The photographs taken in Sicily by our readers quickly spread across the Internet, as is often said in these cases. So much so that other unmistakable photos emerged, in which the same motorcycle is painted in that easily recognizable trademark red. Curiously, they arrived almost simultaneously on social media. This may lead the most malicious to suspect, but it does not change the substance of the facts.
We then return to the mysterious single-cylinder supermoto seen as a prototype, which immediately led us to suspect it was a Ducati. Some details, particularly the fender and grille, but also the crankcase, pointed us in the direction of Borgo Panigale. And that’s not all. A few months ago, we told you about a registration that Ducati itself had made in the US with the NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration of the United States, an agency of the Department of Transportation). Among the various Bolognese engines, a single-cylinder 659 cc engine with four valves and liquid cooling appeared. Our imagination immediately led us to think of a possible Ducati debut in the world of enduro, although the supermoto route, so to speak, seems much more suitable for the brand at the moment. However, entering enduro and motocross is a topic that resurfaces when talking about Ducati. It is not the first time there have been rumors of a 450 single-cylinder capable of competing in MX, a true “cross”, in short. On the contrary, a few years ago, people pointed to 2024 as the possible year for Ducati, and recently the clues have increased.
In this case, however, we are dealing with a configuration clearly oriented towards the road. As we said from the beginning, we are most likely dealing with a younger sister of the Hypermotard that wouldn’t surprise us, at this point, to see among the Premiére at EICMA. The cubic capacity of 659, however, is our theory, we are not certain. And even if the cubic centimeters were 630, it would still make sense as half the displacement of the Testastretta V2. Such an engine could have a power of at least 70 hp, if not 80, which would most likely make it the most powerful single-cylinder engine on the market, replacing the KTM 690. And it is precisely for the Austrian and Swedish single-cylinders that this Bolognese supermotard would be intended. In comparison to these, it could also have a dual overhead camshaft and maybe, who knows, desmodromic distribution. These are clearly just assumptions. The only certainty at this moment is that soon we will be dealing with a new and fascinating motorcycle to have fun with.
