to dominate the racetrack out of the box. Ducati’s 1098R is pure WSB homologation magic...This time I’m going to be brave. Probably braver than I have been for a while. Ordinarily I wouldn’t put my trust in a small circuit board that in a few years time

In short:With the excitement surrounding the 1098, MV's 1000F4 has been somewhat forgotten. The launch of the latest 312R indicated we've been negligent. Perhaps grossly. A track focused beast of beauty, works on every level Pros:With the excitement

minutes ago, after my second session here at the Portimao circuit.The first thing I've got to say is that this is an impressive track that brings the best out of this new Ducati.My first throughts when I got here was that this bike would just be a 1098R

was unveiled at the Milan show.At the same time I was surprised to hear Ducati were claiming it had the same power output as the 1098R, but was around nine grand cheaper. This bothered me during the weeks leading up to the launch as it appeared Ducati had

you to the latest creation from Bologna. Striking looks, stunning performance and technology never seen before on a road bike are just three of the boxes ticked by the new Ducati 1098. Like the original 916 and Yamaha R1 this bike has just moved

bit about the bike. Essentially a stripped down 1098, it’s fair to say a lot of effort has gone into making sure the Streetfighter looks right. It’s the smallest details that count on a bike costing the thick end of £14,000 to you.Acclaimed as the most

In short:Cross-plane crank R1 gets slight restyling and traction control coco5940: Absolute gem of a bike, extremely well suited to fast road riding, outstanding engine with acres of grunt! Strengths: Engine, engine...engine & the most gorgeous

-than-perfect roads I enjoy better than any sportsbike I've ownded (45 so far, 1098S, K5, K1, R1, Blade etc, etc) and is comfortable for the short, aggresive sorties into enemy terrain I so enjoy. A little anti-social but so is Jack Daniels, AC-DC and dating

-length bottom cowl.Incidentally, the HRC kitted race version will be available to customers from February and can include a 23% power increase from standard. Up top the new design dash might not be as cute as the Yamaha R1 but the big analogue tacho and digital

of the time stated that for a bike to be eligible for World Superbike racing a minimum number of production bikes had to be built for public sale, and the YZF750, GSX-R750, ZX-7R, RC45 and Ducati 916 that you bought in the shop looked pretty much identical