Twenty years ago this week Honda rattled motorcycling cages worldwide with the release of the 893cc Fireblade, which was smaller (and just two kilograms heavier) than the CBR600 F2 and made more power than the US-spec 1000cc Hurricane.

It was a twitchy, ill-tempered little beastie, its handling compromised by its then-fashionable 16" front wheel, but it was a street-racer's dream and it redefined sports motorcycles just as the Suzuki GSX-R750 had done seven years before.

Today's Fireblade is a little more mainstream; it has grown to a full litre, with a 17" hoop at each end and some state-of-the-art complexity, as is to be expected from the company that never uses one component where three will do.

And now (pause for "ta-ra!") Honda celebrates the 20th anniversary of its sharpest tar-slicer with the revised-for-2012 CBR1000RR. It's due in South African showrooms in February at, Honda SA says, more or less the same price as the current model (R142 999), and will also be available in a special red, white and blue livery harking back to the original CBR900RR.

The 999cc engine is unchanged (133kW at 12 000rpm, 112Nm at 8500) for 2012, except for some fuel-injection revisions to help smooth out the dreaded "spritzer snatch" at small throttle openings. That's what we were expecting; the cybergarage is full of rumours that this is the last transverse-engined Fireblade and that we can expect an all-new V4 in 2013.

Hmm, wonder if that has anything to do with the new, 1000cc MotoGP regulations for 2012?

The 2012 'Blade rolls on spidery-looking new 12-spoked wheels.

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There's new suspension at both ends, however; Honda has ditched its own HMAS forks in favour of a 43mm Showa "big piston" setup with spring on the left and damping on the right, which we first saw on the 2009 Kawasaki ZX-6R.

At the rear there's a new monoshock, developed specially for this bike, that Showa calls "balance free". It uses two tubes (one inside the other) instead of the conventional single tube, which Honda says allows for increased oil volume, more consistent damping and a smoother transition from compression to rebound.

What's probably more important for Simon W Streetrider is that the compression and rebound damping adjusters are both at the top of the shock body where they're easy to get to - you won't have to grovel under the bike in your leathers at track days any more.

The 2012 'Blade rolls on spidery-looking new 12-spoked wheels for which Honda claims "more consistent rigidity". Surprisingly, it would seem they are actually heavier than the previous rims, since the bike's kerb weight is up one kilogram to 200kg (212 with ABS).

The fairing has been reshaped with sharper, pointier lines front and rear, and layered panelling, as first seen on the VFR1200F, which Honda says will improve both aerodynamics and cooling, as well as drawing engine heat away from the rider.

And finally, there's a whole new, all-liquid crystal instrument pod with a gear-position indicator, lap timer, adjustable shift indicator and four different display modes for the bar-graph rev-counter.

The 2012 Fireblade will be available in a special red, white and blue livery harking back to the original CBR900RR.

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