The 1920's-1940's: Humble Beginnings Ducati, a name long synonymous with motorcycle racing, actually started out manufacturing electronic components. Founded in 1926 by the Ducati family, and officially named "The Societa Radio Brevetti Ducati", they soon became a world leader in the manufacture of radios, electronic components, and even cameras! The company grew by leaps and bounds, employing over 11,000 workers before allied bombing campaigns during the Second World War destroyed the Borgo Panigale factory in 1944. Post-war life in Italy was extremely tough. The industries once producing transportation for the Italian people were gutted by the war, and the economy was horrible. The people needed something cheap and reliable to get them around. The bicycle became the main mode of transportation. But, in 1946 that all changed. At the Milan Fair the Ducati brothers, ever the capitalists, introduced the Cucciolo, or 'little pup' (so named for its barking exhaust)- an auxiliary engine that could be retrofitted to the frame of a bicycle. The Cucciolo was a smash, and soon Ducati was contracting out frames to be built specifically for the little engine. By 1950, Ducati had produced over 200,000 Cucciolos, and by the end of its run the motor had been increased to a capacity of 65cc and was producing a whopping 2hp. The 1950's: Burgeoning Success The production of the Cucciolo continued into the early 50's, and by 1953, Ducati's racing success had mane a name for the company. Ducati was split into two separate operations- Ducati Elettronica S.p.A. and Ducati Meccanica S.p.A., which took over the Borgo Panigale plant. 1954 saw the introduction of a legend, a young engineer from Lugo di Romagna named Fabio Taglioni. Taglioni was the man responsible for the most famous of Ducati innovations, including the now famous Desmodromic valve gear. Prior to Taglioni's arrival, Ducati had ventured into the realm of higher capacity engines, introducing the '98'. Powered by a pushrod overhead valve engine displacing 98cc, it was somewhat successful in racing but still indicated Ducati's commitment to producing 'budget' machinery not specifically designed with racing in mind. The Gran Sport changed that. Taglioni's single cylinder racer (later referred to as the Marianna) incorporated Dell'Orto racing carbs, high compression pistons, and a single overhead camshaft with helical valve gear. Power output was 9bhp, and it showed on the track, devastating the competition.The 1950's saw motorcycle racing take Italy by storm, with thousands of privateers competing for victory. Ducati soon became synonymous with victory.In 1956, Ducati significantly revised the 125 Gran Sport's engine to include dual overhead camshafts with helical valve gear, and in 1957 the triple camshaft desmo debuted. It featured three camshafts and desmodromic valve control for precise, positive action and no valve float.The desmo valve gear made for an extremely powerful race bike, but it rarely made its way into the hands of privateers, who were still racing helical gear bikes with great success. The 1960's: The Sound of Singles In the 60's, Ducati became known for its successful singles, usually purebred racing machines available to the general public. Many other designs emerged, but the singles still dominated. It wouldn't be until the 1970's that Ducati would develop a successful twin and stick with it.Ducati pumped out numerous models of single cylinder sporting bikes, including the Diana, the Sport, the Mach 1, the Monza, and the Cadet all in varying capacities and power output. 1968, however, saw the arrival of the first production desmodromic head bike, the Mark 3 D. 1968 saw a change from the old narrow engine case to the new wide case. The wide casings became the most successful and powerful of all the Ducati singles, eventually reaching a capacity of 450cc and a power output of 50hp.1968 also saw the introduction of the Scrambler, a wide-bar sort of dual-sport bike not considered by purists to be a 'true' Ducati (much like the Monster). They feared it was too Americanized and detached from Ducati's racing philosophy, but nonetheless it went on to become one of the best selling Ducatis of all time (also like the Monster). The 1970's: Quiet Progress The 1960's were a somewhat successful time for Ducati in the racing field, but the Japanese bikes were soon dominating the finish line. Singles were still showing moderate success in racing, but Ducati needed a larger capacity bike, preferably a twin, if it was going to compete. The 500GP of 1971 showed promise, and although it never won any races it was still valuable engineering wise. 1971 also saw the introduction of the GT 750, Ducati's first l-twin street bike. It produced 60hp and was driven by desmodromic valve gear. 1972 saw great triumph for Ducati when its 750 twin (closely resembling the production version) piloted by legendary racer Paul Smart won the 200-mile race at Imola. Things were looking up for Ducati and they established themselves permanently with that win.1972 saw the introduction of the Sport 750, a sporting twin with a somewhat questioned helical valve gear rather than desmodromic. It still proved to be very popular with boy racers.The birth of one of the most legendary Ducati nameplates was seen in the Super Sport 750 in 1974. It was immediately praised by critics not only for its immense power, but also for its superb handling and docile road manners. Triple disc brakes, beautiful fairing and bodywork, 10:1 compression, dual 40mm Dell'Orto carbs, and a desmo driven 750cc L-twin engine all indicated that this was a pure-bred racing motorcycle, no doubt about it. During this time, Ducati attempted to capture a share of the touring market with its 860 GT and (gasp!) parallel twin GTL's. Neither were wildly popular bikes. By 1977 customers demanded higher capacity, higher horsepower sports motorcycles, and the Super Sport 900 was introduced. A legend for good reason, the 900SS was the pinnacle of sports bikes in 1977. Don't underestimate its performance