German/Italian rubber giant Metzeler has been a little quiet of late on the street sportbike front, but that’s changed for 2026 with the release of the all-new Sportec 01 and the Sportec 01 RS track tire.
By Rennie Scaysbrook
Designed as an eventual replacement for the Sportec M9 RR (and by eventual, I mean over the next couple of years, as Metzeler slowly phases the M9 out of production), the 01 brings a range of new designs to the market, from a new base and carcass to its shape-shifting tread pattern, Dynatread, which debuted on the Roadtec 02 in 2024.
Dynatread is Metzeler’s patented tread design that reduces the gap created by the tire’s tread pattern as speed increases. At normal traffic speeds, the Sportec 01 will retain the standard tread gap set at the factory, ensuring the tire’s wet-weather performance isn’t affected.
As speed increases, the Dynatread gradually closes the tread gap, so the tire becomes about as close to a slick as legally allowed, giving you more rubber on the road for better high-speed performance.
Compared to the M9, the 01 has about half as many tread grooves cut into the rubber, so the idea of each tread closing in on itself shouldn’t be that frightening.
It’s interesting to look at the void ratio (the proportion of the surface covered by grooves) of the 01. In typical riding conditions, the 01 sits at 7.7 percent, but when the tire is pushed harder, this ratio compresses to 4.3 percent. In effect, the contact area grows as speeds rise, allowing the tire to deliver more grip when it’s needed most.
For the track-specific RS variant, the starting point is already more aggressive. Its void ratio is claimed to be 4.6 percent for everyday use, tightening to just 2.7 percent under heavier loads. Again, more tire on the track gives more grip and (hopefully) more smiles.
The RS 01 front uses a full-silica central compound, while the shoulder is derived from the Racetec K2 slick, using full carbon black. The base itself is a new, ultrasoft full-silica compound that helps maintain a good contact patch as the tire heats up from fully cold, the most dangerous time for a front-end crash.
In the rear, the central compound is the road-racing-derived full-silica compound—K2 in the shoulder, while the base is a soft carbon-black mixture.
Compared to the Sportec 01, the RS is all about the track, with claimed significant improvements in edge grip, handling on hard surfaces, and overall racetrack performance. Metzeler claims stability is the same as the 01, but the RS suffers a significant reduction in wet grip and mileage (check out the accompanying pie charts).
Metzeler has paid close attention to the transition point where the soft shoulder compounds connect to the harder center on both front and rear tires. They’ve improved this over the years, so the shift is now barely perceptible to the rider. This gives the obvious advantage of greater stability, especially when you’re either hard on the gas out of a corner or transitioning from hard upright braking to a medium/full lean with the front tire fully loaded.
Metzeler Sportec 01 RS On Track
We spent the first half of the day in Spain, under threatening clouds at the Monteblanco Circuit on the 01 RS, then a few hours ripping up the canyons surrounding the track on the street-focused 01.
The 01 RS is still classified as a street tire—the first in the line of track/road racing tires goes to the Racetec RR—and we didn’t use any tire warmers despite track temps being on the chilly side.
Immediately, the first thing I noticed from the 01 is how quickly this front tire warmed up. Within three-quarters of a lap of the undulating 2.7-mile venue, I had no qualms about jamming the knee on the deck and pushing the front tire harder than I expected before leaving the pits.
The RS 01 has a quite soft feel from the front, which is very much a Metzeler/Pirelli trait I got used to, having grown up racing the company’s soft-as-butter supermoto tires for a couple of decades.
Like many other tire brands, Metzeler has a feel that ties it to its family heritage. A fast initial turn-in is met with squishy sidewalls that let you know exactly where the grip level is, much like a Pirelli. Metzelers tend to be about half to a full step harder than the equivalent Pirellis, so that’s something to bear in mind as you gradually build up the pace.
Braking stability from the front 01 RS is excellent. I rode three different machines during my four track sessions: the new KTM 1390 Super Duke RR, the BMW S 1000 RR, and the mighty M 1000 RR (in that order). The harder I hammered the brakes as I rode ever faster bikes, the more front-end feel I got and the more I was prepared to push.
