The new Superbike?
 

:D :D

Where, What and When were these taken

ooo err missus single sided swinger yummy.

Don't think the 'duct tape' look will catch on you know ;)

Looks a bit like one of my old despatch bikes!!!!

As long as it the tape is available in red people will buy it

one would hope its not as it looks like a Performance Bikes 999/998 readers special but with what looks like the datalogger taped to rear and fork potentiometer suggest it is a test rig :(

The masking tape is used to disguise the final design, and extra lumps and bumps can be added underneath to make it look like something else. It ceratinly looks like a prototype, and that swingarm is not standard 916 given the way the chain goes through it ... just like a 999.

The duct tape is just because this is Setes bike from the weekend and its the only way they could hold it together...

Seriously though first impressions on this are better than I had for the 999....

From what I can see, I like it. In red of course.

Does look like it will have potential to look stunning, but not quite sure about the oval exhausts.
The stylists do seem to be on a roll at the moment, with the pics of the GP bike they have released so far.

Whatever it is, it looks nice (from what you can see)....apart from the exhausts which look totally out of place & about 15 years out of date!

Looks good, but they need to sort that rear end out. Pipes are waaaay too long and the twin exits looks very dated. Make it like the D16RR and it'll be tasty...

i don't think the pipes will be there on final version, my guess is the bulk under the front of swingarm is the can with a pipe exiting on lower rhs of bike or it'll be swapped for an rr style can and the pipes pictured are cosmetic I can't believe they'll use so dated a design as twin cans under the seat . it does look remarkably similar in shape to the sketch in Bike mag this month though

chain looks a bit slack !

Rider looks about 14 years of age, judging by the size of him!

DC

Well said mate. I think its a bit of a red hearing. A little like the spy pics of the DD16 about 9 months before it was released.

I have sneeky feeling someone from Ducati will be watching all the duc boards on the web to gauge a reaction

Close but not on target
 

I think as most people have suggested, the pipes are likely to be purely there for "test bed" purposes. The rear swingarm looks fookin' huge in cross section. The bodywork, apart from the open ducts on the side, does not look that far removed from the 999, which would suggest this is purely a mechanical shakedown bike, until such a time as the final version is ready to be clothed on the hopefully by then, tried and tested mechanics underneath.

I agree with regards to the exhausts though. To revert to the 916 style twin underseat system would be a regressive move, as it's no longer innovative as it once was. Just look at how many Japanese manufacturers followed suit after the 916 first came to light. It's old hat now and nothing new. People want innovation and style from the new bike, not an amalgamation of old concepts. Evolution of the new bike can wait for the years following it's release

If they could produce something along the lines of the GP road bike at an affordable price with the same levels of ingenuity and styling cues built in (like the Ferrari F1 style upward exiting exhausts on the Desmosedici), then they would generate a huge level of interest and hopefully much needed sales when the finished product is unveiled in November at the Milan show.

I sincerely hope they are.