VOLUME ISSUE AUGUST , P115
tion version, scheduled for the
2003 model year, came out with
top-of-the-line Paoli forks, Ohlins
shock and Brembo brakes. The
outsourcing continued during the
construction to the point where
the only parts made by Mondial
themselves were the wheels.
Assembly was done at the
brand-new factory, conveniently
located right near the historic
Monza circuit (perfect for a few
high-speed tests!).
The Mondial Piega was then
and is now a thing of beauty. It
didn't look like a Ducati or MV
Agusta, Bimota or Benelli, it
was totally unique, and with the
lightweight aluminum chassis
and liberal use of carbon fiber,
it topped the scales at just over
374 pounds semi-wet (claimed,
oils but no fuel). So that gave a
theoretical weight of around 420
pounds with a full 5.2 gallons
of fuel. This was 33 pounds
lighter than the SP1 it pinched
its engine from, and with the
top-line suspension and brakes
fitted, this thing was sure to be a
weapon. And it was.
The Piega's light and nimble
chassis made it a challenger to
the Ducati 999 at the time and
far more a track beast than the
SP1. Whereas the SP1 was a
road bike designed to be raced,
the Piega was the exact oppo
-
site—there was no pillion seat,
no luggage points, all-carbon-
fiber bodywork—it was a racer
with lights. Such a narrow focus
meant the Piega was only going
to appeal to a certain number
of riders, but if you were lucky
enough to have a spin on a
Piega, you knew you were on
something special—almost like
a two-wheeled version of the
Pagani Zonda supercar.
Sadly, for Mondial, the bike
barely lasted a year and a half of
production. The company didn't
last long and was placed in the
hands of the Monza Bankruptcy
Court in July 2004 with barely 35
Piegas constructed.
Their timing for Superbike rac
-
ing could not have been worse,
either. This was a time when
rule changes were afoot to let
1000cc four-cylinder machines
with upwards of 190 horsepower
race against 1000cc twins, which
meant the Piega's 139 horse
-
power as standard stood no
chance in the power race. You
could buy a race kit for a Piega
that bumped power upward of
150 horsepower but these were
few and very far between.
The Piega is the (so far) last
stand for this once glorious Ital-
ian racing name. Mondial was
one of the greatest names during
racing's early days, and even
though Ziletti's heart was clearly
in the right place, it remains one
of modern motorcycling's great-
est tragedies that one of the
most powerful men in the Italian
printing game, with a personal
fortune of some small countries,
couldn't make the blue and silver
company roar again.
CN
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A Piega in full race trim is one of the
great rarities of modern motorcycling.
