When it comes to manufacturing sports and racing tyres for motorcycles, few brands have the history and success of motorcycle-only tyre brand, Metzeler... We head to SMSP to try their latest sports hoops... Photos: RbMotoLens
Metzeler’s new SPORTEC 01 and SPORTEC 01 RS take the company’s long-running sports tyre story in two different directions, so we headed to Sydney Motorsports Park for the official Australia and NZ launch to learn more and put both through their paces…
The Metzeler SPORTEC 01 and SPORTEC 01 RS launch bikes lined up. We had the S 1000 RR, ZX-10R, YZF-R7, YZF-R9, 750SR-S, 675SR-R and XSR900 available.
I’ve been testing Metzeler sports tyres for ages, so there was something quite familiar about getting back on a new generation of SPORTEC. I reckon my first proper SPORTEC test was somewhere around 2001 when I was a young Two Wheels Staff Journo, when the SPORTEC M1 arrived, and I’ve ridden on and tested various generations of the SPORTEC range on a wide variety of motorcycles ever since.
Way back in time, the M1 was positioned between Metzeler’s sport-touring ME Z4 and the more focused Rennsport, giving sporty road riders a tyre that could offer plenty of performance without moving into dedicated road-racing territory.
Read our other Metzeler and other brand tyre tests here…
From there the range evolved through products such as the SPORTEC M3, M5 Interact, M7 RR and M9 RR, while the Rennsport name eventually gave way to the RACETEC family as Metzeler’s dedicated road-racing and track-oriented tyre line.
The RACETEC range has since developed its own strong road-racing identity, with the current RACETEC RR drawing heavily on Metzeler’s experience in events such as the Isle of Man TT.
So, after all those years, getting back to a tyre simply called the SPORTEC 01 was actually quite interesting. I’m a bit of a tyre nerd anyway and have always liked the way manufacturers develop their tread patterns, profiles, construction and even the branding on the sidewalls, so seeing where Metzeler has taken the SPORTEC name this time around was something I was genuinely keen to investigate.
The latest generation is actually split quite clearly into two different tyres. The SPORTEC 01 is designed as the more versatile sporty road tyre, with a particular emphasis on wet-weather performance and everyday usability, while the SPORTEC 01 RS takes things considerably further towards outright sporting performance and track use.
Both use Metzeler’s new DYNATREAD technology, but they have different constructions, compounds and tread designs to suit their respective jobs. Track time was super limited at the shared (with CSS) event, but I managed 12 laps on each set.
Metzeler SPORTEC 01 RS
My first opportunity to really push the new tyres was on the SPORTEC 01 RS fitted to a Kawasaki ZX-10R, and that was probably the best bike I could have been given for the job. I’ve recently tested other tyre brands on that exact motorcycle – in fact, it was the same registration number – so I had a very good reference point for how the Kawasaki behaves on different rubber, so I was able to concentrate pretty quickly on what the Metzeler was doing differently.
The first thing that really stood out with the SPORTEC 01 RS was how quickly it came up to temperature. There were no tyre warmers being used at the launch and, while the tyres had already been scrubbed in, I was effectively able to start pushing from the out-lap.
“The front-end feel was particularly impressive under braking and right at the edge of the tyre”…
I certainly wasn’t going full tilt immediately, but within a lap I was comfortable pushing the ZX-10R to around the early to mid 1:40s, which is a reasonably fast track-day pace. I only completed around eight laps on the RS on the ZX-10R, then I switched to the S 1000 RR for another eight laps but that bike had an 01 front and 01 RS combo that didn’t work so well (the extra rear grip pushed the front too much), so this was definitely a ‘Quick Test’ initial assessment rather than a long-term track test, but there were some very clear characteristics that stood out.
The front-end feel was particularly impressive under braking and right at the edge of the tyre. Turn-in accuracy was excellent, allowing me to hold a very tight line through the corners without needing much physical effort. The shape of the rear tyre also has a lot to do with that, with the RS using a triangular rather than square construction, and on the ZX-10R it felt like the bike simply fell into the turn. There was little effort required from my arms and legs, which made direction changes feel very natural.
“No feeling of the rear moving around or pumping through the sidewall; instead, it felt stable, predictable and planted”…
There was also excellent stability under braking, with plenty of grip available from the front. Although, I was actually getting the ZX-10R’s ABS to intervene under heavy braking, and it can’t be shut off, so that did limit braking at lean angle somewhat.
However, I was able to brake earlier and more upright, then carry high lean and corner speed instead. That gave me a pretty good indication of just how much edge-grip was available, while the front continued to provide a lot of feedback as I carried that corner speed deeper into the turns.
At the rear, the ZX-10R’s power delivery is relatively linear, without a huge mid-range hit, but it has plenty of top-end power. Revving it hard and getting on the throttle early, I found the RS offered very good traction coming off the turns.
I was running the Kawasaki’s traction control on level three, which may have been a little intrusive for what the tyre was capable of, but I could still feel the system working in a few places. Importantly, there was no feeling of the rear moving around or pumping through the sidewall; instead, it felt stable, predictable and planted.
Metzeler has also designed the RS around DYNATREAD, which changes the effective tread footprint as the tyre is loaded…
The RS is Metzeler’s sportiest street-legal tyre and has been developed with a strong connection to road racing. Its front uses a dual-compound layout with a full-silica centre section and K2 carbon-black racing compound on the shoulders, while the rear also combines full silica in the centre with K2 shoulder compound. A softer racing-derived base layer sits beneath the tread, with the construction and compounds drawing heavily on Metzeler’s road-racing experience.
