VOLUME 59 ISSUE 40 OCTOBER 4, 2022 P81
Tell us about the commercial
collaboration between Pirelli/
Metzeler and Ducati.
Francesco:
We are really
proud to represent some Italian
excellence. We feel also the
pride, but the responsibility of it.
It's something that is part of the
DNA of Ducati.
Of course, Pirelli is the sole
supplier we use for the com-
plete range of Ducati motorcy-
cles. There are not many other
manufacturers that decided to
use only one brand, or even
Brembo for the brakes, just
mentioning another Italian brand
of excellence. These compa-
nies are always striving for state-
of-the-art technology.
In this, Pirelli really supports
us a lot. It's a choice because
in the end, it's also a cost for
the company. But, we had no
doubt in always having the best
solution in terms of tires, the
best solution in terms of brakes,
suspension and electronics.
I
n the international mo-
torcycle industry, two
Italians are held in ex-
tremely high regard—Duca-
ti's Vice President of Global
Sales, Francesco Milicia,
and Pirelli's Head of Global
Testing & Technical Relation,
Salvo Pennisi.
We caught up with the two
power players on a recent
trip to Iceland as part of the
Dainese Expedition Masters
tour, in which Ducati and
Pirelli/Metzeler were both
commercial partners. When
you get a chance to chat with
these powerhouses, you don't
pass it up.
TO THE
PLAYERS
Pirelli/Metzeler's Salvo
Pennisi holds court. "After
Covid, after two years of
pandemic, people were
asking for freedom—they were
buying motorcycles, they're
buying Ducatis (and Pirellis!).
They were buying a dream."
BY RENNIE SCAYSBROOK
PHOTOGRAPHY BY MARCO MARINI, DUCATI
TWO OF THE MOST FAMOUS
MOTORCYCLE SCENE, SO WE
MILICIA AND SALVO PENNISI
STATE OF THE INDUSTRY