DUCATI PANIGALE R F15
RACER TEST
P76
closer to the street motorcycles
they're derived from. Ducati's
response to this was to launch a
revamped version of its Panigale
R homologation special, a true
racer with lights, a horn and a
licence plate of which at least
1000 examples will be made
this year, according to Ducati.
Its specification includes many
features which Ducati deemed
necessary to feature on its racer,
including a lighter crankshaft,
titanium valves and conrods,
etc., and the chance to spend
three 20-minute sessions riding
it in between a single session on
the F15 Superbike underlined
how close the two bikes now
are in terms of specification one
another.
But in some ways not that
close, because nothing pre-
pared me for the explosive
performance of the Davies
Superbike after I threw a leg
aboard it, and set off down pit
lane with it popping and bang-
ing mercilessly on the speed
limiter. Then I hit second gear
on the race-pattern powershifter
and almost got catapulted off
the back of the bike as it leapt
forward! Hmm, interesting. I've
been fortunate enough to ride
every factory Ducati V-twin racer
each year for the past three
decades, and none of them was
remotely as fierce accelerat-
ing and practically violent in its
throttle response as this one.
Just crack the throttle a tiny bit
Feast your eyes,
people! Despite
dripping with
high-end parts,
thanks to the new
WSBK rules the
Davies racer is
much closer to the
Panigale R you can
ride on the street.
