INTERVIEW
DUCATI CEO CLAUDIO DOMENICALI
P74
engine figuration, which is the
1299 Panigale. The 1199 already
stretched the concept a lot with
the very big bore, but when you
make everything so extreme we
were missing part of the mid-
range. Now the engine is much
more complete, and also the
setting of the chassis. The whole
package is much more bal-
anced, and now I think it's a very
good model that we at Ducati
can be proud of.
So why not make a Naked
1299 EVO Monster using this
wonderful engine? Why not
give it to people in the form of
a more real world model?
I have not said we are not
making such a bike, just that you
and I are not discussing it now.
The arrival of Kawasaki's
supercharged H2/H2R has
bought compressor technol-
ogy to the forefront. Is this
something Ducati is working
on, perhaps with your VW
Audi colleagues?
We are exchanging informa-
tion very openly and closely with
engine designers at VW Audi,
who of course have very good
experience in turbocharging,
in compressor technology, in
electric turbocharging and so
on… But my personal opinion is
that all of this adds weight and
complexity, and since it's our
philosophy to keep the weight as
low as possible on a bike, I don't
think this is a good way to go
for Ducati. It could be that other
manufacturers will adopt this in
the future, but I do not think that
for a sports bike that would be
the best way to go. I think the
Kawasaki is very heavy, no?
Is one of the ways in which a
compressor or a turbocharger
could be beneficial in helping
to restore performance lost by
meeting ever more restrictive
emission rules?
We keep all the developmental
legislation under control in order
to comply with it while trying to
develop a modern range of Su-
perbikes. I'm still not sure that the
compressor is the proper answer.
If Ducati today is not inter-
ested in producing a retro
Scrambler package, what is
the reason for your dispute
with Borile, to whom your
predecessor as CEO agree to
supply desmo cylinder heads
for their classic-style single-
cylinder 450 Scrambler?
You're now suing them in the
law courts to cease and de-
sist the Scrambler name, even
though this can no more be
regarded as a Ducati trade-
mark than the term Super-
Ducati's factory MotoGP team
has also returned to form, earning
a double podium at the season
opener in Qatar.
