Voxan and Double WorldSBK Champion Max Biaggi have consolidated their statuses as the official FIM Electric Land Speed World Record holders after once again smashing the benchmark for a motorcycle with a new 283mph peak.
A 13-time MotoGP-500GP race winner, WorldSBK Champion in 2010 and 2012 for Aprilia and now Moto3 team owner, Biaggi has more recently been working with motorcycle marque Voxan, which is owned by Monegasque company Venturi, runner-up in the FIA Formula E World Championship in 2021.
Joining the project two years ago, Biaggi first broke the World Record in 2021 of 253.5mph (408kph) aboard the specially designed Voxan Wattman in a category that commands it be a ‘partially streamlined electric motorcycle under 300kg’.
However, after returning to the Space Florida Launch and Landing Facility for its latest run, Biaggi took the Voxan Wattman to a confirmed 283.182mph (455.737kph) over 1km in opposite directions. With the benefit of favourable wind, the Voxan got up to 292.204mph, according to the bike’s GPS.
“When you see the instruments signaling 470 kph you don’t believe your eyes. Even for a MotoGP racer used to pushing 300 kph, this is something extreme. At that speed, the track suit vibrates and burns your skin, your eyes cannot see well.
“There is so much turbulence that you think you can hold on, but you can’t. You don’t look anymore at what is straight ahead. You need to look wider. It’s crazy.”
With its lack of a fuel powered ICE, the quieter EV powertrain means riding the Voxan is a very different experience for Biaggi, with the Italian getting to have a greater understanding wind has on a motorcycle.
“When you break the wall of the air, the wind creates a really big noise. The sensation is like driving into, and then through, a wall.”
“Unlike the first time, I knew what to expect, and throughout the eight days we were at the NASA Space Center, I took care of all the details I hadn’t considered in the past. I am a maniac about this. I have always been.
“You can prepare everything at the best, but still, when you are sitting on the bike, waiting for the green light to start, a thousand thoughts pass into your mind. The gray ribbon of the track looks endless and infinite and merges with the sky.”
Voxan’s achievement puts pressure on a British project by White Motorcycles currently seeking to break the same record with its WMC250EV.
However, after originally claiming it was confident of breaking the 250mph barrier - which would have made it competitive with the erstwhile record - it will now need to find a significant amount of speed if it is to defeat Voxan.
