TWO TRIBES

Given that they were both fully-faired sports machines from relatively small European manufacturers, the Ducati 916 and Triumph Daytona Super III could hardly have been more different. By the time the 916 reached showrooms in spring 1994, it had already drawn delirious crowds on its unveiling at the Milan show the previous autumn, and reduced cynical journalists (this one included) to drooling fans on its riding launch at Misano.

The Ducati’s most important features were its stunning looks and redesigned chassis, which combined a new frame with a single-sided swing-arm and under-seat silencers. The 916 also came with the glamour earned by a fearsome track record, its 851 and 888 predecessors having already won three of the last four World Superbike titles in the hands of Raymond Roche and Doug Polen.

By contrast the Super III was introduced with relatively little fanfare by a youthful Triumph firm that had begun producing bikes only three years earlier. John Bloor had no budget for a fancy press launch, let alone a race team, so instead of flying to sunny Italy I borrowed the Hinckley factory’s demo bike for a test in chilly January. And although the Super III featured some new cycle parts, this bike was mostly about its hotted-up three-cylinder engine.

Two cylinders or three?

Ducati’s modern format had been set in place in 1989 by the 851, with its fuel-injected, liquid-cooled V-twin engine. Massimo Bordi’s powerplant shared its 90-degree cylinder angle with previous aircooled units but had opened up a whole new era of performance