The '96-'99 Gsxr had been not just a sales success

This side-view illustration shows a considerably more radical and angular Suzuki Gsxr than the one eventually built.
Suzuki moto felt, at this point in the Gsxr's life, that some linkage to the previous model was necessary-particularly because the '96-'99 bikes had been not just a sales success but a racing success as well.