YZ500 vs KX500 vs CR500 | Hot Lap Shoot Out!

We have gathered the kings of the big bore class to decide which of these beasts is best once and for all. It's Honda versus Kawasaki versus Wyzilla YZ500. Strap yourselves in, it's shootout time! We've arrived here at Moto 101 on a cold and frosty morning to meet up with our friend, former British Championship racer and big bore legend Glenn Phillips. He's here to try out the Wyzilla for the very first time and then put it head-to-head against his own bikes. Glenn will give us a detailed and in-depth analysis and comparison of all three bikes a little later on. But as always with our shootouts, the ultimate winner will be decided by a hot lap showdown. So without further ado, let's set the bar for the first lap of the day. Here we go Glenn, have a look at this mate. It's minus three at the moment and this man slipped in a van last night to come and do this. Wales we are man, Wales! It's built different than with us. What do you reckon to that then? That is class, fair play. I'm really looking forward to it to be honest. When you first mentioned it I was like, it's a bit of meat that is. I know Glenn is excited to ride the Wyzilla but I'm going to make him wait just a little while longer because the first bike to hit the track will be the mighty Kawasaki KX500. Although this machine never actually won a 500cc world championship, the KX500 has earned itself legendary status. The bike found more success in the US with the likes of Jeff Ward and Mike La Rocco winning 500cc national championships. Well Glenn's gearing up for his first lap of the day on his KX500 so Kawasaki is going to be the first bike on track. It's going to set the bar. Let's do it. And the Kawasaki would eventually go on to become the ultimate desert weapon. But how will the big green machine perform today? Let's find out. There we go. Hot lap is on then. First lap of the day on the KX500. I haven't introduced him yet but we've got our buddy Sean here. He's going to do some riding this afternoon but for now you're Juvia's co-host and commentator with me as Glenn does his hot lap on the KX500. This bike, Glenn said it's 2004, right? So it's the last one that they ever produced. It's as fair as it's going to be. It's the newest KX500 you can get. It is but it's the same as an 89. So from 89 to 04 they didn't really change. It has done a few mods to it. It's front end suspension. It's slightly different but apart from that it's pretty much what they ran back in the old Welsh dragon. It's also worth noting that Glenn said this is his favourite bike. He prefers to ride this over the CR500 which we're interested to see which bike he's fastest on. I know the KX500 is a big desert ride in America so we're interested to see how it performs on a motocross track here. It's not the biggest track in the world is it? No, it's not a 500 track but I think with the ground being so loamy it's definitely going to help it. He can lay the pave down and not worry. Right so he's a couple of corners left to complete the first lap so I'm going to concentrate and make sure you're all right. So we were just talking about Glenn because he's pretty rapid. Yeah he is. He's an ex-pro. He's rode for many British teams. He's done for GPs. I think he finished fourth in the British. Absolutely rapid. Not your average motocross rider by any means but just incredibly rapid. Yeah it's hard to notice that he's Welsh but he is Welsh. Glenn competes this final lap on the KX500. Let us know in the comments down below which team are you on. Are you team green? Are you on the side of big red? Or are you a massive YZILLA fan? Let us know which one you want to win and which one you think is going to win in the comments down below. Sean which one do you think is going to win? Tuffy. I think because they're Glenn's bikes I think he'll be quickest on the KX. He likes the KX. Just watching him now he's just you know absolutely wide open everywhere. So yeah I think the KX and I'm a Coway fan so yeah. We've got a hater. YZILLA hater. The YZILLA is all right. It's got a great chassis. It'll feel frozen for 10. Right Glenn which lap do you think was quickest? Second. Yes second lap was quickest a 1.49.6. So first lap of the day 1.49.6. That is the time to beat that the bar has been set. So next up big red. It's time for the legend, the icon, the Honda CR500. The CR500 is one of the most famous and one of the most adored motocross bikes of all time and for good reason. After its inception in 1984 the CR500 won nine 500cc world championships in a row. It's widely argued that the CR500 is the single greatest dirt bike of all time. So let's see how this legend fares in our big bore shootout. All right so Glenn's just about to come around and cross the beam for his first lap on the CR500. I'm going to concentrate because he's about to come. Sean tell the people about Glenn's history on the red bikes. So he rode Honda for the CAT Honda team so his teammate was Mike Brown. So yeah there's a bit history for you on the 125s. So he knows his way around a Honda. Game on. So this is a 2001 CR500 right so again the last year production of this bike but like you said with the KX. Hadn't been developed for about 