ZXMOTO is officially here. On Tuesday, the newest Chinese motorcycle manufacturer conducted its global launch at EICMA with a presentation of seven bikes, including the ZXMOTO 450 Rally.

Company founder Zhang Xue had previously been the creator and head of Kove Moto before his departure in March 2024. Unlike Kove, whose operations balanced between rally and superbikes, ZXMOTO will prioritize the latter. A day before the presentation, Evan Bros Racing formed a partnership to race the 820RR in the Supersport World Championship.

Consequently, as Zhang explained Tuesday, ZXMOTO will not run the Dakar Rally in 2026. In a rather bold proclamation, he plans to switch gears to Dakar if they can win the Supersport title.

“The goal we set for ourselves now is next year after we participate in the SSP category and winning the championship,” he stated.

For reference, Kove Moto was founded in 2017 before debuting at Dakar in 2023. Zhang had a five-year plan for Kove at the race: finish in Year 1 (success), top 20 in Year 2 (best finishing Kove was 35th in Rally2), top ten in Year 3 (success, Neels Theric finished sixth in Rally2), a podium in Year 4, and victory in Year 5.

The 450 Rally was built by much of the same engineers from Kove that was responsible for that marque’s rally raider. Still, Zhang noted the ZXMOTO version is lighter with improved shocks. It has a dual overhead camshaft engine with titanium alloy valves.

Two versions of the rally bike will be available, one for racing and the other for recreational use. The latter is road legal and complies with Euro 5+ emissions regulations.

Other ZXMOTO bikes unveiled at EICMA include the 500RR, 500F, 820ADV, MX250 and MX450, and 600V Cruiser.

After Zhang’s departure, Kove split into different factory teams and marques like ZXMOTO and Hoto Motorcycle. Unlike ZXMOTO’s more patient approach, Hoto appeared at Dakar just six months after its founding.

“At ZXMOTO, we aim not just to replicate past success but to exceed it,” Zhang added. “Our philosophy is simple: let technology drive performance, and let passion guide every machine we create.”

Featured image credit: ZXMOTO