Mother of the Modern Sportbike: 40th Anniversary GSX-R from NCC x Fuzzy Racing x Woefie-Art…
When the Suzuki GSX-R750 appeared in 1985, it was nothing short of revolutionary. Suzuki had created the first real race replica, setting the pattern for all superbikes to come:
“With a full race fairing, aluminum frame, light weight and 100 ponies, it was built beyond belief. It was a true racer with lights and still is.” –Shannons
Our buddy Nigel “Nigello” Weber of Germany’s NCC Bikes (Nigel’s Creative Customs) and Fuzzy Racing tells the backstory well.
“Remember that we are talking about the mother of all modern superbikes… Before creating this piece of history, the boss of Suzuki walked over the parking lot at the endurance races and took a look at the bikes of the visitors. He noticed that many people tried to recreate the racing look with their street bikes by adding fairings and racing seats. At this point he decided to build a racebike for the road and the GSXR was created. The inspiration for that bike is the 1983 Sert Suzuki in HB colours. If you compare those you will see they have a lot in common.”
For the 40th anniversary of the original “Slabside” GSX-R750, Nigel — who’s named after none other than Nigel Mansell — decided to create an “Anniverary Artbike” in cooperation with his friend, artist, and fellow trackday enthusiast Philippe Madou (Woefie-Art).
“He has put a lot of effort and passion into it, as he is a bikehead himself and enjoys some fast laps on the track as well! From time to time we enjoy that together on track!” -Nigel
Nigel, an amateur road racer who comes from a long line of privateer racers, is no stranger to the GSX-R platform. In 2024 we featured his 1989 GSX-R1100 “Renngixxer,” which was one of the year’s top restomods.
For this project, they wanted to keep the bike largely original to celebrate the way it was built in 1985. However, they did make some performance improvements similar to those of Suzuki’s own 1986 GSX-R750 Limited Edition, of which just 500 were produced. They added a wider rear wheel, a solo tail section, a Limited seat custom-upholstered by Badorek Sattlerei, full floating Brembo brake discs, and they produced their own Limited-style heelguards and footrests.
Then there’s the custom paint from Philippe Madou of Woefie Art, who’s known for his cartoon-style motorcycle art. Philippe has done highly-detailed prints of many of the legends of the sport (see them here) in an energetic style that puts us in mind of the legendary Joe Bar Team series. He hand-painted scenes on the various body panels, and even did the “R” and NCC logos himself.
“He did an awesome job and combined two things I always loved: bikes and drawing! He does such great work (comic bikes and stuff) and having his handmade art on a bike I made is an honor for me! With this the bike became really special and unique.” -Nigel
While the engine remains stock, this was the first 750cc sport bike with 100 horsepower. It’s still no slouch, and represents something of a high-speed time machine.
“It makes you feel like riding an endurance bike back in the 80s. The position on the bike is comfortable compared to modern superbikes, because you sit more ‘in’ the bike instead on top.
It’s a revvy engine with a great character. The stock flat-slide carbs give you an even more special feeling while riding. Looking at the analog clocks warms your heart. The rev counter starts at 3000 rpm, which shows you the roots of this bike.”
Nigel and Philippe plan to sell the bike sometime this year, so find Nigel at NCC Bikes if you’re interested in owning this one-of-a-kind tribute to the mother of the modern superbike.
Below is our full interview with Nigel about the build, including more photos, details, and backstory.
Suzuki GSX-R750 Anniversary Artbike: Builder Interview
• What’s the make, model, and year of the donor bike?
Suzuki GSX-R750, 1985.
• Why was this bike built?
We wanted to create something special for the 40-year anniversary of the iconic GSX-R750 in 2025. So I took an ’85 GSXR and created an Artbike with a good friend from Belgium. This bike is for sale. We want to sell it by auction this year.
• What was the design concept and what influenced the build?
The design concept was to celebrate the beauty of the bike itself and underline it with some custom art on the bike itself. My friend Philippe Madou from Woefie Art is expert in cartoon art and created some really stunning motives in cartoon style. Everything is hand painted, even the “R” Logos and the “NCC” logo.
• What custom work was done to the bike?
We kept it as original as possible to celebrate the bike like it was built in 1985. We did just a few improvements like Suzuki did itself in a similar way in 1986 with the Limited Edition. That means we added a wider rear wheel, the Limited seat with custom upholstery by Hendrik Badorek, reproduced Limited parts for the footrests (produced by us), and some full floating Brembo brake discs.
• Does the bike have a nickname?
We call it the “The Anniversary Artbike”
• Any idea of horsepower, weight, and/or performance numbers?
Performance numbers are stock. It was the first ever 750cc bike with 100 hp.
• Can you tell us what it’s like to ride this bike?
It makes you feel like riding an endurance bike back in the 80s. The position on the bike is comfortable compared to modern superbikes, because you sit more “in” the bike instead on top.
It’s a revvy engine with a great character. The stock flat-slide carbs give you an even more special feeling while riding. Looking at the analog clocks warms your heart. The rev counter starts at 3000 rpm, which shows you the roots of this bike.
Remember that we are talking about the mother of all modern superbikes, as this one was the first full fairing bike inspired by the racing version. Before creating this piece of history, the boss of Suzuki walked over the parking lot at the endurance races and took a look at the bikes of the visitors.
He noticed that many people tried to recreate the racing look with their street bikes by adding fairings and racing seats. At this point he decided to build a racebike for the road and the GSXR was created. The inspiration for that bike is the 1983 Sert Suzuki in HB colours. If you compare those you will see they have a lot in common.
• Was there anything done during this build that you are particularly proud of?
As always I try to preserve the patina of the donor bike in a good way. I’m not a big fan of over restored bikes…they often look better than new and you are afraid of riding them. And that’s what they were made for, riding! I preserve that patina because in my opinion a bike this age has a story to tell.
In this case we created a nice symbiosis of refreshed parts and patina. But the thing I’m mostly proud of with this project is the cooperation with Woefie-Art. He did an awesome job and combined two things I always loved: bikes and drawing! He does such great work (comic bikes and stuff) and having his handmade art on a bike I made is an honor for me! With this the bike became really special and unique.
• Is there anyone you’d like to thank
Yeah for sure! I’d like to thank Philippe Madou (Woefie-Art) for making this possible and creating such a stunning piece of art! What started as a nice idea in my head became the real thing because of him! He has put a lot of effort and passion into it, as he is a bikehead himself and enjoys some fast laps on the track as well! From time to time we enjoy that together on track!
I also want to thank Hendrik Badorek for creating an awesome detail with the custom upholstery of the seat! We will sure cooperate in the future!
Follow the Builder
Workshop: ncc-bikes.com | @ncc_bikes
Paint: woefie-art.com | @woefie_art
Hobby Racing Team: @fuzzyracing
Upholstery: badorek-sattlerei.de
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Eh, for a sport bike it’s not bad.
Looks good, you know why, its original form is very recognizable. Not this garbage of multi segmented welded exhaust. Weird tractor tires on the front. Stupid looking number plates with headlights in them. I good go on and on. Nice looking bike, I lived in SoCal when these came to the US.