BMW Motorrad presented the BMW R 1300 R Superhooligan during the 84th Daytona 200 weekend, scheduled for March 5–7, 2026, in Daytona. The one-off-style project connects the current R 1300 R with BMW’s racing history from 50 years ago, particularly Steve McLaughlin’s Daytona victory and Reg Pridmore’s success in the inaugural AMA Superbike Championship.

The motorcycle commemorates McLaughlin’s victory in Daytona’s first Superbike race on March 6, 1976. McLaughlin and Pridmore raced BMW R 90 S motorcycles for the Butler & Smith team, whose historic machine was displayed alongside the new Superhooligan at the event.

From R 1300 R to naked superbike

The Superhooligan is based on the 145 hp (107 kW) BMW R 1300 R, but its brief goes well beyond a new paint scheme. A small team from BMW Motorrad’s Custom Speed Shop developed the project, led by project manager Philipp Ludwig, with the design and prototype work credited to Katrin Torge, Andreas Martin, Theresa Stukenbrock, Paul Summerer and Thomas Becker.

Its styling reframes the production motorcycle as a naked superbike with visual references to superbikes from roughly five decades earlier. Wide handlebars and number-plate fields define the concept, while the number 83 points directly to McLaughlin’s Daytona win. The front fenders and tank side panels use a colour associated with the period BMW R 90 S.

Suspension and carbon components

The chassis specification includes a fully adjustable Wilbers upside-down fork, extended by 30 mm to provide more clearance at lean. Its fixed fork tubes feature blue accents, matched by the spring of the fully adjustable Wilbers suspension strut and the aluminium rear frame.

BMW describes the motorcycle as capable of reaching up to 275 km/h. The project also uses a lightweight BMW M 1000 RR carbon front wheel, further carbon-fibre components from BMW Motorrad and Ilmberger Carbon Parts, fully adjustable Advik hand levers, milled BMW Motorrad footrests and a titanium Akrapovič exhaust with a carbon end silencer.

A modern link to the Super Hooligan series

The Daytona appearance also ties the project to contemporary racing. BMW Motorrad brand ambassador Nate Kern is participating in the Mission Foods Super Hooligan series, presented by Roland Sands, with the R 1300 R Superhooligan.

That connection gives the motorcycle a role beyond historical display: it combines a modern custom-built interpretation of the R 1300 R with the visual and competitive legacy of the R 90 S racers. The Daytona weekend marked the 50th anniversary of the 200-mile Florida race, while the AMA Superbike Series itself began in 1976 as a national U.S. championship.

It should therefore be understood as a special Custom Speed Shop project rather than a confirmed mass-production model.