VOLUME 56 ISSUE 42 OCTOBER 22, 2019 P123
team. Will you do the same?
Yes, for sure we will do the
same with Husqvarna.
Will you make a Husqvarna
street tracker based on the
AFT race bike, as Indian has
done so successfully with the
FTR1200?
so as to enter this very differ-
ent brand segment?
More than 20 years ago I was
close to taking over Moto Guzzi—
back in '98, in fact. Because
for me Moto Guzzi is the brand,
which can show the European
approach to the cruiser type of
Harley-Davidson? Are you and
Rajiv Bajaj interested in acquir-
ing the Motor Company?
That's size-wise too big, and
secondly, for me that's not really
motorcycle riding. It's more like
driving around in a convertible with
the top down, but riding on two
wheels, that's my definition. We're
used to a more sporty, upright
style, to have the center of gravity
and—well, you know how it works,
you're a racer, so that's different.
Although in '98, I already had a
very good discussion with [Harley
CEO] Jeff Bluestein, because at
that time we were still just off-road,
and we were looking for a strong
street brand to cooperate with for
distribution and development. We
had a good discussion, but finally
he put a lot of money on the table
and said, "We will buy you." But
I was very young, and that was
not my vision of my career in the
motorcycle industry, so I stopped
the discussion! But we had a very
good relationship—he was a cool
guy, and we stayed friends. But
really and truly, Harley today is not
for us.
What's KTM's long-term
projection for your two-stroke
models, which I believe still sell
steadily?
Yes, it's on a very stable level,
especially since the Japanese
decided to come back, which
helped the market! And having
Husqvarna as the second brand
is also a help. For sure it will stay
at a certain level, and off-road will
stay alive indefinitely if it's heading
towards closed-course usage, as
"BUT
REALLY
AND TRULY
HARLEY
TODAY IS
NOT FOR
US."
motorcycle, plus it has a much
richer technical history than peo-
ple think! They went racing with
some fantastic bikes like the V8
and the lightweight singles—and
they won. Moto Guzzi for sure
would be an interesting acquisi-
tion for me, but it's also part of
the Piaggio group, so I wouldn't
expect the Colanninno family to
bring it to the market. But Moto
Guzzi is a still a very good Euro-
pean brand.
How about investing in an-
other cruiser company, named
It's not out of reach, but step
by step because even we have
some limits in resources, and we
are already basically everywhere!
But yes, it's in our medium-term
plans.
Will you use a 790 or the
890 engine for your AFT bike?
You have to ask the race guys!
I honestly don't know.
We've talked about your
platform strategy, but KTM has
not yet made a cruiser. Are
you interested in purchasing
someone like, say, Moto Guzzi
