The Fastest Electric Bike In The World Can Beat The Koenigsegg Agera RS's Top Speed

It seems like thrill-seeking speed freaks are breaking records near constantly. In 2017, it was the Agera RS from Koenigsegg, the very same marque behind the 249-mph Gemera. The Swedish automaker closed down an 11-mile section of Nevada's Route 160 with its sights set on smashing a production car top speed record. With Koenigsegg factory test driver Niklas Lilja behind the wheel, the Agera RS scorched the then-record, setting an average two-way top speed of 277.9 miles per hour. 

That's blisteringly fast. As part of that averaged speed, Koenigsegg's wheeled rocket ship managed to clock a 284.55-mph one-way speed. That sort of speed was science fiction a couple of decades ago. Today, however, you don't even need four wheels to hit that sort of pace. In fact, Monaco-based electric motorcycle brand Voxan managed to beat the Agera RS in a mad dash down a runway. Not just any runway, either.

To hit the Koenigsegg-beating speed, Voxan took its Wattman motorcycle to Space Florida's sprawling, 2.84-mile Launch and Landing Facility runway. It's the very same monstrous bit of high-friction concrete once used by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to land the Space Shuttle. It's quite simply one of the longest runways in the world –- and the right spot to take a ferocious electric bike up to record-breaking speeds.

Monaco's Venturi Group bought Voxan in 2010. Since then, the French motorcycle manufacturer has had a pretty lofty goal of building record-breaking electric motorcycles. Easier said than done, sure. To make that goal a reality, Voxan built the fully electric Wattman. In its naked state, the Wattman sits at around 608 pounds. Add some streamlining skin to the Wattman's birthday suit, and the scales show 653 pounds. Hardly a featherweight, but the Wattman's portly curb weight didn't stop it from smashing speed records.

With the bike built, Voxan turned its attention to testing. With Max Biaggi in the saddle, the motorcycle manufacturer sent the Wattman to Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Now, Biaggi is no stranger to speed on two wheels. The Italian motorcycle racer is a four-time MotoGP world champion. Setting the speed record, however, wouldn't involve dragging knees like Biaggi did in MotoGP. Instead, Biaggi would have to blast down the Launch and Landing Facility runway as fast as possible. In 2020, the Italian motorcycle rider put the Wattman to the test, clocking a top speed of 253.5 miles per hour. Voxan and Biaggi weren't done there.

A year later, a newer version of the Wattman returned to Space Florida in an attempt to break its own record. On that run, a GPS speedometer confirmed that the streamlined Wattman managed an organ-rearranging top speed of 292 miles per hour. Voxan had built an Agera RS-beating bike that hit a higher top speed in a shorter stretch. With both runs averaged, the Wattman recorded 283 miles per hour and broke 21 records, including the top spot in the partially streamlined electric motorcycle under 300 kilograms (661 pounds) class.

What's more wild than a 292-mile-per-hour electric motorcycle? How about an electric bike with Mercedes power? To push the two-wheeled cruise missile to record-breaking speeds, Voxan opted for a Mercedes EQ Formula E powertrain. Sounds ridiculous? It's not as crazy as you might think. After all, the Mercedes Formula E team makes electric bikes. The Wattman's powertrain gets its juice from Voxan-Saft battery architecture. Venturi says the flexible, lightweight battery pouch cells not only keep the Wattman under 300 kilograms (661 pounds), they also made it possible for Voxan to increase the bike's battery power by nearly 80%.

All said and done, the Mercedes-powered electric bike is good for 429 horsepower and a herculean 1,003 pound feet of torque. Mercedes-Benz isn't the only partnership in the Wattman story. Voxan also teamed up with Michelin for the project. The company behind the strange 10-wheeled PLR tire testing car outfitted the Wattman with a 120/70-17 Michelin Power GP tire as well as a grippy 190/55-17 rear tire. So, want a streamlined, Agera RS-beating Voxan Wattman with Mercedes power and Michelin rubber like the record-breaker? Dream on. The customer-ready Wattman dials things back, producing around 203 horsepower.