2023 was an incredible year for Indian motorcycling. Not only did we see the launch of some much-anticipated 300-400cc bikes, such as the Harley-Davidson X440, the Triumph Speed 400 and the 2024 KTM 390 Duke, but we also had MotoGP come to the country for the first time. And it was amidst all the excitement of Indian MotoGP at the Buddh International Circuit in Noida that Yamaha showed off its next models – the Yamaha MT-03 and the Yamaha R3
The R3 is Yamaha’s mid-engined supersport bike, equipped with a liquid-cooled 321 cc twin-cylinder engine that produces 42 hp and 29.5 Nm. This bike will compete with models such as the KTM RC 390 and the soon-to-be-launched Aprilia RS 457. The Yamaha MT-03 shares its engine and base components with the R3, but in this naked, the engine produces 0.1 Nm more torque. The MT-03 will take on the recently launched KTM 390 Duke, the Triumph Speed 400 and the TVS Apache RTR 310.
Yamaha had already presented the new MT-03 and R3 at a dealer event in April 2023 and had announced plans to launch these bikes, along with the R7 and MT-07 in India soon. But the fact that the MT-03 and R3 were presented once again at the Indian MotoGP race leads us to believe that Yamaha will launch them in the coming months. In fact, sources close to the brand have hinted that they could arrive in showrooms in December 2023.
There is no official information that these models could arrive in Europe or Portugal. We’ll keep an eye out for any new information and news about the Japanese models in the near future.