NYDUCATI is a collection of Tigho's motorcycle photography from New York City and around the world, the bikes he encounters and the beauty of riding a Ducati Streetfighter V4S, a StreetfighterR (custom 1198), an 848/1098/1198 track bike, a 996 and a Monster.
Check out Gotham Ducati, NYC's first and only official Desmo Owners Club
The incredible power of the 851cc engine (about 93hp) launched a massive era of success in the motorcycle racing circuit, and the signature Ducati design ushered in an period of commercial progress for the brand as well.
In 1990, the engine bore was enlarged to 888cc's for the 851 SP2, which eventually became the Ducati 888, on which Doug Polen won the 1991 WSBK championship in 1991, which became publicly available as the Ducati 888 Sport Production Special (SPS) in 1992.
Arguably (...though not really) the most beautiful motorcycle ever designed, with only about 104hp stock, the 916 wasn't as powerful as other Japanese inline 4 cylinder bikes, but the motorcycle utterly crushed the competition with its low-end torque, size and handling.
My Ducati 996 and a custom 748 (equipped with a 1198 engine)
Ducati maintained the design, but enlarged and tweaked the engine, delivering more power to to the Ducati 996, released in 1999. Carl Fogarty maintained Ducati's preeminence in the superbike world in 1999, winning yet another World Superbike Championship, which Troy Bayliss did again in 2001, the year my 996 was manufactured (above).
The 998 launched the new Testastretta engine in 2002, which had even more power derived from the "narrow head," pushing about 123hp to the rear wheel. The bike was featured in The Matrix, but the last model was produced in 2004.
With the 1098 carrying over some of the design elements of the 998, Ducati increased the engine size again in 2009, with the 1198, with the base model offering about 170hp with which Carlos Checa won the title during the 2011 Superbike World Championship season.
A short history of the Ducati Superbike over the last 30 years.
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