Petrucci fan made a replica of KTM’s MotoGP motorcycle for himself.

Alessio is a MotoGP fan, and also one of the biggest fans of Danilo Petrucci. The Italian motorcyclist always had a dream, and that dream came true when he made a replica of the last MotoGP bike that “Petrux” raced with in the World Championship two seasons ago, the Tech3 team’s RC16, which is currently the factory team of GASGAS in MotoGP. With this idea in mind, Alessio started shaping his ambition when he bought a 2015 KTM RC8R, one of the last units of this peculiar 1,195 cc twin-cylinder engine with 175 hp. When Fabrio Dri, a motorcycle fairing artisan, met Alessio, everything made sense, and that’s when the two decided to create a replica of Danilo Petrucci’s MotoGP RC16 bike from scratch based on the RC8R, a project that, after several months of work, was finally presented. Fabrio Dri is the owner of Kooso Compositi, a company specialized in motorcycle fairings and exclusive decorations; after talking to Alessio and finalizing his idea, Fabrio started developing the designs on a blank sheet of paper, a complex task, as he had to start from scratch, using only the photographs he could obtain from the RC16 as a guide.After several months of work, the replica of the MotoGP fiberglass fairing was complete, but his work was not finished. Fabrio Dri also had to imagine and design numerous carbon fiber parts, starting with the impressive front wings brought directly from the competition, passing through other elements such as the rear swingarm cover, both fenders, the front airbox inlet – where the headlight is hidden – and many other elements present on the bike. 

For the frame, Alessio chose to keep the WP suspension and Brembo brakes from the RC16, enough to enjoy this model on the road. The tubular steel frame remains unchanged, featuring the characteristic tubular shape that has always identified bikes born in Mattighofen and still applies in MotoGP today, although now some rectangular sections mix with its tubular frame.

Fabrio Dri presented with these words what is possibly the motorcycle that demanded the most time to develop and of which he is most proud: “This is what happens when your client, who is a big fan of Petrucci, comes to you and says that he would like to have a street replica of his last MotoGP bike, starting with a KTM RC8 street bike, but wants the number “8” because he is not as fast as Danilo. This work was done over a year ago, but for various reasons I had not published the wonderful photos that Flashblesst took of my creation. Part of the structure was made from an existing base, but most of it was made from scratch, completely freehand, just like all the carbon parts.

Not satisfied with the final look, Alessio was not convinced by the original exhaust that came out of the bike fairing and ended up ordering a complete stainless steel system from the specialists at Virex, who reproduced the MotoGP RC16 bike exhaust pipes to create a new exhaust system that also complies with noise regulations due to the installation of a Db-Killer.

Believe it or not, Alessio managed to have this RC8GP approved in his country, Italy, to be able to ride on the public roads. Of course, it must be fantastic to see Alessio arriving at any motorcycle gathering with this replica painted in the bright orange that KTM used in its pre-GASGAS phase. In short, a beautiful dream come true for this unconditional fan of Danilo Petrucci.