As sensible as jelly trousers...
Ducati whip the plastics off the bonkers Panigale V4 to create the even more bonkers Streetfighter
DUCATI MAY JUST have invented a new class of motorcycle. Just as the late-1990s arrival of Suzuki’s ridiculous Hayabusa introduced the term ‘hyperbike’, so the Streetfighter V4 could just make the shift from supernaked to hypernaked. What else would you call the 1103cc, 203bhp Panigale V4 stripped bare? Pigeonholes and tags matter not, of course. What’s really
important is that Ducati think the world needs an upright, wide-bar, fairing-free version of their ballistic V4. So they’ve created this prototype, and you’ll be able to buy one next year. ‘The Streetfighter V4 will be one of the stars of the Ducati World Premiere 2020,’ says Ducati’s enthusiastic CEO, Claudio Domenicali, going on to say that the stripped-back racer will be, ‘the highest performance Streetfighter ever put into production.’
The previous Streetfighter was hardly a slouch, of course. Based on the 1098 sportsbike, the V-twin made 143bhp at the rear wheel on our no-nonsense dyno and could hit 165mph, assuming your neck and arms could take it. We can’t imagine the new V4 version will keep the full 200-odd horse tune of the Panigale, but Ducati will doubtless be keen to out-spec rivals like the BMW S1000R and KTM Super Duke R, which make a very real 160bhp. Will we see a 180bhp naked? Eek... Whacky colours partially mask the prototype’s lines, though the Panigale seat and tank are clear, with a snout not dissimilar to the old V-twin. It also has wings on the side, like a Panigale R. The previous Streetfighter was impressive but also a fickle, uncomfortable, wheelie-prone acquired taste – and everything suggests the V4 will have an equal lack of road compromises. It’ll be revealed properly in Milan in November.
Carlin Dunne
American racer Carlin Dunne (36) lost his life racing the prototype at the Pikes Peak hillclimb, Colorado. The 36-yearold was a four-time winner, having previously competed on Ducati’s Multistrada.