Whether this has anything to do with the Dynatread doing its semi-slick impression, I have no idea. I can’t tell, and I doubt anyone at the launch, aside from the development riders, could tell if the Dynatread was doing its thing. A good indication of performance was that, with over 40 riders from all over the globe, ranging from basic intermediate to pro-level speed, no one had a front-end crash at a circuit that demands heavy braking to extract a decent lap time.
An important thing to note here is that the tire performance never wavered, regardless of which bike I rode or which electronic suspension setting I chose. Modern sportbikes are chameleons, changing their chassis’ persona at the touch of a button and thus putting different strains on the tire tread and deeper into the carcass. The RS 01 front handled everything I could throw at it, but I still wasn’t game to brake as late as I would with a Racetec slick—mainly out of self-preservation, not anything else.
Switching to the rear tire, that lovely, squishy feel that sporty Metzelers give shone through beautifully. Focusing on the M 1000 RR with all its ferocious German horsepower, the initial touch of the throttle allowed the rear to squat and smear into the tarmac, and it was surprising how hard I could get on the gas before the traction control (set to level -1) would kick in.
On the BMW, it’s important to really stand it up on the meat of the rear tire before giving it the berries, but overall drive grip was hard to fault until about six laps in, when there was a definite drop in drive grip, though it was at least manageable and didn’t drop any further.
Edge grip was likewise confidence-inspiring, but it too began to drop a bit earlier than I’d hoped. However, this (at least I feel) was down to my heavy-handed approach, and if I smoothed out my initial touch of the throttle while leaned over, I found I could get another couple of laps before conditions were far past optimal.
I had to remind myself a couple of times that this is still a street tire, one that doesn’t have the constant grip of a slick. However, the feedback from both the front and rear as the carcass heat rose and overall grip fell made it easy to find a quick, repeatable pace and stay there for the session.
Metzeler Sportec 01 On Road
Transferring to the road-focused 01, I had only one machine at my disposal, a KTM 990 Duke, and it was interesting to note how much harder the front tire was compared to the 01 RS.
Part of this was due to a slightly stiffer carcass on the 01, but the reduced weight of the 990 and less stress on the tire itself also contributed to a different feel, one not quite as connected as the RS.
That’s not to say the 01 isn’t an excellent tire, because it absolutely is. The ride we were on was essentially an 80-mile stretch of tarmac spaghetti, smooth as could be and never letting me spend more than half a second in the upright position before I was slamming the Duke onto its side for the next corner.
This is the kind of road many dream of, and it highlighted the front Metzeler’s incredible agility and turn speed. Just like the RS, the road-focused 01 has plenty of feel to throw at the rider, but that slightly harder character takes a bit to get used to.
Once you’re leaned over and the Duke is loaded, you can really push the front tire hard and expect it to stick. Quick transitions over crappy potholes were easily dealt with, and those bastard tarmac snakes that governments across the globe use to patch up cracks in the road instead of doing a real job and resurfacing it didn’t cause too many front-end wiggles that could get really out of hand if you weren’t paying attention.
Like the RS on track, the front 01 delivers great braking stability and quick turn-in, while the rear has more than enough edge and drive grip for almost any type of street riding this side of the Isle of Man.
This is where many riders do themselves an injustice, at least in my opinion. It’s all well and good having the latest cut-slick sports tires, but they don’t hold up as well if you are riding on the road 95 percent of the time.
Although we didn’t hit any wet roads on our test, I’d be plenty happy to take a set of 01s out for a spin, but if I were riding in an area that has lots of rain, I’d still probably stick with a set of M9s.
Mileage is still up for debate, and whenever a tire company quotes you numbers, you may as well not listen. Mileage is completely up to you—you could make a set of Racetec RRs last 10,000 miles if you’re careful enough, and the same is true for a set of 01s. The 01 and 01 RS are new tires anyway, so Metzeler made no claim of increased mileage at the launch. If you’re after pure longevity over sport performance, there are other tires in Metzeler’s range that would suit you better.CN
VIDEO | Metzeler Sportec 01 and 01 RS Test
Click here to read the Metzeler Sportec 01 and 01 RS Test in the Cycle News Digital Edition Magazine.
