Kit Palmer | June 20, 2019
Ducati USA has just released a very short clip of their new Streetfighter V4 prototype in action with Carlin Dunne at the helm.
Dunne will pilot the machine in the Exhibition Class at the 2019 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb as he and Ducati aim to take back the overall motorcycle record from KTM’s Chris Fillmore.
Not much is known about the new Ducati Streetfighter V4 production machine—the details of which will be released at EICMA this November—however, Dunne’s machine will be a modified Panigale V4 S, while teammate Codie Vahsholtz will race the Multistrada MTS1200 that won last year’s event in the Heavyweight class.
The Panigale V4 S will provide the mechanical basis for the production machine, so we’ll be seeing a V4, 1103cc nakedbike from Ducati, one we’ve been waiting for since the arrival of the Panigale V4 S last year.
Will Dunne take back the record and give Ducati its dream Streetfighter debut? The “Race To The Clouds” at Pikes Peak is scheduled for next Sunday, June 30.
Ducati Debuts V4 Streetfighter Prototype Ahead of Pikes Peak
Ducati has officially taken the wraps off their 2020 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb challenger in the Streetfighter V4 Prototype.
The production Streetfighter V4 will debut at EICMA this year.
The machine will be piloted by 2018 race winner and former record holder Carlin Dunne in the Exhibition category, with the sole aim of claiming the lap record from KTM’s Chris Fillmore, who took the lap record from Dunne and Ducati in 2017 with a 9:49.265.
The new machine that Dunne will race is essentially a stripped back Panigale V4 S, powered by a the 1103cc V4 and not the 999cc unit as found in the SBK-spec V4 R.
“The Streetfighter V4 will be one of the stars of the Ducati World Premiere 2020,” declared Claudio Domenicali, CEO of Ducati. “Streetfighter V4 is the Panigale for road riding, so there was no better stage than the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb for what will be the highest performance Streetfighter ever put into production.”
Dunne’s new prototype machine is sure to raise a few eyebrows at Pikes Peak this year.
The prototype will race with a “pixelated” livery, designed by the Centro Stile Ducati. Unlike the normal practice with prototypes, the livery does not hide the lines, but exalts them by deliberately revealing how the bike will finally look.
The bike will be presented to the public at EICMA 2019 and will be available in Ducati dealerships starting Spring 2020.
Although Dunne will essentially be racing on his own in the Exhibition category, he will still have to contend with riders in the Heavyweight Class for production machines for the overall title of King of The Mountain. The Heavyweight Class is stacked with talent, including the legendary Michael Dunlop, who will make his debut at Pikes Peak this year on a BMW S 1000 R, his teammate, German Lucy Glockner, Cory West on the new Zero SR/F electric machine, and Cycle News’ own Rennie Scaysbrook on an Aprilia USA-backed Tuono 1100 Factory.
