel nickname.
Only available in , the special-edition Duke will retail for €11,690 ($14,141 USD), which is only €1,300 over the base model. That’s a pretty reasonable price for the additional accessories and trick paint job. Of course, it’s disappointing that KTM isn’t offering it as a global variant, but we’re glad that the Austrian brand is standing by its satellite team. It’s taken Tech 3 a long time to find success in MotoGP, but the KTM 890 Duke Tech 3 Edition almost makes it worth the wait.
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Sources: GP One, DriveSpark, VisorDown