Metzeler has also completely re-engineered the RS construction, with the front using two PET layers and a 0-degree steel belt, while the rear combines PET and nylon with a 0-degree steel belt. The different belt tension and carcass construction are designed to control deformation and balance grip, agility, stability and feedback. It’s a much more sophisticated construction than simply fitting a softer compound and calling it a track tyre.
After the session I had a good look at the tyres and the wear looked very clean. Again, with only around eight laps per session, I wouldn’t make any claims about long-term life, but the initial signs were very positive. I checked them over the day, too, as others rode on them. Metzeler has also designed the RS around DYNATREAD, which changes the effective tread footprint as the tyre is loaded, with the front groove compressing under braking and the rear tread closing progressively under acceleration.
Metzeler SPORTEC 01
The SPORTEC 01 was the tyre that really surprised me during the launch. This is the more road-oriented of the two tyres, designed for riders who want sporty performance but still need a tyre that works properly, daily, on the road, including in wet conditions. Metzeler positions it as a versatile everyday sporty tyre, with higher mileage potential than the RS, and after riding it on Yamaha’s R7 I could immediately see where that positioning comes from.
“The SPORTEC 01 gave me consistent feedback from cold through to operating temperature”…
The 2026 R7 was a really good motorcycle for the SPORTEC 01, plus I have experienced it on two other tyre models previously, and what impressed me most was how usable the tyre felt straight away. Again, there were no tyre warmers, so I headed onto the circuit on cold tyres and simply built up the pace. Rather than having to wait several laps for the tyres to come alive, the SPORTEC 01 gave me consistent feedback from cold through to operating temperature, which is exactly what you want from a road tyre that might also see the occasional track day.
For me, this is where the SPORTEC 01 makes a lot of sense. I could see myself riding these tyres to work, heading up the Old Pacific Highway for some twisty-road fun and then riding to a track day without needing tyre warmers or changing tyres. I went out on cold tyres and pushed progressively harder through the session, and they remained broad in their behaviour all the way through. They were stable, predictable and gave me enough confidence to keep increasing the pace.
“They were stable, predictable and gave me enough confidence to keep increasing the pace”…
As the session progressed, I was able to push the little R7 harder and harder. At one point I started the session taking Turn 4 in third gear, but as the pace increased I found myself carrying fourth gear through the corner, eventually getting to the point where I was taking Turn 1 pretty much flat in fifth. That’s not something I’d normally associate with a street-oriented tyre, and it gave me a pretty good indication of just how much performance Metzeler has built into the SPORTEC 01.
The tyre also felt very good through direction changes, with a combination of light steering and stability that made the R7 enjoyable to push. Under braking there was again good stability, and I never felt like I was asking too much of the front. It was particularly impressive that the tyre maintained that predictable feel as I moved into the hotter operating window, rather than changing character dramatically as the temperature came up.
The SPORTEC 01 uses a dual-compound construction with a central zone optimised for mileage and softer shoulder areas aimed at cornering performance. The front has a 33 per cent central zone and two 33 per cent shoulder zones, while the rear uses a 20 per cent centre and 40 per cent shoulders. Full silica is used front and rear, which should also help explain the tyre’s focus on wet-weather performance and cold-road usability.
Both tyres feature Metzeler’s DYNATREAD technology, but the SPORTEC 01 uses it as part of a broader road-focused package. The tread is designed to adapt dynamically to the forces being applied to the tyre, with the front groove compressing under braking and the rear tread progressively closing under acceleration to increase the effective contact patch.
First Impressions
This was very much an initial test rather than a long-term endurance assessment. I only completed around 12 laps on each tyre set, so I can’t tell you what either tyre will feel like after 20 laps on a 40-degree day, or how many kilometres they will ultimately deliver on the road. What I can say is that both tyres made a very strong first impression, although in quite different ways, and having ridden so many generations of Metzeler sports tyres over the years, I think that’s worth pointing out.
The SPORTEC 01 RS impressed me with its outright track ability. On the ZX-10R it offered excellent front-end feel, very accurate turn-in, strong braking stability and impressive rear traction, while the quick warm-up without tyre warmers was another real positive. It feels like a tyre designed for the rider who wants to ride hard on the road but also wants to be able to head onto a track and genuinely exploit the performance of a modern sportsbike.
But the SPORTEC 01 was arguably the bigger surprise. It delivered a level of track performance that I wouldn’t normally expect from a tyre designed with genuine road versatility in mind, while remaining very predictable from cold through to full operating temperature. That combination is what really stood out to me, because for a lot of riders a tyre like this makes more sense than a track-focused option.
I’ve tested a lot of tyres over the years – probably around 60 bikes a year across all sorts of motorcycles and tyre types since 2001 – so I can usually get a reasonable feel for whether a new tyre represents a genuine step forward after a few laps. Based on today’s initial test, I’d say Metzeler has made a worthwhile step with both the SPORTEC 01 and SPORTEC 01 RS, with each tyre having a very clear purpose rather than simply being a softer and harder version of the same product.
The SPORTEC 01 in particular looks like it could be a very interesting option for riders who want one set of tyres to cover commuting, weekend scratching, wet-weather riding and the occasional track day, while the RS is clearly aimed at riders who want to push their sportsbike considerably harder.
Pricing and Availability
Pricing has now been confirmed for the Australian market, with the SPORTEC 01 ranging from $259.95 for the 110/70 ZR17 front through to $419.95 for the 200/55 ZR17 rear. Depending on motorcycle size and fitment, a set of SPORTEC 01s is expected to retail for around $600 for lower-capacity bikes and approximately $650 – $700 for higher-capacity machines. The more track-focused SPORTEC 01 RS starts at $299.95 for the 120/70 ZR17 front, with rear sizes ranging from $379.95 to $439.95.
Metzeler SPORTEC 01 and SPORTEC 01 RS Gallery
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