Ok so we seem to be erring on the side of the Versys 1000, the 2012 model is about 118 bhp, but delivers it power quite low down. But as someone mentioned, new rider, new to bikes, he will probably drop it at some point, paying £6K for a bike then dropping it and doing some damage makes my skin crawl, and its not even my bike! How about a Varadero 1000, they are very cheap, big enough so he wont look like a monkey on a mangle, 90 odd bhp, easy to ride if a bit boring for the more seasoned riders, but as a starter bike which you would only lose a couple of hundred quid on if you dropped it, instead of trying to put a nice versys back to standard after a drop, it sounds like a better bet. Fit a couple of manual cam chain tensioners (about £100) and ride around with no worries. Keep it for a year, make all the mistakes, flog it and then buy something nice for £6K.