Chinese Bike News Roundup — Week of October 12, 2026

October 14, 2026 · Chinese Motorcycle Review

Alright, we're back. After way too long away from this site, the weekly roundup is back on — everything worth knowing from the world of Chinese motorcycles, in one place. And I'll be honest: there's never been a better week to restart this thing.

A Chinese bike just got the call-up to a world championship.
CFMoto's 675SR-R has been named the official motorcycle of the 2027 WorldWCR season — the first time a Chinese manufacturer will supply the machines for an FIM world championship one-make series. Not just racing in it. Supplying the whole grid. If you've been telling your riding buddies these bikes are the real deal, this is your receipt.

The sales numbers are absurd — in a good way.
CFMoto sold 196,400 motorcycles in the first half of 2026, up 30.6% over last year, and nearly half of those — about 98,000 — went overseas, up 37%. Here in the US, CFMoto registrations are up 48.5% through July while the overall American market barely moved at +0.9%. The market isn't growing. CFMoto is just taking everyone's lunch.

New metal: the CFMoto Ibex 950.
CFMoto's adventure lineup grows for 2027 with the Ibex 950 — 112 horsepower, $12,499. That plants it right above the 800MT range and into serious big-bore ADV territory at a price the Europeans simply can't match. If you've been ADV-curious but not $20K-curious, this one's for you.

Benda's Rock 707 might be the cleverest cruiser of the year.
Benda officially unveiled the Rock 707, a 692cc V-twin cruiser with genuine innovation: a third-generation electronic clutch (think Honda's E-Clutch — start, stop, and shift without touching the lever) and adaptive air suspension that lowers the bike when you stop, with seat height adjusting between 690 and 720mm on the fly. German pricing is reportedly €9,999, and it's landing in Europe now. The "cheap copy" era is over — this is original engineering.

Kove keeps swinging.
Two fronts this week: the Kove 625X adventure tourer and 625V cruiser launched in the Philippines, and at CIMAMotor 2026 in Chongqing — 300,000 visitors, 1,120 exhibitors, 39 new product launches — Kove pulled the cover off a 350 Rally: a 349.9cc rally single weighing just 155kg wet with a 21-liter tank. If it ever lands here, it'd square up against the KTM 390 Adventure and Himalayan 450. Kove's Dakar DNA is showing.

Still waiting on the V4.
CFMoto's V4 SR-RR prototype — 997cc V4, over 210 hp, and a 196 mph top-speed record set back in June — still has no price and no release date. CFMoto's calling it a development platform for now. All eyes on EICMA in Milan next month.

That's the week. Next week: a full EICMA 2026 preview — the biggest show of the year is almost here, and the Chinese brands are bringing their best. See you then.