Ducati 1299 Panigale R Final Edition
Months of speculation regarding efforts by the VW Group to sell Ducati have apparently come to an end. According to business news reports, such as this one, opposition by labor groups within VW have succeeded in preventing the Ducati sale.
One of the recent rumors indicated Polaris (owner of the Indian Motorcycle brand) was among the potential buyers of Ducati, the sale of which could have contributed close to $2 billion to VW coffers at a time when losses stemming from an emissions cheating scandal appear to be closing in on $30 billion.
See more of MD’s great photography:
This whole “story” was nothing more than Reuters click bait from day one.
Too bad FIAT was too cheap to buy from the Germans what is more rightfully theirs…
Great news, Ducati deserves a very good partner/owner that allows the company to continue the design of awesome motorcycles. Just looking at the photo above I am drooling at the beautiful bike…
This is good news. Ducati has been doing well under VW, both from a racing and commercial motorcycle perspective. I’ll take a multi please, in celebration.
This is good news, for Ducati and the people who ride them.
Polaris, HD and all of India had/have brands that could competed with the likes of Ducati, so if they can’t find it in their own backyard, they could never be good stewards of a brand like Ducati.
Polaris had Victory, HD had Buell and MV, and India has it’s tentacles everywhere.
I would have rather seen Motus take over Ducati if VW insisted in selling it, at least those 2 guys are motorcycle enthusiast.
Victory competes with Ducati? Victory isn’t even around anymore, let alone a mostly cruiser company competing with Ducati. VW does seem to be doing a great job with Ducati, but I’m sure that Polaris would have done the same as they are doing with Indian.
The problem with Victory is that it was all cruisers, Polaris could have, and should have, morphed it into a sports/performance brand, able to compete with Ducati. Truly it would have taken a lot of time and money to remake Victory, but it would also take a lot of money to buy and run Ducati. They now have Indain to go head to head with HD. HD blew it years ago… Buell, MV …..really just a lost cause for most riders under 40 years old who want something other than a cruiser.
re: “This is good news, for Ducati and the people who ride them.”
FISTPUMP…!!!
Real story. Audi executives like showing up at events and meetings on Ducati motorcycles.
Can’t let BMW executives be the cool kids.
Neal is correct, that VW / Audi have been a good fit for Ducati. I hope for continued success for all parties. Motorcycles are such a small percentage of the motoring public. Choice, competition, among the manufactures improves product.
Dang that tri-color is so pretty. Would like a spin on that and forget the politics.
Good, I think…say, why is Kawasaki not in motogp anymore anyways? And how does whatever answer you give weight against the other mnfs that are currently in it?
Q: say, why is Kawasaki not in motogp anymore anyways?
A: at the time it was costing a ton of quid to be in it but not be competitive so the ROI was questionable.
Q: how does whatever answer you give weight against the other mnfs that are currently in it?
(drumroll)
A: well now that the GEC has subsided, they probably would have returned but Ezpelata (being the “scary genius” that he is) burned a bridge with Kawi threatening to bring action against them for pulling out. but K-Heavy aren’t mugs and said “screw you” and pulled chocks and chains anyway. they know THEY are in the power position, they know THEY control the means of production, they know at the end of the day, Carmelo basically has the talent to design, engineer, and manufacture F%*KALL.
so ultimately they realized for a fraction of what they were spending to coast around at 1/2 throttle in MGP, they could take all they learned during their time in 4T grandprix and utterly DOMINATE production racing over in WSBK. right, fast forward 8 years and 4 championships later (now 3 in a row) and so they have.
Interesting answers
So where does that leave KTM in all of this, unless we all concede that KTM/redbull are all mad megalomaniacs and wish to rule racing with an iron fist…? By the way, I own a KTM, and they are all mad…
Q: we all concede that KTM/redbull are all mad megalomaniacs and wish to rule racing with an iron fist…?
A: yes. 🙂
no seriously, KTM had me scratching my head at first with their foray into grandprix. but now i see more clearly that they are true boffins and are there to develop kit while simultaneously getting press. they have a 90 degree engine and full trelli in both M2 and MGP classes, fair play.
however before they debuted the engine, i naturally thought returning to WSB would be the obvious choice, but of course the accelerated (pun intended) real-time development angle is not something they would be able to pull off in homologation racing. once they have the grandprix kit sorted, they could easily expand and be competitive in BOTH series same as Ducati, Aprilia, etc.
not that they will…? but they WILL at least have the option, and that’s bloody brilliant.
VW has been an excellent steward for Ducati.
re: “opposition by labor groups within VW have succeeded”
FISTPUMP…!!!
I don’t know whose getting the worse end on this deal…
You have a gift for negativity. Nicely done.