DESERT Rose
THE NEW DESERTX IS CLEARLY INSPIRED BY THOSE OLD-SCHOOL DAKAR ICONS
Ducati’s DesertX is a welcome throwback to the early 1990s and the golden era of the infamous Paris-Dakar Rally, an event dominated by gargantuan twin-cylinder dune busters. These bikes were big, brutal, fast – and cool. And while Ducati never won the Dakar, its engines did in 1990 and 1994 with Cagiva, and the new DesertX is clearly inspired by those old-school Dakar icons.
The DesertX first appeared in concept form at EICMA 2019 as an air-cooled 1100, complete with side-mounted Scrambler-style shock. It looked awesome. The production bike today looks similarly dramatic and, thankfully, Ducati has stayed with the concept bike’s twin headlights. The powerplant is now the 937cc water-cooled 81kW (110hp) Testastretta V-twin, and the rear shock has moved to a more conventional position, but otherwise, it’s equally evocative and true to the original vision.
It is also a huge step for Ducati, which is stepping into a new class. It’s the first production bike to come from Bologna with a 21-inch/18-inchfront/rear wheel combination since the 1960s, and required an all-new chassis, suspension and electronics. Almost every part is unique to the DesertX, which is not something we’ve been able to say about many new Ducatis of
