PIKES PEAK: Ducati’s RACE READY Multistrada V4S

While there might not be any more motorcycle racing at the iconic Pikes Peak International Hill Climb in Colorado, USA, Ducati has chosen to stick to its guns and reveal a new version of its fully-kitted Multistrada for 2022.

With a Desmosedici GP '21-inspired paint job, lashings of carbon fibre and an Akrapovic exhaust, there’s no doubt it looks the part – but what’s going on beneath the surface to make the latest Pikes Peak version of the Italian adventure bike ‘the sportiest Multistrada ever’?

The Italian factory has taken a Multistrada V4 S and added a selection of extra-special kit to make its already excellent motorcycle even better. It’s tweaked the riding position, fitted some 17-inch Marchesini forged aluminium wheels (in place of the 19-inch front wheel of the standard bike), and clad them with sticky Pirelli Diablo Rosso IV tyres. There’s also a single-sided swingarm, Öhlins semi-active suspension, and the new Race rider mode. Ducati reckons it’s the sportiest Multistrada it’s ever developed – and looking at all that, it’s easy to see why.

While it might be powered by the same V4 Granturismo engine as the standard bike, with 170hp at 10,500rpm and 125Nm at 8,750rpm, the ECU has been reprogrammed to help offer a sportier and more aggressive power delivery.

There’s a quick shifter to aid sharper gear changes, while the newly added Race rider mode dials down from Ducati Traction Control and the Ducati Wheelie Control and reduces the interference from the ABS.

As you’d expect, all the good stuff doesn’t come cheap. The Multistrada V4 S Pikes Peak will set you back £24595, which makes it nearly three grand more expensive than the V4 S in standard form. Looking at what you get for your money, it is probably worth it, but you’ll have to have deep pockets not to balk at the extra expense.