2027 KTM 450 SMR: First Look

The hooligan spirit is alive and well at KTM, a brand that fully embraces both street-legal and competition-only supermoto models. On the road-going side, we have the entry-level-friendly KTM 390 SMC R and its high-performance big brother, the 690 SMC R, ready for all the wheelies, stoppies, and skids your legally issued license can handle. For those looking to compete or train on closed courses, the Austrian brand offers its purpose-built, race-ready 2027 KTM 450 SMR.

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KTM lists two minor changes for the coming model year. The first is a basic visual refresh, with a new colorway and graphics package built around KTM’s usual orange with a splash of red this time around. Meanwhile, the brand is keeping the black handguards, wheels, silencer, and seat as they are. The second is a mild update to the exhaust package to meet current American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) and Federation Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM) sound requirements. The rest of the 450 SMR stays put, including the $12,499 MSRP.

Supermoto Racer, Motocross Bones

It is worth stating plainly (again): the 450 SMR is not street legal. No lights, blinkers, horns, or anything that would get in the way of setting fast lap times at a kart track. That is because it starts life as a 450 SX-F motocrosser, carrying over the liquid-cooled 449.9cc single-cylinder engine, the five-speed gearbox, the double-cradle chromoly steel frame, and the aluminum-reinforced polyamide subframe before KTM reconfigures the rest for pavement. Slicks replace knobbies, a SUTER slipper clutch stands in for the SX-F’s DDS unit, a considerably larger front brake arrives to deal with asphalt grip, and shorter, conventional spring-equipped suspension pulls seat height down from 37.7 inches to 35.3 inches. All of it costs a little weight, with the SMR coming roughly 14 pounds heavier than the SX-F at 241 pounds (without fuel).

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Suspension, Brembo Brakes, And Slicks: That’s The Supermoto Difference

KTM

What makes a supermoto, well, a supermoto, is the chassis. The 450 SMR is equipped with a 48mm WP XACT Closed Cartridge fork featuring a unique mid-valve piston design and boasts 11.1 inches of suspension travel. Convenient hand-operated clickers allow compression and rebound adjustment. Out back, the fully adjustable WP XACT monoshock mounts to a model-specific linkage and moves through 10.5 inches of travel. Another key supermoto-specific update is a reduced 16mm offset triple clamp.

Of course, the most obvious change is swapping over to tubeless wire-spoke Alpina wheels in sizes 16.5 x 3.5 front and 17 x 5 rear, equipped with Metzeler Racetec SM K1 slick tires as standard. Admittedly, the 16.5-inch front wheel is an odd size and limits tire choices dramatically. Though the smaller front wheel diameter is said to alter chassis geometry and improve turn-in characteristics while also reducing chatter via a larger contact patch.

Brembo supplies the stopping power, pairing a four-piston M50 radial-mount caliper and radial master cylinder with a 310mm floating front disc, plus a single-piston caliper and 220mm disc at the rear.

The 449.9cc Thumper Returns

KTM

KTM’s high-performance 449.9cc single-cylinder SOHC engine soldiers on virtually untouched in the 450 SMR. Brand literature highlights how the engine sits tilted 2 degrees rearward, effectively dropping the front sprocket 3mm lower to help centralize mass and manage anti-squat behavior. Maintenance intervals are short, as this is a competition-grade MX powerplant, though we should note that the quick-access air filter sits behind a tool-free body panel on the left-hand side.

The Austrian firm does not publish claimed horsepower and torque figures for the 450 SMR (or the SX-F, for that matter). Previously, we knew the 450 SMR to make roughly 63 horsepower, and as the engine has not changed dramatically since that 2025 model year reference point, we do not anticipate significant differences.

Though this is a stripped-down, race-ready machine, it is equipped with an electronics suite. The 450 SMR features two individual engine maps, along with traction control that toggles on or off. In addition, an up-only quickshifter is standard and is active when making shifts between second and fifth gears.

Ready To Race For $12,499

KTM

The supermoto class is designed for one thing and one thing only: good times. They also make perfect training tools for budding road racers due to their highly communicative chassis, and they’re arguably more cost-effective to operate than a full-sized sportbike at the racetrack. There is something incredibly alluring to gearheads about a push-button motorcycle designed specifically for racing, and the 2027 KTM 450 SMR is exactly that type of machine. Availability is slated to begin in September 2026.

2027 KTM 450 SMR Photo Gallery

2027 KTM 450 SMR Specifications:

Engine

Chassis

Dimensions & Capacities

Pricing & Warranty

Source: KTM