End of an era for Ducati?

Sad news this weekend from iconic motorcycle brand Ducati as they announce that they are now pulling out of the the World Superbike Championship (WSB) next year. In a press release by Ducati on August 27th 2010 they stated that: 

“This decision is part of a specific strategy made by Ducati, the aim being to further increase technological content in production models that will arrive on the market in the coming years. In order to achieve this objective, the company’s technical resources, until now engaged with the management of the factory Superbike team, will instead be dedicated to the development of the new generation of hypersport bikes, in both their homologated and Superbike race versions,” declared  Gabriele Del Torchio, President and CEO of Ducati. “I would like to thank Nori and Michel, and all of the riders that have contributed to the great history of Ducati in Superbike, but above all the Ducati employees; it is their hard work and professionalism that has allowed us to achieve such important results. A big thank you also to all of the partners that have supported us, first and foremost Xerox of course. I would also like to acknowledge the Flammini brothers who have managed the championship for so long, and the FIM, the organization with which we have continuous, constructive relations.”

That leaves riders Noriyuki Haga and Michel Fabrizio without a ride for next year, and with their current poor performances this year and competition for rides high, it may spell the end of their WSB careers. Current MotoGP rider Colin Edwards was recently linked with a return to WSB but clearly that won't now happen. Recently retired WSB rider and Ducati racing legend Troy Bayliss announced earlier this year that he was coming out of retirement for next year to race for Ducati again but promptly changed his mind again. Maybe he knew what was about to happen...

Ducati will continue to work with the championship organisers, manufacturers and the FIM, to define a technical regulation aimed at containing costs and hope to guarantee the future of the championship in the medium-long term, maybe keeping their options open for a return should they find the rules suitable.

They blame current regulations as the reason for their exit, citing that the move towards "prototypes rather than for bikes derived from production machines" as non-viable leading to "an increase in costs, both for the manufacturers and the teams participating in the championship" and "does not correlate with the current worldwide economic situation, which has made the securing of sponsorship even more difficult".

Maybe Ducati are just another victim of the credit crunch.? Odd then that they continue to invest heavily in MotoGP (a prototype race series) and have just signed racing legend Valentino Rossi as a rider for next season.

Cynics would suggest that one has been sacrificed in order to fund the other. Ducati has been in WSB since the start in 1988, winning 16 Manufacturers’ world titles and 13 Riders’ world titles. The name Ducati is synonymous with racing and is a key factor in the public shelling out £10K-£20,000+ for their superbikes. One other suggestion is that the V-twin engine has reached the limit of development and may now be replaced by a four cylinder model (they run a V4 in MotoGP which also appeared in the road going Desmosedici). 

The V-twin engine is a key part of their brand and if Ducati were to abandon the engine in favour of a more traditional four-cylinder or V4 engine then they would lose the essence of their brand and USP of their product, It's the very soul of a Ducati and a key reason for people to buy one. The success of Superbike model sales including the 851, 888, 916, 999 and 1098 are all down to their success on the track. Without a WSB race bike, why would the public buy one? WSB is a shop window for a manufacturers products. Racing success makes the bikes very desirable to riders who want to look like and be associated with their racing heroes.

Maybe the future of Ducati's success rests on Valentino's shoulders and 1000cc V4s...