If you are rideing them hard in 6 months you will be putting new rings in the Banshee and the YFZ will still be going. Both are Awsome quads The banshee will always be a Ledgend But the 4 strokes are just keep getting better.

 

I agree with what a lot of you are saying, but then there are others. The fact is, banshee vs yfz, a stock yfz is going to beat it at everything but topspeed, and even at that, its going to take a while
Modded, it turns into a whole new thing. IT ALL DEPENDS ON THE STATE OF MODS. A piped and intake and jetted yfz WILL beat a banshee, in the dirt, with the same mods.
You can get a yfz 450 to go pretty good with a higher comp piston, proper cam, intake, proper exhaust, proper jetting, and even less weight.
HOWEVER, when some of you are sitting here talking about 420 cheetah kits, or any cheetah kits, a banshee will IN FACT be faster IN A STRAIGHT LINE!! A banshee is always going to get its A$$ handed to it as far as handling goes. The geometry is just not there. Its 80's tech vs 00's tech. Of course the yfz is going to be better, 20 years later. That doesnt mean the banshee doesnt handle and isnt capable. I had one, and loved it. But, I would sacrifice a little straight line speed in a really modded banshee in a minute, for a quick, light, and awesome handling YFZ!
The other fact is, atleast in the dirt, is a banshee does not get its power to to ground effeciently AT ALL. Banshee's spin. Yfz get a lot of there power to the ground. Its all geometry in the swingarm and suspension and the fact that its a 4-stroke!
You need a hell of a lot more horsepower in a banshee to make it faster then a modded yfz, like mine is at this state (due to the distinct weight difference and the way the power hits the ground)
I may be only making mid 50's horsepower, but my cousins 60 some od horse banshee is not really any faster than my yfz, in the dirt anyway. Could be totally different in the sand, and most likely is!! Then we hit corners or jumps and I clearly have the advantage!! He has made is banshee a lot better than stock, with wider a-arms and all, but its nots even close to a yfz's handling characteristics!
Thats my two cents, after owning both, riding both, and still riding with several different banshee's and yfz's. Maybe its totally different in sand, but in dirt, that is the way it goes.

IT ALL DEPENDS ON THE STATE OF TUNE ON BOTH MACHINES (.)