The photos taken in Sicily by our readers quickly spread across the Internet, as they say in these cases. So much so that other, unmistakable ones appeared, in which the same motorcycle is even painted in that easily recognizable trademark red. What’s curious is the fact that they hit the social networks almost simultaneously. This might make the more malicious suspicious, but it doesn’t change the substance of the facts.
So back to the mysterious single-cylinder supermotard seen as a prototype, which immediately led us to suspect that it was a Ducati. Some details, in particular the mudguards 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 USA 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 659 cc, four-valve, liquid-cooled single-cylinder engine appeared. The imagination immediately led us to think of a possible Ducati debut in the world of enduro, although the motard route, so to speak, seems much more suitable for the brand at the moment. However, entry into enduro and motocross is a topic that comes up again when talking about Ducati. It’s not the first time that there have been rumors of a 450 single-cylinder capable of competing in MX, of a true “cross” in short. On the contrary, a few years ago people were pointing to 2024 as Ducati’s possible year, and recently the hints have increased.
In this case, however, we’re dealing with a clearly road-oriented configuration. As we’ve said from the start, we’re most likely dealing with a little sister of the Hypermotard that we wouldn’t be surprised to see among the Premiére at EICMA right now. The cubic capacity of 659, however, is our theory, we don’t know for sure. 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 output of at least 70 hp, if not 80, which would make it quite possibly the most powerful single-cylinder engine on the market, replacing the KTM 690. And it is precisely to the Austrian and Swedish single-cylinders that this Bolognese superbike would go. Compared to these, it could also have a double overhead camshaft and perhaps, who knows, desmodromic distribution. These are clearly just guesses. The only certainty at the moment is that we’ll soon be dealing with a fascinating new bike to enjoy.