Ducati 1098 track test

For the uninitiated, the new 1098 comes in three models; the 173kg 1098, 1098S and 1098S Tricolore. All share the same 1099cc L-twin engine, with the 171kg 1098S also featuring Ohlins suspension, 1.9kg lighter Marchesini-forged aluminium wheels and a carbon fibre front guard.

On top of these, the Tricolore comes with a race exhaust system with a dedicated ECU, gold frame and wheels, and three-colour Italian-style paint finish.

Thanks to NF Importers, I recently tested two gleaming red 2007 Ducati 1098S motorcycles, plus an S4R1000 Monster during a track day at Eastern Creek in Australia. Feeling like a Superbike racer just without the helicopter arrival, all I had to do was turn up and ride, as the Australasian Ducati importers put on the whole show including pit crew and Ducati race transporter.

It’s been a long time since I’ve had to learn a new race circuit, so my opening stint was on the high-bar S4R1000 Monster.

A good decision too – I stumbled my way around the tricky circuit for the opening laps; painfully watching other riders fly past. Fortunately, the problem was solved by the time I went out for my final session on the 1098S.

A near full-lock rear slide on the S4R told me I was approaching the limits of the tyre and soft suspension settings, so I was happy to bring it in, ready for the next phase of Ducati-induced adrenalin.

Although noisy from the dry clutch, the 1098S makes a nice growl on start-up and brings an audience. Can’t say I hung around though – too much to do and I had to leave their tongues dragging on the ground watching the 1098S disappear along pit lane in a haze of imagination.

Out on the track I felt right at home, just the ticket for a new circuit, and on the road too. Everything felt in place and there was a ton of room to move around on the seat.

The 1.5kg lighter, yet stronger trellis steel chassis has a completely neutral feeling to it so that when you traverse a corner there is no tendency to under or over steer.

The Duke’s behaviour was made even better after our Ducati support crew firmed up the Ohlins FG511 front end, complementing the 46PRC rear Ohlins suspension unit. They certainly added confidence to the whole package.

The 1098S Testastretta Evoluzione engine has an incredible 5kg shaved from the 999 unit. Ducati bored and stroked (104 x 64.7mm) the old powerplant, introduced bigger racing ‘R’ valves – running on ‘R’ derived cams, and then added MotoGP-styled elliptical throttle bodies – which alone gained 5hp.

All this, along with a redesigned valve inlet angle and combustion shape, increased power output to a whopping 160hp, up 20 ponies from the 999.

But the biggest improvement comes in the torque department, now at an arm-wrenching 123Nm. This occurs at only 8000rpm, up 12Nm over the previous flagship, and lower in the rev range!

Perfect – it is torque which determines your tyre shredding exit speeds. I loved the power delivery of the 1098S and, thanks to its fat torque curve; I could happily ride around in a gear too high while unlocking Eastern Creek’s secrets.

Eastern Creek proved to have a number of corners that fooled riders with ‘false’ apexes – corners which looked obvious to apex, but left you off line and out wide on a slippery part of the track.

Thankfully, NFI staffer (and Australian champ) Craig McMartin showed me the ‘hot’ lines. Making use of the suspension I could lay the bike over and put the power down hard on exit because the rear felt planted rock-solid, no doubt helped by the Pirelli Super Corsa Pro race tyres.

I could then stand the 1098S upright and use the incredible torque of the L-twin motor to rocket towards the next challenging corner, where I needed and found another gift from Ducati.

Braking power! Ducati is the first manufacturer to offer four-piston Brembo Monoblock M4 machined, radial front brake calipers, working on large 330mm diameter discs.

These are the trick! I expected above average performance without fade and got exactly that. They offered both great power and feel, and didn’t even look like fading, becoming a piece of equipment I could rely on without question.

Turn one is a phenomenal 90-degree sweeping corner. Barreling along the main straight the entry into turn one looks like it is a narrow side road because the wide main straight doesn’t stop at the corner.

To gain an idea of the speed on this corner, on the Ducati Sport 1000 I entered it at 200km/h without braking, and could ride right around with the throttle held wide open.

The 1098 was a different story, as I was hooking around 260km/h in fifth entering the braking zone. The biggest limiting factor in tackling turn one fast is the entry, where the tip-in point determines mid-turn speed.

On our track day, most riders were using a box of around 2m x 10m for the tip-in point. Road racers would narrow that down to a 0.5m x 2m box. Turn in too late and you’ll end up a couple of degrees off line and the bike will run wide at full lean.

This is a good place to find the differences between a great motorcycle and an average bike because, while learning the circuit at track day speeds, I never had a problem bringing the 1098S back in line whenever I ran it wide.

Another first is a Ducati GP7 fully digital MotoGP-developed instrumentation unit. Controlled by handlebar mounted switches, the rider can scroll the menus on-the-fly.

The unit incorporates Ducatis data acquisition system, where riders can record and monitor lap times. And, for track day specialists, the USB system Ducati Data Analyser (DDA) and software can be utilised, so after each session you can download data from the bike onto your laptop!

Recordable data includes bike speed, engine rpm and temperature, throttle opening, distance travelled and lap times. And, you can overlay each area from one lap to another, so you can analyse things like consistency with gear changes and throttle openings.

The DDA unit can store up to 3.5 hours of data, so imagine replaying telemetry of your day’s road ride with a few mates over bevvies! The DDA comes standard with the 1098S, making it all the more attractive right from the start.

NFI General Manager Warren Lee gives us a heads-up on Ducati’s future in New Zealand, with current sales close to 50 per cent higher than two years ago.

“The growth is mainly product driven. We’ve got the new 1098, but we’ve also seen other models being introduced, like the sports classics and the Multistrada 1100, so 50 per cent of the new 2007 model range is actually new models,” Lee says, making the point that Ducati are now listening to customer requirements, such as fitting quieter wet clutches to some models.

“Basically, Ducati is a sport brand. Everything they do is sports orientated, so we’ve got sport naked, sport touring, sport classic – everything is a sporty nature. So all Ducati bikes handle, stop, and go very well.

And what they learn from racing experience, like no other brand, translates back into the road bikes they develop. Even the world championship riders like Troy Bayliss and Loris Capirossi were actually involved in the development of the 1098”

Thanks Ducati, I really enjoyed riding the 1098S on such a demanding track. It is lighter and much more powerful than the 999 and, best of all, great fun to ride hard.