Development of the Daytona 675 began in 2000, shortly after the launch of the four-cylinder TT600. The TT600 had been Triumph's first modern middleweight sportbike but struggled to match the Japanese competition on track. Triumph decided to return to its traditional engineering values and made the pivotal decision to adopt a three-cylinder layout rather than a four-cylinder, as used in the TT600.
Detailed engineering analysis began in 2001, following the completion of the three-cylinder Daytona 955i. Pleased with the weight and performance projections, the project progressed to its full concept phase in March 2002. Initial chassis development used a modified Daytona 600 platform with revised wheelbase, steering head angle, and tank. This configuration outperformed the original Daytona 600 and provided a comparison baseline against the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R and Honda CBR600RR during development.
Styling development was conducted in-house. An early design based primarily on black was discarded after the engineering team concluded that great British designs of the 1960s had relied on flowing curved forms rather than sharp angular edges. A concept sketch produced by a team member, depicting the 675 as a naked bike, formed the basis for the production design, refined using market research groups composed of riders across different sportbike categories. The newly developed engine first ran on a dynamometer in May 2003. Full prototype testing combining engine, chassis, and styling began in late 2004.
The Daytona 675 was officially launched at the NEC International Motorcycle and Scooter Show in 2005. Bike magazine, which received an exclusive pre-launch test ride, declared it the best British sportsbike ever and possibly one of the greatest sportsbikes of all time. Motor Cycle News praised its handling and engine character, describing it as a real winner on road and track. Triumph intended to build 4,000 units for 2006, with 1,000 for the UK, 2,000 for the US, and 1,000 for the rest of the world. Customer demand exceeded expectations, with waiting lists of three months or more in the US and UK.
The 2008 model produced a tested 104.4 hp at 12,100 rpm with 53.3 lbf-ft of torque at 11,750 rpm, with a dry weight of 165.0 kg. The Daytona 675 won the Supersport category at the Masterbike comparison test in 2006 and again in 2007.
The Daytona 675 accumulated a meaningful motorsport record despite competing as a British three-cylinder against an established class dominated by Japanese four-cylinder machinery. Several privateers entered AMA and regional events from launch without factory support. In the British Supersport Championship 2006, Paul Young and Christian Elkin raced Daytonas.
Factory backing arrived in 2008 when MAP Embassy Racing struck an agreement with Triumph. On 5 May 2008, Glen Richards scored the first win for a Triumph-backed team since 2004 and went on to claim three further victories on his way to the British Supersport Championship title.
At the Isle of Man TT, Triumph negotiated entry of the 675 triple into the 600 class during development, and New Zealander Paul Dobbs raced a Daytona in the 2006 TT. The Triumph-SC factory-supported team entered the 2008 Supersport World Championship with Garry McCoy and Ilario Dionisi as riders. The ParkinGO Triumph BE1 Racing team entered the 2009 WorldSSP season and finished fifth in manufacturers standings, with McCoy earning two podiums at Donington and Portimao.
In American domestic racing, the Augusta Triumph/Ducati Racing Team won the AMA Pro Moto GT1 season championship in 2009, with their Daytona 675 taking pole position and leading 19 of 40 laps at Barber Motorsports Park — the first AMA race victory for a Daytona 675. The team added four regional championships in 2010 and a national title at Road Atlanta.
The 2009 model incorporated over 50 technical improvements including a remapped ECU raising the rev limit for a 3 hp power increase, a taller first gear, and improved high and low speed damping. The ECU also became compatible with Triumph's plug-and-play quickshifter.
The 2010 model was essentially unchanged apart from a redesigned instrument cluster. A 2010 Special Edition added Pearl White bodywork, a blue frame, adjustable levers, and carbon fibre infill panels.
The 675R variant, introduced in early 2011, focused on premium specification rather than engine changes: Brembo front brakes, Ohlins suspension, a quickshifter, and carbon fibre bodywork panels including front mudguard, rear hugger, exhaust cap, heat shield, and cockpit panels.
A significant 2013 update brought a larger bore and shorter stroke for a more compact and slightly more powerful engine, a narrower and lighter frame, larger airbox, new swingarm, slipper clutch, lighter wheels, a fuel gauge, and a side-mounted exhaust replacing the previous underseat configuration. ABS became optional on the standard model. A limited Jason DiSalvo edition of 40 individually numbered and personally signed machines was also introduced that year.
ABS became standard equipment in 2014. Triumph also produced 47 Danny Eslick edition 675R machines to commemorate 47 years since Triumph's last Daytona 200 victory; Eslick had won the 2014 Daytona 200 on a Riders Discount Triumph 675R.
The Triumph Daytona 675 demonstrated that a British manufacturer could build a competitive supersport machine capable of matching and defeating Japanese rivals on track, using an unconventional three-cylinder layout. Its combination of engine character, handling, and sound set it apart in a class defined by refined but similar Japanese inline-fours. The model later influenced the selection of the Triumph 765 cc triple as the Moto2 engine from 2019, a direct acknowledgement of the three-cylinder platform's motorsport credentials.