Ready to kick Rs! Some of the very best used Yamaha YZF-R1s are available from just £3000!

This year marks 25 years since Yamaha released the first R1. Featuring technology that at the time was radical but is now commonplace, the R1 created the blueprint for the modern sportsbike through its use of a vertically-stacked gearbox, long swingarm, 17in wheels and focus on agility, light weight and power.

A quarter of a century later the R1 is still going strong and although it has evolved as the generations have passed, it still contains the DNA that made the first bike such a revolutionary machine.

Rightly now considered a classic, the 1998 R1 is raw, quite often flighty and very exciting to ride. Even in a modern context the inline four’s mid-range is impressive and given a set of fresh rubber, the chassis has hardly dated.

Slightly lacking in refinement, the gearbox is clunky, the clutch quite stiff and it does like to shake its head from time to time – but it still looks fabulous (especially in red and white) and always turns heads.