Alpinestars Racing Absolute Leather Suit | The best in the business for saving your hide

10

This used to be the Italian firm’s top of the range one-piece leather racing suit until recently when it was superseded by the Alpinestars Racing Absolute ‘V2’ version. It’s constructed using the same tech and materials as Astars’ MotoGP racing suits.

I’ve been wearing it for the past year, but I’ve had similar suits road testing and racing, where I’ve crashed in them… purely to gather important product testing data. I wear the suit with an Alpinestars full body Tech Air 10 airbag system (not included) for extra safety.

Is the Alpinestars Racing Absolute comfortable?

This suit is ultra-light with lots of stretch panels, a soft fabric neck and it’s contoured to fit perfectly for when you’re in a race crouch and hanging off the side of a bike on track. They’re so comfy I barely know they’re on when I’m riding.

They’re also easy to wear when you’re walking around off the bike, although like all leathers they put you in a bit of a hunch when you’re standing around. That said, gone are the days I’ll happily wear race leathers the whole time, now I’m so used to wearing more casual, comfortable bike kit. The suit is fully vented, but wearing an airbag vest underneath blocks off the holes, reducing the benefit in the hot weather.

How practical is the Alpinestars Racing Absolute?

Thanks to its supple leather it’s easy to put on and take off, but a race suit like this is designed just to protect and doesn’t come with any concessions to practicality, like most other riding kit. There are no internal pockets, so if I’m ever wearing it out and about on a road test, I’ll put my things in a rucksack/tank bag or wear a body warmer with pockets over the top.

Does the Alpinestars Racing Absolute look good?

I love the way this suit looks on the bike and strutting around paddocks. Nowadays I feel more self-conscious wearing leathers mixing with the general public in the real world, than I used to, so it never graces the isles of Lidl.

Is the Alpinestars Racing Absolute high quality?

In all the years of wearing Astars’ one-piece leathers for racing and road testing they’ve always been hard wearing and never a burst seam or broken a zip. Even in the gnarliest high-speed crashes I’ve had they’ve always held together, never worn through and always done their job.

Protection and CE ratings for the Alpinestars Racing Absolute

As the name would suggest, this suit is designed to give ‘absolute’ protection in a crash and gets a top-of-the-tree, CE certified AAA rating. It’s made from Kangaroo leather with dual layers for your most vulnerable areas, like elbows, forearms, bum, hips and back.

There are plastic outer shoulder, knee and elbow protectors, as well as removable internal armour in the same places. Aramid grid reinforcements are fitted in key areas to disperse heat build-up when you’re sliding along the tarmac. It also has all the necessary stretch panels it needs to expand when the airbag does its thing.

I haven’t crashed in this particular suit, but I’ve had fast racing get-offs in similar ones and they’ve performed superbly. I’ve broken more fingers and thumbs than I care to remember, but they’re almost impossible to protect properly with the best of gloves, anyway. I also cracked a pelvis after a highside, but again that was back in 2017 before I started wearing an airbag, which may have prevented it. Those injuries aside I’ve always got away with my crashes Scott-free (he says finding a log to touch).

Is the Alpinestars Racing Absolute good value?

This is one of the most expensive one-piece leather racing suits out there and it doesn’t come with an airbag, but you get what you pay for in terms of quality, protection and all the tech gained from over two decades racing in MotoGP. Now the suit has been superseded you can find it way under the list price if you shop around.

The newer generation ‘V2’ suit has several detail upgrades and costs £3379.99. A full spec Dainese suit like the Mugello R costs more, but a top of the range RST is a lot less and comes with an airbag included, making it great value.

Alpinestars Racing Absolute – the final verdict

I’ve worn Alpinestars’ top of the range one-piece leather suits all the way through of my 22-year MCN career. They’ve evolved hugely during that time, where they’ve become lighter and packed with more safety features, including the invention of airbags.

I’ve had my fair share of racing crashes wearing them and whether it’s been sliding down Thruxton’s sandpaper surface at 120mph or flying through the air at Phillip Island’s Southern Loop, they’ve always protected me. I’ve broken fingers and thumbs along the way and my pelvis after an off-throttle Valencia highside but the leathers have always done their job.

The Alpinestars Racing Absolute suit is expensive, but are light, tough and comfy, made from Kangaroo leather to the same giddying spec as Astars’ MotoGP suits, offering full CE AAA protection with CE rated Level 2 shoulder, elbow and knee armour.

While you’re here: How MCN tests leathers

At MCN, our team of expert journalists have decades of experience gained over hundreds of thousands of miles on road and on track. We don’t test our leathers to destruction in a lab; we use them exactly how you do, in the real world and in all conditions, and as you’ll read in this very article, sometimes we even crash in them. That means we can deliver impartial buying advice you can rely on.

Each of our writers has an in-depth understanding of the needs of today’s biker… because they are one.

If you can’t see a review against an item on this page, it’s because we haven’t tested it yet. These items will only be included if we think they’re important and relevant in the market, and rest assured, we will be working on bringing you a review as soon as we’ve done the miles.

To find out more, head to our dedicated page explaining how we test motorcycle products.