2013 Ducati 1199 Panigale R on 2040-motos

Moto blog

Ducati won the elegance pageant with color effects

Ducati's designers' maneuver is elegant, efficient and simple - it is based on the Hypermotard 950, which received new design elements from the company's catalog, a different subframe and an original color scheme that is especially striking. These touches were enough to transform the bike and win an award, despite the fact that there is nothing conceptual in it. But what the hell - it's a beauty!

This looks more like Rossi

At Brno today Valentino Rossi had a positive session in free practice, finishing closer and within half a second of the fastest time set by Dani Pedrosa. With a best of 1:57.315 and only .457 off Pedrosa's 1:56.858 lap. But it's not just the time that is encouraging, it's the first time in a long while that Rossi has looked more like his old self on the Desmosedici. "I’m happy because we went pretty well today, and in particular, the gap to the front makes us fairly optimistic," Rossi said after free practice.

Ducati MotoGP: Smoke and mirrors

There's often more lurking within a seemingly innocuous press release than first meets the eye. The latest communication from Ducati's MotoGP spin doctor would, at first, lend you to believe that the team are buoyed with steely optimism and are hopeful that their hard work ethic and diligence will get them to the top of the time sheets in two shakes of a 10 mil' Facom T-bar. The results from their pre-season testing sessions have so far been pretty glum with both Nicky Hayden and their golden boy Valentino Rossi trailing the rest of the pack by a couple of seconds.