The five best Ducatis of all time

Ducati is behind some of the most iconic sportsbikes going, as well as one of the world’s most loved naked machines. It boasts a rich heritage of performance prowess on the global stage – from its first ever world title, the 1978 TT Formula 1 World Championship, achieved thanks to Mike Hailwood's victory at the Isle of Man TT, to Casey Stoner’s 2007 MotoGP title.

Suffice to say, you don’t just buy a Ducati; you buy into the abundant heritage of one of the world’s premier motorcycle brands. Of course, owning one does come with downsides – low service intervals, high parts costs, and the merciless teasing from your mates about their reputation for electronic failings. And while the above issues may well be negatable on newer models, there’s no denying that some of the older machines had their fair share of foibles. But that doesn’t mean we love them any less… In fact, quite the opposite. We’ve pulled together a list of our favourite five.

Ducati 250 Twin – 1959

While Ducati has been building motorcycles since 1926, the first on our list dates from more than 30 years later. It was 1959 and 19-year-old Mike Hailwood was making a name for himself on the international racing circuit. With talent aplenty and the financial backing of his father, the young rider only needed one thing: the perfect bike.

Enter stage right the 250 Twin, a bespoke 248cc Taglioni-designed Twin, sat in a twin-tube cradle and built on Stan Hailwood’s request. Effectively two DOHC 125 cylinder head and block units joined together, it had a stroke and bore of 55x55.25, a central gear train to drive the distribution and made 37PS (27kW) at 11,600rpm. Weighing 120kg, it could reach 125mph. 

While not the fastest, nor the most powerful to make this list, the 250 Twin earned its place in the history books when it catapulted Hailwood to world renown. 

Ducati 750GT – 1970

This list would not be complete without a bevel geared Duc. Dreamt up by Fabio Taglioni on 20^th March 1970, the bevel gear 90-degree V-twin (aka the L-Twin) would become one of his most loved engines, the Pompone (big pump). And the first machine to cradle such an iconic powertrain was the 750GT, with a 50PS (37kW) outlet and 125mph top speed. 

More than 4,000 were built between 1971 and 1974, and sold new for less than $2,000. While it may not be an obvious choice for a list of the best Ducatis, it was implemental in the creation of the legend.

Ducati Monster – 1993

The Monster needs no introduction. Revealed in 1992 and launched the following year, it all but saved Ducati from financial ruin. However, with the naked machine originally destined to be a Cagiva model, and Ducati lacking in credit with its suppliers, it almost never materialised. But, it did, and the rest is history. The Monster dominated Ducati’s sales throughout the ‘90s, accounting for over 40 per cent of units. Forty guises and more than 300,000 units later, the Monster is infamous for its affordability, rideability and effortless cool. 

That style was the result of Ducati manager, Massimo Bordi, tasking designers to replicate the bike aboard which Marlon Brando lounged in the iconic photo from The Wild One. Miguel Angel Galluzzi (also responsible for Aprilia’s RSV4) expanded on that, basing ‘Il Mostro’ on his simple concept that “all a bike needs is a saddle, engine, two wheels, handlebars and a tank to fill with fuel…”

It’s hard to pick just one Monster to make this list, but if we had to, it would either be the OG, the M900, or the water-cooled, performance-orientated S4RS, which boasted Ohlins suspension and a 126PS (93kW), 998cc testastretta engine.

Ducati 916 – 1994

Launched in October 1993, the 916 was the embodiment of the ‘win on Sunday, sell on Monday’ philosophy. Between 1994 and 1998, it took four Superbike World Championships – three in the hands of Carl Fogarty, and one by Troy Corser – before Foggy and Troy Bayliss added two more aboard the evolved 996 in ‘99 and 2001. 

Powered by a 916cc, fuel injected, four-valve, desmosedici, liquid-cooled, 90-degree V-twin, it won more WSB races than the Honda RC30, RC45 and Yamaha OW01 combined. And the road-going model could be had for just £12,000 new. 

With a single-sided swingarm, under-seat exhaust, trellis frame and USD forks, the looks more than matched the performance. In fact, the iconic Tamburini design was so universally-appreciated that it was part motorcycle, part masterpiece.

Ducati Desmosedici RR – 2004

Another icon of Ducati’s sportsbike success, the Desmosedici RR (Racing Replica) was announced in 2004 as a ‘MotoGP bike for the road’, promising unrivalled performance derived from the manufacturer’s recently relaunched Grand Prix programme.

A final production version was shown in 2006, with orders for the 1,500 units opened, and production projected at one per day (deliveries eventually began in Jan 2008). Included in the £40,000 cost was a three-year warranty and servicing, forged magnesium wheels, a cover, a race-only exhaust system, a slip-on muffler, a race ECU and a sticker pack to rival comic books of the era. 

Powered by a 989cc desmodromic V4, it didn’t quite didn’t quite receive the race machine’s full-fat 240 ponies, rather a dulled-down 200; and despite being constructed of titanium, carbon fibre and avionic aluminium, it weighed a little more than the MotoGP machine… Nonetheless, it could still reach a top speed of 188mph in not much time at all.