FOR a good while now, the supersport 600 market has made a lot of larger capacity machines technically obsolete, as, on British roads, there isn't much this class can't do and do well.

That's not to say no one buys anything bigger, as a quick look around any local biking haunt soon demonstrates.

But bigger capacity no longer means a physically bigger motorcycle and, as one-litre sports bikes get smaller, lighter and more advanced, it seems that the characteristics by which you used to be able to differentiate between these classes have become distinctly blurred.

So with little to choose between many 600s and their meatier siblings, is the hike in your insurance premium really worth the extra horsepower?

The Suzuki GSX-R1000 K5 certainly is.

As small and almost as light as any of the 600 supersports, but packing a whopping 176bhp, Suzuki has come up with what can only be termed the ultimate indulgence. I use the term "indulgence" because I can't pretend that there exists any real need for this kind of power - but it doesn't mean that consumers won't want it.

And, having ridden it myself, I strongly suspect everyone will want one and that the boffins at Yamaha are in for some sleepless nights, not least because the GSX is £500 cheaper and 6kg lighter than their R1 and equally capable of its thoroughly unnecessary 186mph.

On pulling away, and failing to immediately find the footpegs with my feet, I was initially a little concerned that the riding position was going to overshadow the experience.

But having found them, it became apparent that the positioning of the pegs was integral to tipping the rider forward over the front of the bike in a way that relayed much more about what was happening at the front end but somehow without overloading the wrists.

The riding position sat me into the bike rather than perching me on top of it and, in common with the rather controversial triangular silencer, my weight was moved forward and down to the same effect - shifting the centre of gravity lower and increasing the feeling of stability.

My apparent proximity to the Tarmac inspired a confidence that only accentuated the pleasure to be had, and, before long, the GSX-R had me convinced that, together, we could have given Valentino Rossi a run for his money.

Despite having so much more to give, the wide spread of power throughout the rev range and the unfaltering smoothness of its delivery meant it didn't need to be thrashed in order to get a return, and though the superbly torquey engine did away with the need to constantly work the six-speed gearbox, when it was brought into play, it proved slick and decisive.

The brakes, too, left no doubt that you could stand the GSX-R on its nose if you grabbed a handful of the lever in anger, and they regularly had me mounting the tank prior to going into the esses at Bedford Autodrome.

The bike's responses were both immediate and in direct correlation to my input - in itself a rare thing - which made them seem almost empathic. This, coupled with my perception that I completed the GSX-R's lines, made it feel like an extension of myself - only the omnipotent version of me.

Because of its seemingly boundless capabilities, I think it would be difficult to tire of the GSX-R because, regardless of what you think you know about its performance, there will always be something in reserve, waiting to be discovered.

Surprisingly, the idiosyncrasies that tend to accompany such shameless displays of power failed to materialise and, despite some rather-less-than-dignified riding on my part, the GSX-R just wouldn't be shaken.

While I can't pretend that I noticed all of the model's 3,325 new components, the more obvious ones - like the shorter, narrower fuel tank designed to cram more of the rider behind the fairing, the trapezoidal radiator that boosts cooling capacity without enlarging its frontal area, and the redesigned wheels which make the bike 600g lighter - are quite brilliant in their simplicity.

But to have incorporated all these changes and improvements without sacrificing the aesthetic appeal or the distinctiveness of this model is perhaps the biggest achievement of all.

This bike is nothing short of sublime. The fact it exists is reason enough to want one.