I like it. You?
I know that the 749 and the 999 split opinion when they were launched. And even today, they don't possess the obviously stunning silhouette of the 848 and 1098 but I'm pretty sure they'll become curious classics in the future.
However, this 749 is different and I think it's stunning because, well, it's not the same old 749R with a few carbon bits added. It's a purposeful drag-racer and has been prepared by a father-and-son team Wayne and Todd Patterson. They run a Ducati dealership called Ducati Bunbury over in Australia and clearly know what they're on about.
I've got a lot of respect for the fact they're taken a bike that in its standard form, on paper at least, is a long way away from being a good drag-bike: low on power, fickle clutch, expensive to tune.. but when you add a turbo to the equation, it's a whole different story. It puts out 214bhp against the standard 749R's 104bhp and has managed the 1/4 in 8.9 seconds. That's impressive!
To my eyes, it looks great. Long, low, purposeful and a million miles away from what the designer in Bologna was thinking about when he first put crayon to paper..
