READY TO RACE
Radical V4 R is ridiculously similar to a WSB weapon
This is far more than a V4 S with a reduced capacity to sneak inside WSB engine rules. The new Panigale V4 R uses a 998cc variant of the Stradale engine, with increased power and a little less torque, all higher in the rev range where track-dwellers thrive. Lighter internals mean a faster accelerating engine that uses the same bore as the 1103, but with a shorter stroke.
It is a heady beast though, the redline arriving at 16,000rpm in gears one to five, and 16,500rpm in 6th; with peak power landing at 15,250rpm. The claimed 217bhp is
enough for any normal human, but add the aftermarket Akrapovic, and you can stretch that out to an even more impressive 230bhp.
In a road-friendly move born out of racing necessity, the R also gets a full set of new clothes, with a taller and more sharply angled screen for improved rider protection, attached to a new nose cowl that’s higher and wider than the V4 S’s. The side fairings are also wider and then there are those huge tea-tray carbon wings, too. Ducati say they are even more efficient than the ones banned on their MotoGP bike, and that the increased downforce reduces the amount of electronic intervention needed; although it features every electronic rider aid available. The front frame is lighter, and machined differently to optimise flex for mechanical grip, while the swingarm pivot is now fourposition adjustable (in 2mm steps), too. And it gets a new gas Öhlins NPX 25/30 fork that’s been developed in WSB. And if you can ride it to its limit, you should be racing in WSB yourself!
MICHAEL NEEVES CHIEF ROAD TESTER ‘Its limit might be on another planet for mere mortals like us, but it’s smooth and easy to ride’