After years of V-twins we’re finally expecting to see a Ducati V4 superbike in the near future as a replacement for the range-topping 1299 Panigale.
Several reports state that the project was confirmed by Ducati boss Claudio Domenicali following last week’s MotoGP team launch in Bologna.
It’s a logical move for the firm. It’s now been 15 years since the company entered MotoGP with the V4-powered Desmosedici, and nearly a decade since the limited production Desmosedici RR road bike. While the initial decision to make the GP machine a V4 rather than using the firm’s trademark twin-cylinder layout was a tough one, fans have long since accepted the engine layout. As a result it’s unlikely that Ducati will face any resistance from buyers when it comes to making its next superbike a V4.
The company’s intention is to enter WSB competition with the machine. That means the price for the highest-spec, WSB-homologation version of the Ducati V4 will have to fall below the series’ €40,000 cap. It’s likely this will apply to an ‘R’ model, with base-level and ‘S’ versions sitting below it in a four-cylinder superbike range.
The engine is expected to be a 1000cc V4 derived directly from the Desmosedici. That should easily be capable of meeting the 200hp expectations for a road-going machine, leaving headroom to tune it for much more in WSB spec.
In terms of timing, the V4’s first WSB campaign is expected to come in 2019. Ducati usually launches road-going versions of its superbikes a year before entering the premier race series. That would put the V4 as a 2018 model, likely to be shown later this year.
The 1299 Panigale is the only model in Ducati’s range that doesn’t meet the latest Euro4 emissions rules, which came into force on 1 January this year. As a result, Ducati has to sell the bikes using ‘derogation’ or ‘end of series’ exemptions in European countries. These regulations limit the numbers that can be sold and are intended to be used simply as a stopgap while new, emissions-legal models are made ready. Although the derogation rules let non-compliant bikes to be sold for up to two years, the limit on numbers allowed to be sold means Ducati is likely to reveal the replacement long before that time is up.
