DUCATI MONSTER 1200 R
FIRST RIDE
P84
This is the second new
Monster in two years. The
original Monster 1200 S missed
the mark, judged as being too
much road and not enough track
against circuit derived bikes like
the BMW S 1000 R and Aprilia
Tuono—the 1200 R goes some
way to rectifying this. Ducati is
aiming this machine at the fast
canyon, occasional track-day
rider, the guy that knows what
he's doing in either circumstanc-
es but doesn't need a Panigale
to do it.
Compared to the 1200 S,
Ducati has upped the 1200 R's
11° Testastretta's muscle by 15
horsepower to a claimed 160 at
9250 rpm and increased torque
by a claimed 6Nm to 97 lb-ft at
7750 rpm via new 56mm throttle
bodies (up from 53mm), in-
creased compression from 12.5:1
to 13:1 and increased exhaust
header diameter a whopping
8mm to 58mm, matching the lot
to a revamped but more aestheti-
cally pleasing double barrel muf-
fler. The new exhaust helps bring
the 1200 R's engine in line with
Euro 4 emissions requirements, a
target every new bike will now be
required to meet.
The engine improvements
are met with chassis details that
have transformed the Monster's
handling from a machine that
was out of its depths on the
track to one that'll ham track
days with the best nakeds out
there. Gorgeous black Öhlins
forks grace the front—a rar-
ity for any production bike as
Öhlins, like we all know, come
in gold—matched to an Öhlins
rear that has helped raise the
bike by 15mm. The new suspen-
sion doesn't give the front any
more travel, which is kept at the
1200S's 130mm, but the rear
now gets an extra 7mm of travel
to 159mm. There's also a nice
little Öhlins steering damper
mounted on the top triple clamp
staring you in the face if you hap-
pen to like wheelies—which the
1200 R is very, very good at.
It couldn't be any other
machine, could it!?
The Monster shape is
still gloriously similar
to the original of 21
years ago.
