Ducati MotoE Bike Takes to the Track
Ducati’s first BEV racing motorcycle took to the track for testing this week heralding a new era for the iconic Italian brand.
Its bike took part in testing at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli, where the agreement with Dorna Sports was announced in October to be involved with the all-electric series. Starting from the 2023 season, the Borgo Panigale motorcycle manufacturer will be the sole supplier of motorcycles for the FIM Enel MotoE World Cup, the electric class of the MotoGP World Championship.
The electric prototype, code-named V21L, is the result of the joint work of the Ducati Corse team and the Ducati R&D engineers, led by Roberto Canè, Ducati eMobility director, and was taken out on track by Michele Pirro, professional rider and Ducati test rider since 2013, who evaluated the technical characteristics and potential of Ducati’s first electric motorcycle.
The most important challenges in the development of an electric racing motorcycle remain related to the size, weight and range of the batteries. Ducati want to stay true to its roots of creating motorcycles that are high-performance and characterized by their lightness available to all FIM Enel MotoE World Cup participants. The focus areas of the project are, in addition to better performance, the containment of weight and the consistency of power delivery during the race, obtained thanks to the attention in the development of a cooling system.
After the test ride, Pirro said: “Testing the MotoE prototype on the circuit was a great thrill, because it marks the beginning of an important chapter in Ducati history. The bike is light and already has a good balance. Furthermore, the throttle connection in the first opening phase and the ergonomics are very similar to those of a MotoGP bike. If it weren’t for the silence and for the fact that in this test, we decided to limit the power output to just 70% of performance, I could easily have imagined that I was riding my bike.”
— Paul Myles is a seasoned automotive journalist based in Europe. Follow him on Twitter @Paulmyles_