10 years before that so this is pretty much as fair as we can get for a big bore shootout. The latest Honda, the latest Kawasaki and obviously our bikes, a 2023 model. Glenn said before that the Kawasaki was his favorite bike but generally people say that the CR500s are better for motocross right so like Neville Bradshaw says that and Thorpey would say that I think but Glenn doesn't think that he'd be quicker on this bike so it's going to be really interesting to see what lap times he lays down here today. To be fair I rode that before he's done his hot laps and yeah I thought it was mint. Very good. And you're not a big bore guy. No not at all but it's easy to ride. It didn't have, I don't know, I think because of the ground's so loamy as well so it saps that big hit of power but very smooth. Which one do you reckon is winning the sound contest? Best sound? I think the CR at the minute. Yeah she's a bit deeper, a bit gruntier. And even though they're from the same sort of era I think the CR still looks a bit more modern. Yeah so the CR is actually older than the Kawasaki but it looks more modern. I also want to mention as well that this video and the project, the YZILLA project has been supported by Wolfsport. We're both both wearing Wolfsport. Glenn's wearing Wolfsport. I'm actually wearing one of the special YZILLA t-shirts but it's way too cold to show you that. I'll cut to a shot of Sean wearing it last time but yeah you can pick those up there's a link in the description down below. Wolfsport have done those special for us. There's a limited supply so be quick if you want one. A massive thanks to Wolfsport for supporting the YZILLA project. No that's it. Wait for him to return and I will reveal the results. What do you reckon then Glenn? I think the CR was quicker. And you'd be correct. Fastest time on this was the first lap because there's a slight you missed a gear. Yeah I missed a gear on that one. So a 1.50.1 I got you on. This is obviously not that accurate because I'm just doing it on my phone but I'll put the exact times in the video. We'll get those off the GoPro so they'll be exactly right. I didn't think there'd be a lot in it but I just think the Kawasaki's a little bit easier to ride. This turns better. You said the Kawasaki's your favourite as well. Yeah to be fair. You've had that longer. Yeah it's like it's like putting on an old pair of slippers to be honest. You said you've had the Kawasaki 10 years you've had this 12 months. Yeah I think I've ridden it twice I think. Yeah so so far Kawasaki is king of the day. So it's a moment of truth now. YZILLA time. Before we unleash the YZILLA I just need to tell you guys about another one of our awesome channel partners. 24mx are a global motocross parts and accessories distributor and they've come on board to support the channel and help us make videos just like this one. And they're also offering you guys some awesome deals and discounts on a range of products such as this ProWorks heavy duty stand. I've been slumming it with a ratty old paddock stand for years now so to get my hands on this extra sturdy yet still lightweight pump stand has been an absolute dream. It's simple, reliable and has made setting up our bikes for shots just like this so easy. So if you like the look of this ProWorks stand be sure to check out the link that I've included in the description down below and make sure that you use our discount code and max 15 for 15% off. Another big thanks goes to 24mx for supporting the channel and helping us make videos just like this one. Now let's see what our beast is made of. So it's the moment of truth for the YZILLA YZ500. Is it possible for this very special piece of Canadian ingenuity to defeat the might of the Japanese giants? And just in case you are new to the channel and you don't know what the YZILLA actually is, let me fill you in. Over the past few months we've been documenting the process of turning a YZ250 into a 500cc beast using BRC Racing's YZM500 conversion kit. A lot of you guys have been on the ride with us through our trials and tribulations and for our successes. You've seen the bike transform into the YZILLA and you were there for the first ride and the fast ride. Now it's time to see if the YZILLA is truly the king of the monsters. So Glenn's out there now on the YZILLA. He's never ridden the bike before. How good does that sound? He's never ridden the bike before so he's doing two or three warm-up laps just to get used to the thing and then we'll get the stopwatch on. But before that he'll come in and we'll have a little review and comparison of all three of the bikes so you guys can hear from a big bore expert what it feels like to ride the YZILLA directly after two big bore legends. So let's wait for Glenn to come back. This thing's class. Do you think she's running a little bit lean or a little bit of pink in? Quickest on that by far. This is the warm-up lap when you're saying this. Riding these and then riding that it just feels like a modern bike. So modern and he'll just love it. I know he will. You can see by the way he's riding. I mean within three corners he was just hanging off the side just loving life. He's never ridden that bike before in his