After several years out in the wilderness, a couple of dedicated Italian businessmen who had previously set up Cagiva revived the famous brand.
It was a stroke of genius as Cagiva were already on the ropes, but the MV Agusta name carried weight with so many enthusiasts and all they needed was a couple of bikes that could do the name justice. In the F4 and Brutale, they found just that. The company has grown from strength to strength since then, and as much as the F4 will always be the forefather of the modern MV Agusta company, their success is almost solely built upon the strength of the Brutale range.
10 Tamburini Design
Massimo Tamburini was one of those businessmen. He is also widely regarded as the best motorcycle designer that has ever lived.
He is the man responsible for designing the famous Ducati 916 that quite literally rewrote history in terms of how a sportbike should look, then followed that up with the F4. He also penned the original Brutale. That design has of course evolved over the years, but the foundations are still all there.
9 Sportbike Roots
It is no coincidence that the original Brutale and F4 share so many components. The same men who oversaw the development of the Ducati Monster helped get these two bikes into production.
It is a move that makes sense from a financial perspective in the sense that the company saves on tooling costs, and the consumer gets more bang for the buck with the sport-naked model.
8 Impressive Triples
Throughout history, MV Agusta was most famous for its high-revving inline-4 engines, but the modern iteration has since become more synonymous with a particularly incredible triple.
It first came out several years ago as a 675cc engine, but has now been redeveloped to meet emissions restrictions and has a displacement of 798cc. It makes good torque, great power, even better noise, and finds a home in the vast majority of MV Agusta bikes.
7 Practical Rosso
Their entry-level bike is by no means an actual “entry-level” motorcycle. None of their bikes qualify as beginner bikes, and we are quite ok with that.
The emphasis is on performance. And even though this bike has the most modest tune, it still makes 110 horsepower, which is more than most middleweight bikes.
6 Brutal 1000
Few bikes look as aggressive as the 1000 RS and 1000 RR, but in the real world, they really do have far too much power for their own good.
These bikes truly live up to their name and are not for the faint of heart. With 208 horsepower, they need pretty advanced electronics just to keep the bike upright.
5 Modern Electronics
As the bikes have advanced so has their electronics suite, with wheelie control, traction control, and lean-sensitive ABS all controlled by a new IMU.
All of that is there to tame the power of the 1000cc models, but with the 798cc platform, you can also opt for their new SCS (smart clutch system) that acts pretty much like an automatic transmission.
4 Unique Models
Although they don’t even fly under the same banner anymore, the Brutale has given birth to the Dragster lineup and the outlandish Rush.
It certainly also contributed to the development of MV Agusta's only touring bike—the Turismo Veloce. The platform is simple in nature but has allowed for seemingly endless development.
3 Performance-Focused
Even though sport-naked bikes are by nature supposed to be more comfortable and usable machines, the Brutale range has always favored performance.
That much is particularly clear with the 208-horsepower 1000cc models that will put a lot of sportbikes to shame. However, even the 110-horsepower Rosso is plenty capable, and the 140-horsepower 800RR makes more power than anything in its class (unless you take into account its rather steep price).
2 Breathtaking Acceleration
On paper, the 3-second 0-60 might not seem all that different from other hyper-nakeds or similarly powerful sportbikes, but none of them make their power quite like this.
The most powerful Brutale makes its power in the most terrifying yet satisfying way as it explodes to life near the peak revs. This rush isn’t limited to the biggest and most powerful as the smaller bikes achieve similarly impressive acceleration times thanks to their low-down grunt.
1 Italian
Like anything made in Italy, these bikes have their quirks. They do get pretty hot, are unusually uncomfortable for naked bikes, and they will be expensive to fix.
Getting one of these bikes used will also be tantamount to playing the local lottery, but whether you get it used, or cough up for the new one, you won’t be disappointed. They have a unique charm and are quite simply stunning.