In mid-January, I reported that Volkswagen Group Africa was taking over as the importer of Ducati motorcycles into South Africa, effective from 2025. The benefits of multiple dealerships backed by a group with huge financial muscle are obvious. The question on the minds of South African Ducatisti is whether a ‘car brand’ can do justice to a brand infused with Italian passion, currently riding the crest of a world motorcycling wave. Any doubts that I personally had were emphatically put to bed when I was privileged enough to attend World Ducati Week (WDW) from the 26th to the 28th of July, at the iconic Misano World Circuit Marco Simonchelli near Cattolica on the northern Adriatic coastline of Italy.
I got to know Gherardo Morico, Ducati Motor Holdings representative for South Africa, whilst on a Ducati Mystery Tour which traversed the Western Cape. Our route took us through Meiringspoort near the little Karoo town of De Rust. It was early morning, and the road was still very quiet. Jos Matthysen, Gherardo and I got to strafe the sinuous road through the Poort at serious pace. Pulling into a rest spot at the end of the Poort and flushed with adrenaline, it was high fives all round. It came as no surprise that Gherardo can seriously pedal a Ducati.
I was thus super excited to get an invite from Gherardo at Ducati and VW Group Africa, to attend World Ducati Week in Italy. I gathered at OR Tambo with three other journos and two representatives from VW Group Africa. Thomas Milz, Director of Sales and Marketing, and Andile Dlamini, Head of Group Communications at Volkswagen Group Africa, hosted us on the trip. We were due to fly to Frankfurt, get a connecting flight to Bologna and then shuttle to Misano, check into our hotel and attend a welcome dinner at the Misano circuit. Well, some ‘Climate activists’, God bless them, had other plans. They glued themselves to the runway in Frankfort, forcing us to divert to Dusseldorf for a two-and-a-half-hour sojourn before, at last, flying back to Frankfurt. This hiccup saw the emergence of our very own ‘Fixer’.
Thomas, realising that connecting flights were a shambles, and unlikely to happen, rented cars and with Andile hanging in his slipstream for dear life, drove us to Munich 400 k’s away, where we caught a flight to a balmy Bologna in the north of Italy. Whilst we lost our first day at WDW, we gained a stunning drive through Germany with numerous quaint villages and a blast on the Autobahn. I travelled in the car with Thomas and during the drive got some valuable insights into Volkswagen Group Africa’s plans regarding their new Ducati venture. It was 1:30 AM by the time we arrived at our hotel, courtesy of some selfish “gomgatte”. What these protesters don’t seem to realise is that it is not the affluent West that is the problem, but rather the poverty-stricken workers in the East, who find survival more pressing than climate change issues.
Listening to Thomas, who has worked all over the world for the VW Group, it was very apparent that Ducati is poised for something special in SA. Whilst Thomas does not currently own a bike, he has in the past before being sent all over the globe by VW. He totally gets the passion and potential for Ducati in South Africa. The plan is for three initial dealers. World of Motorcycles in Gauteng, the current bespoke dealership, a dealer already identified in Cape Town, and a third in Durban. A National Sales Manager for Ducati will be recruited from within the motorcycle industry. The overall operation will be led from the Volkswagen Group Africa’s Sandton office, overseen by Thomas. To quote a bit of Star Wars, “the Force is strong with this one”. I called Thomas ‘the Fixer’ after watching him operate. This is a man who gets things done and doesn’t, in a just cause, take no for an answer. He plans to leverage all the vast VW Africa Group experience, expertise, structures and resources to support the Ducati effort. Ducati’s future in South Africa is burning brighter than ever. In my opinion, they have the right man at the helm, no question!
We were bubbling over with excitement and anticipation at breakfast. Earlier, at 1:30 AM, traversing a still-warm Cattolica on the way to our hotel, the streets were still alive with Ducatisti frequenting pavement cafés. Bikes lined every street and Ducati Corse banners adorned most of the buildings. A palpable air of excitement was all-pervasive. We were raring to get to Misano and just soak it all in. We got to the circuit, sorted out our Press accreditation and went straight into a press conference featuring all the Ducati MotoGP, WSBK and Motocross team riders. Seeing Pecco Bagnaia and Enea Bastianini, Ducati’s MotoGP stars in the flesh was really special. I mugged poor Pecco when he came out of the toilet post-conference, and he kindly autographed my Ducati Arai, brought all the way just for that purpose.
Misano was awash with Ducati’s of every description. There was a sea of red motorcycles in every direction. The race transporters of all the Ducati riders in MotoGP, WSBK and British Superbikes were lined up in front of the pits. The Media room is located above the pits and thankfully air-conditioned as the temperature was hovering in the mid-30s. On the roof of the pits was a chill zone for Media and guests with refreshments. Brian Cheyne and I grabbed our cameras and went walkabout, just soaking it all in. There was a constant rumble of high-performance V-Twins and V-Fours, as more and more Bologna Bullets arrived for the spectacle unfolding before our eyes. The whole weekend proved to be a sensory overload for anyone who has a pulse and enjoys motorcycles.
