It goes with out saying that Ducati has lengthy been synonymous with racing success. The Italian producer has just about set the benchmark, notably with its Desmosedici race bike, which pioneered the Desmodromic V4 engine which we’re now seeing each on and off the race monitor.
Really, the Ducati Desmosedici is basically accountable for the present crop of Ducati V4-powered machines, with many contemplating it because the holy grail of racing bikes. Among the world’s best racers, together with Loris Capirossi and Casey Stoner, piloted this machine to victory. In doing so, they cemented their names, in addition to that of Ducati, inside the annals of MotoGP historical past.
Unsurprisingly, Ducati Desmosedicis have been recognized to fetch some hefty sums of money at public sale. And so, you’ll be able to in all probability think about how a lot an precise race-used Ducati Desmosedici would promote for.
Properly, no less than, now you’ve got an concept, as a result of not one, however two Desmosedicis had been just lately bought by Iconic Auctioneers throughout a current public sale held at Silverstone.
The bikes are a Ducati Desmosedici GP3 and a Desmosedici GP7 piloted by Loris Capirossi and Casey Stoner, respectively. Collectively, each bikes raked in additional than $700,000 USD, proving simply how a lot these items are price.
The primary bike, Capirossi’s GP3, is especially fascinating because it was Ducati’s first-ever four-stroke manufacturing facility racing machine for the MotoGP. The Italian racer would quickly safe Ducati’s first victory within the premier league on the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix in 2003.
The Desmosedici GP3 is, for all intents and functions, a uncooked, cutting-edge machine, even by right now’s requirements. It was powered by a 989cc V4 engine, delivering greater than 220 horsepower. It’s a motorcycle that arguably set the stage for Ducati’s V4-powered vary that may grow to be commercially accessible greater than a decade later.
This specific bike bought for an eye-watering 237,500 Euros, or about $263,000 USD, and appears to have really been utilized by its earlier proprietor on monitor, because it additionally options some modern-day modifications. Capirossi’s bike has been decked out with upgrades like traction management, in addition to carbon disc brakes. In keeping with the public sale website, the bike is in excellent working situation, and is able to hit the monitor.
The second bike was a 2007 Ducati Desmosedici GP7, and was a motorcycle that was piloted by none apart from Casey Stoner. Much more impressively, this was the precise bike the Australian rode when he took his first MotoGP World Championship title.
The bike was meticulously restored with authentic Ducati elements by specialist Dave Allenby, and boasts the 799cc V4 engine with greater than 220 ponies on the again wheel. It fetched much more cash that Capriossi’s bike, raking in 475,000 Euros, or about $526,000 USD, at public sale.
Now, it wasn’t talked about whether or not the bikes had been bought to only one particular person as a pair, or in the event that they had been acquired by separate patrons. However regardless of the case could also be, it’s sure that whoever bought these bikes ought to be grinning from ear to ear to have them of their assortment.
These two bikes are extra than simply racing machines; they’re dwelling items of racing historical past that clearly flaunt know-how that was means forward of its time. And for the truest, most die-hard Ducatisti, having bikes like these as a part of their collections is the closest factor to being a part of Ducati’s racing heritage.
