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Ducati Desmolight 450 Concept by Oberdan Bezzi

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We promised ourselves that we wouldn’t publish any more Ducati singles by Oberdan Bezzi, after the Italian designer set out with his pen and paper to imagine the Italian brand with a bevy of off-road inspired motorcycles; however Bezzi’s Ducati Desmolight 450 concept was just too great of a design to ignore, and thus here we are. With styling drawn from the current Monster line, Obiboi’s 450cc single looks delicious, especially with the coloring that’s reminiscent of Ducati’s Corse theme. This is the kind of bike that would go in our fantasy garage, and we’ll need a Prozac knowing it won’t be built.

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Racing

Monster Energy Drink to Sponsor Valentino Rossi, Instead of John Hopkins

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rossi-mugello-motogp

With all the back-and-forth going on whether Kawasaki would be in MotoGP or not this season, Monster Energy Drink wasn’t willing to take the season to chance. They have decided to drop John Hopkins from their payroll, and have added Valentino Rossi instead. In a few days we are expecting to hear a formal announcement of the agreement, but the terms have already been leaked. Monster will sponsor Rossi for 2 years, to the tune of 2.5 million euros, plus a bonus of another half a million euros if he wins the Championship.

This news is a devastating blow to John Hopkins who’s ride for 2009 is still up in the air. Monster’s sponsorship of the American rider helped defray the cost a team had to incurr to have Hopper riding with them. Now without the help from Monster, Hopkins is going to have  to take a massive pay-cut, or find a team willing to pay him more than he’s probably worth at this point.

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Bikes

Ducati 1098 Streetfighter Unveiled

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Well it is in the wild now, Ducati has finally cast a light on the dark corner of their factory in Bologna where they have taken the prized Ducati 1098 Superbike, and made it anew in streetfighter form. The result? A 1099cc 155hp v-twin motorcycle capable of urban doom. There will be two models, a standard Streetfighter and the Streetfighter S. Sharing the same motor, the Streetfighter S will boast Marchesini 5-spoke rims, traction control (as seen on the 1098R Superbike), a data acquisition unit, and Öhlins rear shock and forks. More after the jump.

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News

UPDATE: Ducati 1098 Streetfighter at EICMA

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Ducati will be presenting its new streetfighter the at EICMA show in Milan this coming Monday. Rumors surround the bike, but many expect it have a depowered (neutered) 1098 motor, with a smaller intake and airbox. We would also expect to see the common parts bin raided for major structural entities, and the bike’s market position to be similar to, and replace, the Monster S4R. This would mean the streetfighter 1098 would become Ducati’s premium level naked bike, once again placing the Monster brand in a more affordable pricing structure. 

Placing the bike in this position would seem to single that Ducati is looking to compete more directly with the likes of the Benelli TnT, MV Agusta Brutale (and ), and possibly strike a defensive position against what will likely be a Tuono V4 later in 2009.

Source: twowheelsblog

This author’s propensity to purchase a Monster 1100 just went up that much further.

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Bikes

Preview of the Ducati Monster 1100

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The Monster saved Ducati from the brink of bankruptcy and has become the bread winner in Bologna, accounting for more than half of Ducati’s sales worldwide. With the advent of the 1098 series replacing the 999, it was only a matter of time before the Monster got a similar displacement increase. That matter time, is of course…now. 

Ducati has given a preview of the new Monster in Cologne, price and time of release still to be determined, but Feburary 2009 is likely.

More pictures and specs after the jump.

 

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