With a smashing MotoGP world championship in their pocket, there's no wonder that the key mantra at Ducati's Milan press conference was: "like in the D16." That's the winning Desmosedici for you, the non-Ducatisti.
Whether it's been while talking about the new 1098R's traction-control system or the new 696 Monster's amalgam of trellis frame with alloy sub-frame, Claudio Domenicali, Ducati's current mastermind, just couldn't resist reminding us all that the lessons learnt while crafting the world's fastest road racer (which squarely beat Japan's best) were put to good use in Ducati's 2008 street lineup.
With the SBK rules accepting 1200cc Twins for 2008, the release of an SBK homologation version of the 1098 was imminent. The 1098R is going to be the base of next year's factory bikes as well as its privateer efforts. With a claimed 186 crankshaft horsepower out of the box, getting a good 200-plus horses in race trim shouldn't be much of a problem – and this time, without having to mortgage your condo in Malibu in order to play at world level. The streetbike has a retail price of $39,995.
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2008 Ducatis: First Look on Motorcycle.com
2008 Ducatis: First Look
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