Ducati’s New MotoE Race Bike is Shocking!

Ducati’s Shock Decision to Supply MotoE race Bikes

It was an announcement that took everyone by surprise: Ducati had signed a contract to supply MotoE race bikes from 2023 onwards. From being the manufacturer most reticent about its electric future, to the extent where absolutely nothing was known about its plans, to supplying a whole grid of electric bikes in one fell swoop, was quite the surprise announcement.

Following on from that announcement comes the first images of the MotoE challenger during a private test at the Misano circuit in Italy, with Ducati test rider Michele Pirro at the helm of the machine, code named V21L.

Ducati has always resisted electric bikes in its production line-up due to issues around the weight of batteries. This issue hasn’t disappeared so Ducati has designed the MotoE racer from scratch, saving weight wherever possible by the use of carbon fibre to offset the weight of the batteries and ensuring good performance and consistent power delivery.

"Testing the MotoE prototype on the circuit was a great thrill because it marks the beginning of an important chapter in Ducati history,” Pirro, who evaluated the technical characteristics current potential of the new machine, said.

"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."

The project is a joint venture between Ducati Corse and Ducati R&D designers, led by Ducati eMobility Director Roberto Canè. Alongside performance and battery work, Ducati are also focusing on the development of a suitable cooling system for the bike.

There can be no doubt that this project will give rise to a production electric bike from Ducati in the coming years and technology developed for the race bike will find its way into the road project. CEO Claudio Domenicali has previously stated that this wouldn’t be until after 2025. He is also on record as saying that he doesn’t believe the future of performance motorcycles is solely electric, but that it will remain with internal combustion, albeit with E-Fuels rather than petrol.

Entering MotoE is a big risk for Ducati: it will have to build a bike that is capable of moving the series on in terms of performance from the Energica era. If lap and race times don’t tumble, it will be seen as a failure and would set Ducati’s electrification plans back significantly, inevitable as they are.