life and he looked good on that first lap. Living life in England. Minus two degrees. It doesn't get any better. How hard is the YZILLA? Yeah I know. Well it's Welsh for you isn't it? Tough as anything. I've got Mediterranean blood. Do you know what I mean? So yeah this cold weather just ain't for me. But he's from Wales and you know that's it. They're just born that way aren't they? They were born minus six seven degrees weren't they? Out in the snow. Glenn so just completed your first laps on the YZILLA YZ500. Give us your initial reaction and then a little bit of a comparison between this and the two other bikes. This is just so much fun. Power wise I don't think there's a massive difference between I think this is a little more lively revving. More like the 250 Yam but just brakes, suspension, everything. It's just a new 500. It's what they should be. It's probably the best way to explain it. I still think she might be, she's running a little bit lean I think. Pinking a little bit but I think that's because it's so cold. One thing I did notice which is quite annoying. I keep kicking the exhaust. Yeah because it's big. It does stick out quite a fair bit. What a machine man. You had fun out there. Looked like you was enjoying life out there. When can we race it? Well we'll make that happen next year shall we? When? I think the viewers will be desperate to see it. Yeah. So let's make it happen. That's a deal that is. Yeah without a shadow of a doubt. That'd be class. The stopwatch is ready and we know the time to beat. It's the last chance to throw your predictions in the comments below. Let's do this. So the clock is on for the YZILLA YZ500. Now I think it is important to say that we did all of these laps are back to back to back for the fairest test and hopefully for the most consistent lap times. I like the Kawasaki more than the Honda. A lot lot more modern feeling. What do you reckon guys? Which bike has won the noise contest? Which bike sounds best? Let us know in the comments down below. Still gotta watch some of the places. A little bit icy. Now as we've mentioned a couple of times throughout this video, it was so cold on the day that we shot this shootout. Meaning that it was fairly difficult to set the bikes up for these conditions. We didn't have any spare jets with us to swap out and change, so that meant that the bikes were running a little bit lean. Especially the YZ. So just a handful of corners left to go now for the YZILLA YZ500. How close is it going to be? Can the bike defeat the Kawasaki KX500? Glenn's favourite bike of all time. Two corners left to go. It's the moment of truth for the YZILLA. Was the YZILLA able to do it? All will be revealed very soon. Before that though, I just have to mention that Glenn only completed this one hot lap on the YZ. He felt that the bike was running just a bit too lean and we didn't want to risk the health of the bike. So we parked it for the day before Glenn felt like he could really lay down the hammer. So was this one hot lap enough to claim the win? Glenn, the moment of truth. What do you reckon on the YZILLA time wise? Oh, I don't think it'd be a great deal in here. I reckon second, second and a half a lap quicker. Right, the YZILLA YZ500 around the track today, first time you've ever been on it, 148.6. So like you said, about a second quicker, you'd bang on. I think personally, a little bit more time, a little bit more setup, we could probably knock another good two seconds off that. Because you had just the brakes, the suspension, modern feel. It just, this I think, if they'd kept developing the 500s, this is what it would have turned into. It's just such a shame that they stopped, because this is some bit of kit. Oh yeah, without a doubt, the YZILLA has won the contest here today. Well, with a shadow of a doubt, and it's just so much fun to ride. It's like riding, it is a modern bike, with that extra bit of balls. She's a race weapon, right? I'm going to prove that next year. Well, I'd love to, just let me know when and where. Let me know if you want to see Glenn race this bike in 2023, and give me some ideas in the comments down below of the events and races that you want to see the YZILLA line up at. Right, so there we have it, we've completed the big four shootout. We might run another shootout with the big bikes again next year in the summer, when it's a bit nicer outside, and we could maybe get the Megalodon in the mix, maybe get some other, you've got some more big bikes as well, don't you, Glenn? Yeah, I've got a 520K, so maybe we'll beef up the line up next year and do another one. But Glenn, massive thanks today for coming to ride and bringing you two, your KX500 and your CR500. Sean, thanks for coming along, being my co-host, doing some laps as well. As always, a massive thanks to Wolfsport for sponsoring the YZILLA project and helping us make these videos, and also to 24MX for sponsoring the channel and supporting us as well. So, thanks again, guys. And also 101. And also 101, yeah, so it's December, what, 8th today? Yeah. We're all frozen, there's water everywhere, but the track is prime. But as always, guys, my name's Max, this is 999 Laser. Till next time, we'll see you at the track.