Bridgestone Battlax S20 Evo Score
The Bridgestone Battlax S20 Evo remains a legendary "all-rounder" in the hypersport segment. While it has been officially discontinued and succeeded by the S21, S22 and S23, it still holds its own today as a high-performance tire that balances aggressive track-day capability with industry-leading wet-weather confidence.
The Good
- Allrounder
- High grip level
- Good wet grip
The Bad
- No longer produced
- Low mileage
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Grip Dry
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Grip Wet
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Warm-Up
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Handling
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Mileage
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Value for Money
The Bridgestone Battlax S20 Evo is one of the most popular hypersport tires, delivering impressive performance not only on dry roads but especially in the wet. Although several successors in the Battlax‑S series have been released since, the S20 Evo is still highly recommended and enjoys a large fan base. In our Bridgestone Battlax S20 Evo test, we tell you everything you need to know about Bridgestone’s sport tire.
Table of Contents
Note: The S20 Evo is no longer in production. The Battlax S22 and Battlax S23 are currently the best alternatives.
Bridgestone Battlax S20 Evo Review
In our Bridgestone Battlax S20 Evo review, we took a close look at the tire. In the following sections, we cover everything about grip, sportiness, mileage, and many other aspects of the Battlax S20 Evo.
Grip on Dry Roads
The Bridgestone Battlax S20 Evo feels a bit stiff when cold. The advantage, however, is that it warms up quickly and then unleashes its full potential. The S20 Evo is particularly impressive at high lean angles and in fast corners. It is perfectly suitable for track use and allows you to ride to the circuit on your own wheels.
In dry conditions, the S20 Evo delivers strong grip across all temperature ranges — even on very hot days and during track sessions.
Grip on Wet Roads
Where the S20 Evo truly shines is in the wet. Here, it leaves much of the competition far behind. Even under heavy braking on wet pavement, the Bridgestone Battlax S20 Evo shows no signs of instability. For a long time, it was one of the few hypersport tires offering excellent grip in both wet and dry conditions.
Braking Performance
Whether in the wet or dry, the S20 Evo behaves exemplary under braking. It provides plenty of stability and excellent front‑end feedback.
Riding Comfort
The S20 Evo is a sport tire, but it still offers decent touring comfort. It rolls quietly and provides good damping.
Tire Wear
The wear pattern of the S20 Evo is very good. The tire wears evenly and retains most of its positive characteristics until the end. Only in wet conditions does performance drop slightly due to the reduced tread depth of a worn tire. On the racetrack, the tire can handle many laps without overheating, maintaining a clean wear pattern.
Mileage
Mileage is the S20 Evo’s only real weakness. While it outperforms some competitors in the super/hypersport category, it still cannot be considered long‑lasting. Depending on bike and riding style, the following mileages are realistic:
- Sporty road riding + 1 trackday: approx. 3,000 km
- Road + everyday use: approx. 4,000 km
- Very powerful superbikes + aggressive riding: approx. 2,500 km
Riding Stability / Cornering Stability
The S20 Evo offers a high level of stability, even on powerful superbikes and during track use. It handles fast, high‑speed corners with plenty of feedback and solid resistance. Even today, the S20 Evo remains a very confidence‑inspiring tire for sporty riders.
Agility / Steering Behavior
The S20 Evo delights riders with good handling and agile steering. On twisty roads, its agility makes it a lot of fun. It turns in willingly without ever feeling twitchy or unstable.
Uprighting Moment
In our test, the S20 Evo impressed with very neutral behavior. Even under hard braking into lean, we did not notice any significant uprighting tendency.
Tire Pressure
The Battlax S20 Evo performs well both on the road and on the track. We adjusted tire pressures slightly during our test. The following values proved ideal; the track recommendations come directly from Bridgestone:
- Road: Front 2.2 bar / Rear 2.5 bar
- Track: Front 2.1 bar / Rear 1.9–2.0 bar
Bridgestone Battlax S20 Evo Experiences
Our experience with the S20 Evo has been consistently positive. Whatever you want to do with this tire – it can handle it. Hard acceleration on hyper‑nakeds and superbikes, sporty touring in the rain, or trackdays – the S20 Evo performs well in all scenarios. It offers plenty of grip and enough durability to survive multiple track sessions. There is really nothing negative to say about the S20 Evo, except for its mileage. But a tire that gets so much right can be forgiven for one small weakness.
On our Yamaha MT‑09, the S20 Evo came as stock equipment, and it suited the bike perfectly. In testing, the S20 Evo impressed us on the MT‑09 and provided long‑lasting enjoyment.
Alternatives to the Bridgestone Battlax S20 Evo
The Battlax S20 Evo has been on the market since 2014 and is no longer produced. Suitable alternatives include:
- Battlax S21
- Battlax S22
- Battlax S23
- Metzeler Sportec M9 RR
- Metzeler Sportec 01
- ContiSportAttack 4
- Dunlop Sportsmart MK3
- Battlax BT016 Pro Hypersport – budget option (end of production)
