VOLUME ISSUE FEBRUARY , P91
N
ormally, when you hear a bike
journo saying a particular machine
has lost a bunch of horsepower, it's
a bad thing. Horsepower is king, after all,
especially when it comes from a Ducati.
But the $18,995 2025 Ducati Panigale
V2 S is a motorcycle with a few tricks up
its sleeve. Yes, it has dropped a sig
-
nificant 35 horsepower from the 2024
Panigale V2 and that model's now-out-
dated Superquadro L-twin. Yes, Ducati
has shrunk its capacity from 955cc to
890cc, and, yes, the trademark Desmo
valves are no more, with variable valve
timing on the intake side now in charge.
Internet haters are most certainly going
to hate on each of those glaring facts.
That is until you ride it. Because
the drop in capacity and power has
come with an enormous reduction in
weight—37 pounds, to be precise—Ducati
claims the new V2 S tips the scales at
388 pounds without a four-gallon tank
of gas. With the tank topped, you can
expect a number around 407 pounds
ready to ride.
It's not just the weight that's a talk
-
ing point. A skinny monocoque frame
and higher-set clip-on handlebars, ones
that now mount flush with the top triple
clamp, give the Panigale an almost
naked bike-style riding position and al
-
leviate much of the strain on your body
so that doing a six-session day is now
a piece of cake.
Compare that to the beating I took on
the Panigale V4 S that I rode in Italy last
year; it makes the V2 seem like a toy.
DUCATI HAS TURNED THE BABY
PANIGALE ON ITS HEAD AND CREATED AN
ENTIRELY NEW MACHINE, ONE THAT HERALDS A
NEW ERA IN THE SUPERSPORT CLASS.
V2 S
SUPERSPORT
REIMAGINED
BY RENNIE SCAYSBROOK I PHOTOGRAPHY BY ALEX PHOTO
