There's no arguing that the Caterham R500 is an amazing piece of four-wheeled machinery. In fact, it may just be the quickest way around a race track short of a Formula 1 car. We're equally as certain that the Ducati Hypermotard is an awesome motorcycle, so putting both of these performers on the same track and letting them have at it is certain to entertain. Autocar must have thought so, too, and udging by the video posted after the break, the event didn't let anybody down. As is usually the case when a bike is put up against a car, the race was close. In the longer straight sections of the track, the Duck's power-to-weight ratio allows it to pull away from the Caterham. The Caterham, with twice the number of contact patches, easily out-brakes the Ducati rider and can carry more speed throughout the turn. So, is the race that will finally put an end to the age-old question about which is faster around a given course? Probably not, but it sure is fun to watch. Want to know who won? Hit the jump, and be sure to pay attention as the Caterham goes airborne.
[Source: Autocar]
Pretty cool, huh? Not that the staged race was perfect, mind you. While we love the idea of letting a fast car and a fast bike let loose on one track, perhaps this wasn't as fair a race as it could have been. After all, the Caterham is a weapon aimed directly at the track while the Hypermotard was created to be as fast as possible on real roads. While it's definitely a sporty machine, a superbike it is not. Therefore, we call for a rematch, except this time, lets invite Ducati's most current track-focused weapon, the 1098. We're not so sure that the finishing order would be reversed with a rider on-board a real superbike, but we'd love to see him try.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Franz @ May 15th 2008 7:11PM
Cool video. That was some sick air he got in the car over that hump.
ben @ May 15th 2008 7:12PM
The sure way for the Caterham to win is to give the Ducati a little nudge.
Mike @ May 15th 2008 8:20PM
That was some cool air but why are they comparing a track car to a crossover bike? There are 600cc sport bikes out there putting out more than 100hp (not to mention the 1000cc'ers), handle better than that Duc, and have better brakes.
All that and there's far more straight up sport bikes on the road than Caterhams and similar types of track cars seeing road duty.
Next time they should pick a more even competitor.
Blake @ May 15th 2008 9:32PM
1000cc'er would not have made for good video. The Caterham would have been obliterated.
Cam @ May 16th 2008 8:42AM
@ Mike
In the current issue of the magazine in which this is for, they are comparing around ten cars that are best to drive around on the 'B' roads of Britain.
The cars are the likes of the Jag XF, the BMW 3-Series, one of the Lambo's and so on
mkM3 @ May 15th 2008 8:53PM
Caterham is a hella track car.
But, I want to see a Caparo T1 and Ariel Atom complete this same exercise. With proper engines, of course. I do believe that these may give the bike a better run for its money.
And speaking of that is there any place that will compare all these cars? Add in the Lotus Seven and whatever else qualifies too.
nagmashot @ May 16th 2008 10:15AM
The Caterham clearly toasted the Ariel Atom (supercharged) version on the Topgear test treck by 2.1second... in a head to head race the Ariel Atom would not hold a candle vs that Caterham..
jim @ May 15th 2008 9:58PM
The which is faster, a bike or a car has long been settled in favor of the car. Name a race course open to both MC and cars where a MC holds the absolute lap record. In particular look at courses where Moto GP, WSB, F1 and the top sports cars classes run.
dac @ May 15th 2008 10:24PM
People continue to race bikes vs cars, always with different bikes and different cars. Here's the story: Cars are faster. It really comes down to grip because cars have 4 fat tires and bikes have two very skinny tires. I enjoy watching them as much as the next guy, but at the top end cars will always win. Now, start talking performance per dollar and the battle swings the other way. That car costs 50K+ and the bike barely 13.
Mobius_1 @ May 15th 2008 11:01PM
Look up the Fifth Gear Ducati 1098 vs Gallardo Superleggera video, the car clearly has better braking, but the lightness of the bike allow it to accelerate much faster and turn quite well too
But bikes and cars are VERY different animals, so to each his/her own, I guess
DuckyD @ May 15th 2008 11:34PM
You know, I have seen this same exact scenerio between a sport-bike and a Porsche 997 GT3 at Deal's Gap. Makes for a very exciting and scary duel.
Andrew @ May 15th 2008 11:54PM
why not use a sportbike like the 999R or the like?
the bike used looks more like a streetfighter style.
feel free to correct me if i'm wrong =P
aaron @ May 16th 2008 5:03AM
How useful.
One of the fastest point to point cars available
Compared to
A reasonably fat supermoto.
Nice comparison.
f650 @ May 16th 2008 8:55AM
Wow look at all the haters come out of the woodwork. I think the hypermotard was a great choice for the track that looked fairly bumpy with no real long straights. A 1098 or any other literbike would have been useless.
With the uneven surface and tight course any one of the hooligan bikes (Hypermotard, Super Duke, Megamoto) with their generous suspension travel and plenty of ground clearance is a great fit. The only thing the hyper-performance bikes have over these hooligan bikes is more power, there is little to no difference in cornering speeds - especially on road-like tracks.
Great video, amazing riding as well.
Shawn @ May 16th 2008 9:52AM
I agree with f650. The point was to show that bikes give up a lot in corners under braking, which cars don't. More power (from a litre bike) wouldn't have helped much here.
steveo391 @ May 18th 2008 6:26PM
"and udging by the video posted after the break"
mmmmm udging
gene @ May 18th 2008 9:28PM
are you sure that isnt a Chaterham sidecar?
britishbikes @ May 24th 2008 12:43PM
They said in the blurb that the race was close... 13 seconds??? It looked like the car was doing better, but 13 seconds quicker after what must have been at least 1/2 a lap before he made the pass? I just couldn't see more than 2-3 seconds at best with such a late pass.... Also if the car has such an advantage over the bike in hp, then why does the bike still walk off on the straights? These things don't add up too well to me.