More new duke pics??
 

the lower one looks good, the upper one looks strange....pitch of the exhaust, exhaust heat shield on the left side, is unusual, as its normally on the right.....999 bip seat unit and tank with sedici top fairing, it all looks fake and photoshop.........time will tell

It's a ducatiblade !but I like it !!!!!!!!

more pics
 

from a site in the USA, lloks like it is been ridden by Gulliver

Whoa - that looks like final prototype testing doesn't it? Must be the genuine article as it's very similar to the bike pictured in Italy we've seen before. Radial Brembos, Marchesini rear wheel, trellis frame, single swinger, standard issue Ducati clutch cover etc. That'll be the 1098 then.

It's tiny isn't it? Looks like the size of our RS250! If it really is that miniscule I'd be tempted to get one. However, on looks alone I'm not that impressed.

Seriously is that the biggest man on the planet or is that a mini moto!!!??? Like the tail unit though!

Top pic looks to have the clutch housing on the left side..........

I reckon they use the biggest bloke they can find to test to see what it goes like with weight. Did it to the Hypermotard too.

the rider is Stefano Tenielli - and yes, he works for Ducati.

Someone knows something then. Care to elaborate? ;)

You know of him then? Any chance you could beat some information out of the chap. Mind you he looks like he tops almost 7ft, so perhaps not!! All this cloak and dagger stuff by Ducati is wearing a bit thin now. I still think they should have gone down the route of Triumph, in showing several design options to a controlled group (who sign a disclosure agreement) and get public feedback directly from them, as to which is the best design and the least liked design and what if any changes and features they would like incorporated within reason.

When Triumph were setting up for production of the Rocket III, this is exactly what they did in the States, which is where the core of the new model's market was. Ducati it seems are relying heavily on the public and the press, to give it a good reception. Let's just hope it does better than the tempered response the 999 achieved when the covers came off. Once the dry ice, fancy lights and music stop, then it's up to the bike to cut it amongst the glare from hungry eyes. All I can say is that it's both brave of Ducati and possibly a bit stupid, to rely on solely that, given that this new bike HAS to do well in sales figures, as even a company of this size, cannot weather another sales flop which was and still is the case with the XX9 series.

one thing to remember, Americans have no idea about aesthetics and design, no offence yankee friends, but you just dont have the same design heritage as europe, same for Japan. Look what happened to the rear lights of the Maserati design when one of the American groups got hold of them.

I think it would be a mistake, to go down that route. The best designers lead and break ground with new concepts materials, production techniques, sometimes they are not understood by a lot of people, like the 999, but it is still a fantastic and radical piece of design, in my eyes.

But I guess that is a purists view and you do have a point in that perhaps watering down the design a bit is worth it if it helps ensure the success of the bike in terms if mass appeal and sales, given that there is so much at stake, but in my experience design by committee doesn't work

Also, it didn't work for Triumph. The Rocket III has been nowhere near as popular Stateside as they thought it might be.