Panigale Size ‘SS'
Bike India|April 2017

A first ride in the hills near Seville in southern Spain did much to underscore the Ducati SuperSport’s penchant for commuting and sports-touring as well as going fast. Here is how the bike revealed its attributes.

Roland Brown
Panigale Size ‘SS'

ON MANY SUPER-SPORTS bikes this ride would be getting uncomfortable and annoying by now. I’m on a twisty back-road in the hills near Seville in the south of Spain, and for the last few miles the surface, which was superb for most of the ride, has been more like something suited to an adventure bike launch: bumpy, potholed and made slippery by occasional patches of gravel as well as dampness from recent rain.

This is hardly traditional Ducati country, but the Super Sport is handling the tricky conditions well. Or, at least, its relatively high handlebars and compliant suspension are making this part of the ride much more enjoyable than it would be on plenty of sports machines, while the 937-cc V-twin engine’s flexible response and gentle power delivery, backed up by traction control and ABS, are making the bike improbably easy to ride.

Improbably easy, that is, only if you take one look at the Super Sport’s name and sleek, fully-faired shape, and expect this latest V-twin to be a hardcore, track-focused weapon like its similarly styled Panigale stable-mates. Because this Ducati is subtly different: designed for commuting and sportstouring as well as going fast; and intended as a more versatile and rider friendly entry into the world of Bolognese sports models.

In this respect its Super Sport name, initially slightly confusing, is following a Ducati tradition. Sure, the famous bevel drive 750 and 900 Super Sport of the 1970s were uncompromising street racers. But when the name was revived in the late ’80s it was for the 900 Super Sport: a relatively simple, inexpensive air-cooled V-twin alternative to the eight valve 851. The new Super Sport is much more sophisticated but has a similar role, as a more road-biased and affordable alternative to the 959 and 1299 Panigale.

This story is from the April 2017 edition of Bike India.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the April 2017 edition of Bike India.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM BIKE INDIAView All
Tussle for Supremacy
Bike India

Tussle for Supremacy

Having watched the racing action from afar during the first two rounds of the Honda Idemitsu Talent Cup (HITC), we got a chance to take a closer look at the proceedings in round three. Here is how the weekend zoomed past

time-read
1 min  |
October 2024
Multiple Winners
Bike India

Multiple Winners

The third round of the TVS One-make Championship saw the emergence of multiple winners as the favourites struggled to do the double-race win

time-read
2 mins  |
October 2024
The Title Fight Becomes More Intense
Bike India

The Title Fight Becomes More Intense

The weekend at Mandalika turned out to be a spectacular display where the title contenders, Jorge Martin and Francesco Bagnaia, locked horns while Marc Márquez's and Enea Bastianini's chances at the title diminished

time-read
5 mins  |
October 2024
Andrea lannone is a WSBK Winner
Bike India

Andrea lannone is a WSBK Winner

Nicolo Bulega, Andrea Iannone, and Alvaro Bautista headlined the weekend for their respective Ducati teams as they blew past the competition on their Ducati Panigale V4 R motorcycles

time-read
1 min  |
October 2024
Italian Domination
Bike India

Italian Domination

The weekend at Cremona saw the Italian, Danilo Petrucci, dominate his home race astride his Ducati

time-read
1 min  |
October 2024
Bastianini Shines in Final-lap Thriller
Bike India

Bastianini Shines in Final-lap Thriller

Just like the previous race at Misano, this one also served up a thriller but for very different reasons. Here is how it unfolded

time-read
4 mins  |
October 2024
No Dearth of Drama
Bike India

No Dearth of Drama

Marc Márquez had to wait for 1,043 days for his 60th MotoGP race victory, but his 61st race win only took another seven days

time-read
5 mins  |
October 2024
Kolli Hills on an NX 500
Bike India

Kolli Hills on an NX 500

We rode from Bengaluru to Kolli Hills astride a Honda NX500 and it was a memorable ride for many reasons

time-read
5 mins  |
October 2024
For the Easy Life
Bike India

For the Easy Life

Triumph India believe there is a market for a friendlier version of the Speed 400. Here is what you should know about that version, called the Speed T4

time-read
4 mins  |
October 2024
The Star Reborn
Bike India

The Star Reborn

We finally got our hands on the new BSA Gold Star 650 and took it for a long spin. Here is our first impression

time-read
4 mins  |
October 2024