Just as Ducati wraps up testing at Valencia this week, with WSB champion Troy Bayliss lapping under the track record (including times set by 500 GP machines), rumors are surfacing that the 2002 version of the 998 Ducati Superbike engine is taking horsepower and torque levels for WSB machines to a new level.
How powerful is this machine? Perhaps, in the neighborhood of 190 horsepower at the rear wheel, according to rumors circulating. Ducati factory rider Ben Bostrom, and his teammates, will only smile and make simple comments like “It’s fast”, but the machine will reportedly turn a reliable 15000 rpm. This is unheard of for a 998cc, V-twin superbike engine.
If you thought the four-cylinder machines had a hard time in WSB racing this year, wait until next year.
