Hero Xpulse 200 is the Indian Motorcycle of the Year or the IMOTY for 2020. IMOTY is often referred to as the ‘Oscar’ of Indian motorcycle awards, and rightly so, given it is the most sought-after accolade when it comes to two wheels. Moreover, to win the IMOTY, a motorcycle must do more than just deliver a value proposition. It must be well-suited for the Indian market in more ways than one, and that includes comfort, performance, fuel efficiency, and most of all, it must score high on fitness of purpose and setting new benchmarks.
The jury for the IMOTY, which comprises of senior motorcycle journalists from various magazines and established online portals, considers these very aspects and then votes on the shortlist. This year’s shortlist included the Benelli Imperiale 400, the Hero Xtreme 200S and the Xpulse 200, the Honda CB300R, the Jawa, the KTM 125 Duke, the Suzuki Gixxer 250, and the Yamaha MT-15. One of the conditions for the jury to be able to vote for a particular motorcycle is its presence at the jury round. This year, the jury round took place at the Buddh International Circuit.
This year's IMOTY jury, meanwhile, consisted of Rahul Ghosh and Dipayan Dutta from Auto Today, Jared Soloman and Arup Das from AutoX, Aspi Bhathena and Sarmad Kadiri from Bike India, Sirish Chandran from Evo, Kartik Ware and Pablo Chatterjee from Motoring World, Abhay Verma and Rohit Paradkar from Overdrive, and Vikrant Singh from BikeWale.
Additionally, IMOTY joined hands with Grant Thornton as the award validation partner for this year’s award. Representatives from the agency collected the scoring sheets during the jury round, tabulated the points and ensured complete secrecy by presenting the envelope with the winner's name only on the awards ceremony night.
The award was presented by Dr. Raghupati Singhania, Chairman & Managing Director, JK Tyre & Industries Limited on behalf of the IMOTY committee.
