Ducati officially presented its 2015 World Superbike team, introducing riders Chaz Davies and Davide Giugliano and the livery for their 1199 Panigale R racebikes.
The new livery still features the signature Ducati Corse red as well as a healthy amount of black representing the team’s new title sponsor, Italian web hosting company Aruba.it.
Davies and Giugliano will ride the 1199 version of the Panigale and not the company’s new 1299 Panigale, as it’s engine capacity exceeds WSBK’s 1199cc maximum displacement for Twins. Still, development continued on the 2015 superbike to improve performance while meeting WSBK’s rules.
“The 2015 Panigale R Superbike is an evolved version of the one we raced in 2014,” says Ernesto Marinelli, Ducati’s superbike project director. “We have come into line with the new technical regulations and, as well as the normal suspension, brakes and chassis upgrades, the three areas where we have made the biggest changes are the new electronics, the engine and the new exhaust system, which has come from the collaboration with AkrapoviÄ.”
The new regulations place new restrictions on modifications, particularly with electronics and engine tuning. Despite these restrictions, Marinelli says the 2015 machine maintains the maximum power output of the less-restrictive superbike used in the 2014 season.
“The electronics package has been totally revised, also because a €8000 price-cap has been introduced by the regulations. Many components have been changed, in particular the sensors, including the IMU (Inertial Measurement Unit) platform, which is now in common with production bikes, as well as the new Magneti Marelli MLE, which costs less than a third of the one used last year,” says Marinelli. “Despite the significant difference in price, we have however been able to maintain virtually the same management strategies and update them with new settings. The engine is not as highly tuned as before and is closer to the production engine of the new Panigale R, using the same pistons, but in any case we have succeeded in maintaining the same maximum power output as the 2014 bike.”
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