#v4

We knew it was coming, but now that the cover has been taken off the 2019 Ducati Panigale V4 R, all we can say is wow! Take the WSBK-legal displacement 998 cc Desmosedici Stradale R engine, attach frame sections to both ends to mount top-shelf Öhlins suspension, and wrap the whole package in a Ducati Corse aerodynamics package, and you’ve got a superbike that is ready to take on the world.

On the racetrack, the fight between the Aprilia RSV4 RF and Ducati Panigale V4 S was so close, it resulted in one of, if not the, closest shootout in Motorcycle.com history, with the two protagonists separated by 0.2% – two-tenths of a percentage point! – on our scorecards. On paper, anyway, the Ducati emerged victorious for a track tool, but it was only our racetrack ringer, Shane Turpin, who ultimately picked the Panigale V4 S – and its $4k heftier price tag – as his weapon of choice. Meanwhile, both Tom and I would elect to save the extra dough and be perfectly happy with the Aprilia – despite what the scorecard says.

We teased you recently with a dyno shootout between the Aprilia RSV4 RF and the Ducati Panigale V4 S, with the Ducati blowing the doors off the less powerful – and smaller displacing – Aprilia to the tune of 187 hp for the Panigale and 168 hp for the RSV4. This set the stage for our track shootout between the two Italians nicely, as on paper, anyway, the Ducati seemingly has the Aprilia’s number. A bigger engine clearly gives it a power advantage, while 20 pounds less mass on the official MO scales and electronic Öhlins suspension prevails over the RSV4’s extra heft and manual Öhlins bits. But what does that all translate to once the tire warmers come off and fast lap times need to be set?

Our collective love for the Aprilia RSV4 engine is well documented here at MO, so pardon us for a second as we indulge in car news. However, this isn’t just any car news – we’re talking single-seater racecars. More to the point, a single-seater powered by an Aprilia RSV4 engine. The car is called the G1, and it comes from Israeli company Griiip. Over in Europe there’s a dedicated racing class for these cars, but here in the U.S. the G1 is eligible for the Formula 1000 class specifically for racecars powered by 1,000cc motorcycle engines.

Aprilia took advantage of the third round of MotoGP, making its sole appearance on North American soil to introduce a very exclusive machine. At the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, key members of Aprilia’s MotoGP staff, including Aprilia Racing team manager Romano Albesiano and team riders Aleix Espargaro and Scott Redding, took the covers off the latest evolution of the company’s flagship production sportbike, the RSV4.

We just returned from the launch of Ducati’s all-new Panigale V4, and it’s no exaggeration to describe it as one of the best sportbikes ever made, perhaps even the best. Its new four-cylinder engine is melodious and powerful, it handles with agility akin to a much smaller bike, its electronics are leading-edge and fully customizable, and it looks sensational in person.

Here it is in the flesh, the first mass-produced Ducati motorcycle to mount a four-cylinder engine, and it’s derived, Ducati says, directly from the MotoGP Desmosedici. Actually there are three of them: Panigale V4, Panigale V4S and V4S Speciale – the latter two with electronic Öhlins suspension featuring a new Smart EC 2.0 system, plus forged aluminum wheels, lithium ion batteries, and other assorted exotica. If that’s not rich enough, the Panigale V4 Speciale is a numbered, limited-edition bike with dedicated livery, titanium exhaust and CNC-machined from billet components. If you have to ask how much, don’t ask.

(UPDATE: Ducati has officially confirmed the new superbike will be called the Panigale V4)

Few things give the MO staff collective chills like the sound of a V-4 engine at full song. When that V-4 is reputed to be emanating from the new Ducati V-4 as it rockets around the Misano circuit in Italy, then you’ve really got our attention. From the sound of this low-quality video showing little more than a black blob circulating through a familiar section of track, we surmise that this may be some early testing of the WSBK Ducati V-4. Clearly, no silencers are being run so the racy sound isn’t much of a surprise. Also, its gearbox seems to be extremely quick and well tuned. We’ve also noticed how much this bike sounds like a Ducati GP bike, but that shouldn’t really come as a surprise since Ducati said their new V-4 would be “derived from extensive experience in MotoGP.” So, we expect the family traits of the 90-degree vee angle and desmodromic valve actuation, both of which would contribute to the distinctive sound.

We’re getting our first look at the sportbike that will mark the end of an era. This new V-4-powered Ducati will eventually elbow aside V-Twin Ducatis from the Superbike series.

Of the world’s finest naked sportbikes, the KTM Super Duke R and Aprila Tuono 1100 Factory stand above the rest of the streetfighters on offer from major manufacturers. This might be an overly bold statement had we not already published four comprehensive shootouts and almost 45 minutes of video in this category during the last two years.

It’s no secret we here at MO are huge fans of the Aprilia Tuono. We’ve declared our love for the bike so much now that we’re starting to sound like a broken record. And if you’re tired of us blabbering on and on about one of Italy’s finest motorcycles, there’s bad news: Aprilia has gone and made the Tuono even better with the Tuono V4 1100 series, the $14,799 RR and the $16,999 Factory. Head Honcho Kevin Duke got to spend time aboard the RR version at the bike’s launch, which you can read about here. The up-spec Factory version, with Öhlins suspension and steering damper, aluminum (rather than the RR’s steel) front brake rotor flanges, a wider 200/55-17 rear tire and red wheels, wasn’t available for Duke to ride, but we have one now. So how does it stack up? First a little back story.

It’s remarkable to believe it’s been over six years since Honda introduced its somewhat revolutionary dual-clutch transmission in a production motorcycle. A common technology in sports cars, dual-clutch transmission technology hasn’t quite permeated its way into motorcycles. Honda still continues with the DCT today, and it’s a technology that we enjoy sampling, and we can thank the 2010 VFR1200F for bringing the tech to two wheels. Here, we get E-i-C Duke’s take on the bike and the transmission from its launch at the Sugo circuit in Japan. To see more pictures of the VFR1200F, be sure to visit the photo gallery.