Gherardo went out of his way to make our visit special. He arranged for the lead engineer on the new Panigale to brief us on the bike as, thanks to the climate terrorists, we had missed the official briefing. The bike is not a tweaked version of the previous model but rather a totally re-engineered motorcycle. The double-sided swingarm is the obvious feature but every area has received attention. The motor is more powerful and 1,4 kg lighter. The brakes are linked, engaging the back brake for stability under heavy braking. The electronics are upgraded to what is currently probably state-of-the-art. The seat is wider and longer to improve the ergonomics. A larger TFT display gives feedback on all the vital information required to get the most from the bike. It really is a total revamp.
Feedback from the professional riders is that it is amazingly MotoGP-like in the way it works. With slicks and race Akropovics fitted, the bike was lapping, in the hands of the superstars, an incredible 1,5 seconds off WSBK times at Misano, and only 5 seconds off MotoGP times. Mind-boggling! More than ever, it is the rider’s ability that is the limiting factor rather than the bike. This new Panigale is quite simply next level!
We had a tour of a facility paying tribute to the 916, still considered by many as the most beautiful sports motorcycle ever. It was brilliant to see the bikes that WSBK greats like Carl Fogarty, Troy Corser and Troy Bayliss dominated on. From there we met the engineer backing the Motorcross dirt bike project. The bikes look fantastic. Lupini is currently leading the Italian 450 Motocross class on one. Rather than just make crazy power, which Ducati is so capable of, they have focussed on competitive, usable power in a lightweight package. Suspension is Showa. By the middle of next year, we will see the beginning of a range of Ducati dirt bikes on dealers’ floors. It seems to be no-holds-barred with Ducati at the moment! We saw, but could not photograph or touch, some bikes customised by the factory to absolute works of two-wheeled art. Incredible! Needless to say not even selling a kidney would enable me to own such an eye-wateringly expensive beast!
Ducati merch was on sale (if you had the stomach for standing in a lengthy queue) and I am sure that they printed money! In addition, there were theme tents, like Travel and Adventure, Tech Village and so on, all paying homage to aspects of the Ducati brand. It was special just meandering around and ogling the bikes and their owners. Ducatisti come in all shapes and sizes. What impressed me was how many young riders are attracted to what is a premier brand. We need to get our act together and get a life! We live in a country with incredible weather and more than enough roads to really enjoy motorcycling. Bikes are affordable in that you can buy a real soul mover for less than the price of a boring little family car. Rather than being a two-car family, have a car and a bike. You will open a whole new world of pleasure for yourself. Don’t fall for the lie that it is so dangerous. I have ridden daily for over 50 years and have never had an altercation with a car. Do a riding course to acquire riding skills, and ride with good awareness and some restraint and much joy awaits. Italians embrace life in every way, and bikes, with Ducati in particular, are a huge part of that lifestyle.
An optional beach party was planned for the Friday evening. We were having dinner at an outdoor spot when a solid phalanx of Ducatis rolled past us on their way to the beach. The stream of bikes seemed endless. Riding four abreast, they thundered past for nigh on a full seven minutes. The official tally for attendees over the weekend was in the order of 94,000 Ducati fans. After dinner, Brian, Ian and I strolled down to the beachfront to watch the sunset, which in Italy at this time of year is around 8:30 PM. The sunset was spectacular, with the orange orb of the sun reddening the sky over the point where the ocean lapped gently onto the shoreline. There are no waves to speak of on this part of the Adriatic coastline. I was still feeling the effects of our first very long day of travel, so I took my leave, and went back to our hotel and into bed, so as to be bright-eyed and bushy-tailed on the morrow.
We thought that Friday was hectic at Misano until we experienced Saturday. We got stuck in a traffic jam of bikes entering the circuit. It was very entertaining watching enthusiasts of all shapes and sizes ride past on their Ducs. Interestingly, most Italians seem to be in good shape, with only the occasional rotund guy or girl. There were a fair number of ladies on their own bikes, and courtesy of the very warm weather, many were far from overdressed.
Italian ladies are certainly not hard on the eye! The circuit was absolutely jam-packed with bikes. The talk of the day was the Race of Champions, scheduled for the late afternoon. Ducati’s MotoGP, WSBK and British Superbike stars were going to go toe to toe on a ten-lap race around Misano. They would all be riding identical new Panigales with Akro pipes and slicks.
