Alessandro Valia,
Ducati Chief Test Rider
suspension quality is a major contributor to the Ducati’s cornering ability. the Öhlins units manage to feel wonderfully compliant yet sufficiently taut when required — thanks to the semi-active system, with its continual automatic adaptation to what the bike is doing and how far it’s leaning over.
the latest smart eC lets the rider select between grip and stability, or performance and comfort, when the bike is braking, cornering or accelerating. the system is intuitive and I suspect most riders will find it easier to use than the 1299’s more conventional setup.
that’s especially true of the V4 s on which I had my first session. this combines slicks and firmed-up suspension with a titanium akrapovic exhaust that cuts seven kilograms of weight and boosts peak output to 229 Ps — slightly more than the honda rC211V on which Valentino rossi won the first MotoGP championship in 2002.
that output is mighty impressive for an otherwise untuned production engine that comes with a two-year warranty and familiar 24,000-km major service intervals. But here again it’s the Panigale’s controllability and ease of use, as much as its sheer power, that make it both quick and rewarding to ride — and justifies Ducati’s decision to start a new era of V4 superbikes. I have ridden most of the litre-class superbikes and they all give a feeling of being a 1,000-cc superbike but this bike stands apart and sets a new benchmark in superbikes.
the V4 is about one second per lap quicker than the 1299. Maybe, a little more, because when we tested them together the gap was about one second, but the V4 was not yet quite at the same point of development. I think if we tested them again now, the gap would be something more.
“Partly the V4’s advantage is in its speed, but most of all in the cornering speed. You are able to corner at higher speed, this is the big difference. I think the reason is a combination between the counter-rotating crankshaft and also the front frame design, which is more flexible, in side-to-side and also in twisting.
“But the V4 is much better in this respect. When you enter the corner and you’re off the throttle, and especially when you open the throttle, this bike turns much better than the Panigale V-twin. It’s a more friendly bike, and mainly for that reason it is also faster.”