even by today's standards, though, as it was and is still a very competent racer. Official horsepower ratings were never available, but a 9.5:1 compression ratio, desmodromic valve gear and a weight of only 196kg were enough to propel the 900SS to over 225kph. 1978 was the year the world witnessed one of the most triumphant comebacks of all time, the kind of story legends are made of. Mike Hailwood, a former Ducati racer turned F1 driver, returned for one last hurrah and won the 1978 Isle of Man endurance race. Mike was a long shot to win but his NCR (initials of specialized tuners Nepoti, Carachi, and Rizzi) prepared 900 beat up the competition, and even went on to win a week later at Mallory Park to really embarrass the Japanese.1978 also marked the introduction of perhaps Taglioni's finest design and most lasting legacy- the belt drive Pantah (or 'panther') engine, a variation of which still powers two valve Ducatis today. These are also known as the "rubberband" Ducs, due to the rubber timing belts). Introduced in 500cc form, it later increased to 600 cc and was very successful in the TT2 600, the first Pantah-engined racer. The 1980's: Dark Times The TT2 continued its success into the early 80's, when Ducati took the big leap and punched out the Pantah engine to 750cc to compete in the TT1 class. The bike used, of course, was the TT1 750 F1 and today street and race variants both are highly coveted by collectors. Although built in the early 80's, the F1 combined world-class performance with modern amenities, including a rising rate linkage rear suspension, into a beautiful body that is regarded as one of the best looking sports bikes of all time. Just when Ducati enthusiasts were getting used to consistent factory support and distribution, Ducati made known its financial troubles. In 1984, control of Ducati was transferred to the Cagiva group, and luckily for enthusiasts Cagiva was interested in motorcycle production. Ducati would dedicate a large portion of its production to making engines that would power Cagiva motorcycles, and Ducati would continue its racing ventures. So, while Ducati was focusing on the F1, they were also spread thin making parts for Cagiva Elefants and Alazurras. And let us not also forget the Ducati Indiana, a large cruiser aimed at the American market. Nonetheless, mired in a sea of bikes that seemed to have gone off track, Ducati continued to devote its time to developing cutting edge sports bikes. 1986 saw the introduction of the Paso, a truly revolutionary and unique bike. Never before had a Ducati come with a completely enclosed fairing or a box section bolted-cradle frame. It was an extremely competent sports bike, and the Paso line eventually included a 2-valve per cylinder, liquid cooled 907cc engine, essentially a distant cousin of the 851. While only putting out 72hp, it was still capable of 218kph.The late 80's saw the introduction of two other Ducati milestones- the first desmodromic four-valve-per-cylinder (desmoquattro) engine that would power the superbike, and the all-new 750 Sport, whose style would later lead to the fantastic Supersport of the 1990's.The 851 was actually introduced in 1986 at Bol D'Or, and won at Daytona in 1987. However, it first raced in the new World Superbike Championship in 1988, where it placed fifth. Soon after, privateers got their hands on the amazing bike. It displaced 851cc, was liquid cooled, sported a new Weber Marelli fuel injection system and sported four valves per cylinder and pumped out a whopping 90hp in street trim. It was no wonder the bike was a huge success.At Phillip Island in 1990, Ducati brought home its first of many world superbike titles after Raymond Roche raced an incredible season. As they say, the rest is history. The 1990's and Beyond: Rebirth A triumphant World Superbike victory meant that the 888 was now a legend. Doug Polen won an unprecedented 17 times on the 888 in 1991, and 9 times in 1992, bringing home the championship for the third time. But, by now the 851/888 had reached its capacity- the motor was stretched to the limit and the chassis was no longer able to contain the power. 1993 saw the title head back home to Japan with the Kawasaki team, causing Ducati to make perhaps one of the best decisions ever- 1994 saw the debut of the all-new 916 superbike. Completely redesigned by Massimo Tamburini (who also penned the Paso and Cagiva Mito), it was instantly recognized as one of the best designs in all of motorcycling's history. Powered by a new and improved 955cc race motor putting out 150hp, the 916 Superbike won its debut race much to the amazement of team Kawasaki, and went on take home the title in the capable hands of Carl "Foggy" Fogarty. 1995 saw Fogarty on the 916 win for the second straight time. 1996 saw Troy Corser bump Foggy from the top ranks and take the title home for Ducati, for the sixth time in seven years! 1998 was another unforgettable year, with Carl Fogarty (back again from Honda) winning by a nose, during the last round against the Honda on its own turf. 1999 also saw Fogarty keep the title in Italy. The 916 was replaced by the 996 in 1999, and featured numerous improvements. By 2001, the new testastretta (narrow head) motor made its debut. Displacing 998cc, the new engine had a larger bore and shorter stroke combined with less included valve angle and redesigned rockers for less stress at high RPM's. It developed 174hp at 12,000 RPM, more than enough to bring the title back home under the belt of Troy Bayliss. Unfortunately, even after a great start by the Italian camp, 2002 saw Colin Edwards aboard the Honda steal the title back. The 998 was replaced by the 999 in 2003, and the championship was again brought back to Italy by Neil Hodgson. Ten World Superbike titles in 13 years is quite a feat, considering the basic layout for the bikes (tubular space frame, v-twin engine) remained unchanged. These Italians must be on to something with their twins? http://www.ducatisuite.com/history.html |
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