Ducati is bringing the heat as we head into autumn, so put on a comfy sweater and curl up in front of this two-wheeled fire that the Italian brand is about to light. As part of a 12-week campaign of episodic bi-weekly product launches, Ducati will be bringing us a handful of exciting new machines. The first five will likely be variants on current hardware, while the final is a new Dakar-style middleweight ADV. The DesertX has been in the works for a few years now, and a concept was launched for EICMA 2019. It will finally be shown to the world on December 9th.
The concept, and this pre-production camouflaged model, remind me of the amazing Cagiva Elefant 900 Paris-Dakar racers, which were powered by Ducati back in the 1990s. While the concept was loosely based around a Scrambler 1100, this new bike is an all-new chassis according to Ducati, featuring a 21-inch front wheel and the company’s new liquid-cooled 937cc Testastretta engine, as found in the new Monster, Supersport 950, and Hypermotard. The middleweight ADV market is getting pretty competitive these days, and Ducati wants to take a piece of it. This sounds like a seriously fun off-roader that is more manageable in the dirt than the company’s Multistrada ever would be. I already desperately want one.
The company will be dropping a new video every couple weeks for much of the rest of the year, each one dedicated to a new piece of the Ducati lineup. The release schedule looks like this:
- September 30, 2021: Ducati World Première – Episode 1 | Your everyday wonder
- October 14, 2021: Ducati World Première – Episode 2 | Mark your roots
- October 28, 2021: Ducati World Première – Episode 3 | Rule all mountains
- November 11, 2021: Ducati World Première – Episode 4 | A new Fighter in town
- November 25, 2021: Ducati World Première – Episode 5 | The evolution of Speed
- December 9, 2021: Ducati World Première – Episode 6 | Dream Wilder – DesertX
Obviously episode 6 is already handled, as the name of the new bike is in the title, but the company is being pretty mum on the details of the other models. Let’s do a little speculation, shall we?
Episode 1 – At the same time the DesertX was leaked during the 2020 lineup announcement, the company also showed off a Scrambler Motard concept, which seems like it would be an exceptional “everyday wonder” to me.
Episode 2 – Going back to the company’s roots seems like a great idea to me. Maybe this is another variant of the company’s new Monster? I’d like to see some throwback bodywork and a truly circular headlight on that chassis.
Episode 3 – When it comes to ruling mountains, there is only one thing that conjures in my mind. We’re going to see a new Multistrada Pikes Peak, based on the brand new Multistrada V4. Sure, bikes can’t race at Pikes Peak anymore, but that doesn’t mean Ducati won’t continue to capitalize on the name.
Episode 4 – A new Fighter seems like it’ll definitely be a Streetfighter variant. Motorcycle.com seems to think this will be a Panigale V2-based Streetfighter V2, which sounds truly awesome to me. I don’t need the kind of power the V4 currently offers, so cutting the engine in half seems like the right move. I’m sure some riders will also appreciate a smaller price tag.
Episode 5 – Ducati and Speed in the same sentence generally means Panigale. Maybe there is a new Panigale V4 R coming, or maybe an RR. Or maybe this is just a cool BNG (bold new graphics) package for the V4, V4 S, and V4 SP.
No matter what Ducati decides to roll out over the next couple of months, it’s probably going to be pretty sweet, so watch this space.
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