The teams representing the riders all had dedicated pits and from time to time their riders would put in an appearance to sign autographs. It was clear to me why Ducati contracted Marc Marques to their factory MotoGP team for 2025, despite Jorge Martin perhaps being more deserving of the factory ride based on performance. Marques and Bagnaia had by far the most supporters clamouring for their autographs. Fans literally stood for hours outside their race vans in the hope of a signature, or even just a glimpse, of their heroes. It was heart-warming to watch a young fan, sitting on his dad’s shoulders, shouting for Alex Marques’s attention. Alex motioned for the dad to pass the little mite to him, whereupon he plonked him down on his race bike. With the little fellow stretching to reach the handlebars, Alex took photos of him before returning the beaming boy to his dad. Alex comes across as a really nice guy.
Burly team members surround Bagnaia and Marques to stop exuberant fans from flattening them when they traverse any public space. Isn’t the world strange? You dream of their type of success, forgetting that you pay dearly for that fame in so many ways. The stars are, to a degree, owned by their fans. Alex and Marc went trackside to watch the stunt show, only to again be swamped by fans who had trackside access. They posed with fans taking selfies until they gave up spectating and returned to their pits and peace. It makes for a lonely existence amongst all the adulation.
The Race of Champions is a bit of a quandary for the participants. On the one hand, their egos are on display, and they are racers through and through. On the other hand, sensibility must prevail. The cost of suffering an injury in a race that actually counts for nothing in the big scheme of things should make it a bit of a procession, but that is not how these guys are wired. Iannone was on pole, with Bagnaia second, Nicolo Bulega third, and Marc Marques fourth.
Bagnaia assumed the lead off the line and held it to the end. Iannone slotted into second for the duration. The drama came unsurprisingly from Marc. Closing 1,4 seconds on third-placed Bulega on the last two laps saw him go for it on the brakes into the last corner, punting Bulega unceremoniously into the gravel, and sneaking onto the last podium position. It all made for quite a spectacle, with the real winner in my eyes being the superb new Panigale. We made our way, rather hot and bothered, back to our hotel for a welcome shower, before another extremely pleasant dinner at a typical Italian outdoor eatery. For us, World Ducati Week was over as we had to drive back to Bologna the next day for the first of our flights home. There was still a biggie to look forward to, however.
The Ducati factory on Borgo Panigale in Bologna is a facility steeped in the rich history of this magnificent Italian motorcycle. Fittingly, it houses the Ducati motorcycle museum. Ducati was founded on 4th July 1926 by Father Antonio and sons Adriano, Bruno and Marcello Ducati as Societa Scientifica Radiobrevetti Ducati, to produce radio components. Essentially bombed out of production during WWII, it was in 1950 that Ducati started building motorcycles. A 48 cc little chap with a 64 km/h top speed. From these humble beginnings grew the company that we know. Today Ducati is owned by Lamborghini, which in turn is owned by Audi. Follow up that family tree and you get to the Volkswagen Group. So perhaps in South Africa, Ducati has at last come home. Interestingly, all the vehicles produced by a manufacturer are measured for their carbon footprint in the strict EU environmental compliance regime. By pooling Ducati’s low emissions with the higher emissions of Lamborghinis, they lower the overall emissions to the extent that they pass without attracting hefty fines. That is a seriously clever business strategy. When you consider that the Volkswagen group owns Porsche, Bugatti and Bentley too, you start to understand what an absolutely massive motoring conglomerate it is.
Strolling through the Museum was such a pleasure. The museum was a little island of air-conditioned cool on a sweltering 42-degree Celsius Bologna day. The bikes on display plot the history of Ducati over the ages, to the dominant force which it is today. It also emphasises the role that their desmodromic valve system has played in the success of their past, as well as current engines. Bikes like Bruno Spaggiari’s Imola winning 750 Super Sport, Mike Hailwood’s Isle of Man winning Desmo and Pecco Bagnaia’s 2022 Championship-winning bike give you goosebumps. Seeing the clean lines of the Desmosedici to the intricate aero on the latest bikes is food for thought. The tech just marches on inexorably! The cockpit of a modern MotoGP bike is a hive of complexity. Launch control, ride height device actuators, thumb brake lever, mode buttons and more, it is mind-boggling.
And so, our amazing World Ducati Week experience drew to a close. I have given you an account, but I have no words to truly capture the excitement and raw passion that this iconic brand and its riders generate. We received red T-shirts emblazoned with the words – “We are the red family” – “All in One”…never a truer word was spoken! A huge shout out to Ducati and Volkswagen Group Africa, and in particular Gherardo, Thomas and Andile for making this a true trip of a lifetime. It is a memory that I will always truly treasure. I wish you the greatest success in your new South African Ducati venture. May it flourish and grow from strength to strength! As for you, dear reader, why not consider joining the Red Family? The next World Ducati Week is in 2026. Start saving now! Enjoy the photo gallery, it will convey the experience better than any words could ever do!
