ICONS
LIVING LEGENDS OF MOTORCYCLING
“The 916 is a high-strung, complex Italian V-twin”
#20 Ducati 916 Where did it come from?
Geographically, from the Cagiva Research Centre in San Marino. Mechanically, it was a development of Ducati engineer Massimo Bordi’s earlier four-valve, belt cam 851 and 888 engine. Financially, it was backed by Cagiva owner Claudio Castiglioni. But the styling came straight from the pen of a genius - Massimo Tamburini. A founder member of Bimota, he later designed the equally beautiful MV Agusta F4, but it’s for the 916 that he’ll be best remembered.
What changed?
Surprisingly little. The 916 ran from 1994 to 1998, before gaining capacity as the 996, then again (with a revised cylinder head design) as the 998 in 2002. There were detail changes, as well as various posher variations and limited-edition models that let Ducati homologate specific features for racing, but it was recognisably the same bike for 11 years.
Why do people like it?
Because it’s a very, very pretty bike. But pretty doesn’t win races - the 916 and its derivatives won a LOT of races and, for UK race fans, the 916’s story is inextricably bound up with that of Carl Fogarty’s four World Superbikes titles.
Cult rating 4/5
Difficult. Even if the 916 had only been produced for a year or two, then faded away, its cult staus would have been assured. But a long production run and a wide variety of different versions mean that you’re far more likely to see a 916 or one of its cousins on the road than, say, a Honda RC45 from the same era.
The problem is...
It’s a high-strung, complex Italian V-twin. It needs regular, careful and expert maintenance – and even then, things can go wrong. Electrics aren’t as bad as you’d expect, but starter clutches can fail, valve rockers go flakey and cambelts can harden and fail on bikes that aren’t ridden regularly.
Without the 916...
It’s fair to say the 916 made Ducati what it is today - a proper, mainstream motorcycle brand. The 851 may have laid the foundations, while the Monster paid the rent, but the 916 built the legend.