The R1 wasn't made for long, you don't see them in the wild as much. FW skied very well on one IIRC. It seems like the R2 was put into production pretty soon after the R1 and has had a long run. I've skied both and I think the R1 is absolutely amazing, I'll ski mine for as long as I can.
I do feel genuinely sorry for people that have to write marketing copy for skis every year. We need waterski marketing Bingo cards: "increased the sweet spot, increased rocker, narrowed the tail, put some width under the front foot, changed the flex profile, softened the tip, added taper to the tail, increased the flat spot" take your pick, mix n' match! Bingo!