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Cycle World completes a first ride review of the superbly balanced 2022 Ducati Multistrada V4 Pikes Peak. Is it the sportiest sport-tourer Ducati has ever created?
Few races are more daunting than the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, a ruthless combination of 156 corners through treacherous terrain and unpredictable conditions, demanding respect and leaving zero room for error. To succeed here, men and machines are put in a crucible requiring them to be exceptional in all areas and lacking in none.
Ducati has built a legacy at the Pikes Peak, with seven victories under legendary racers Greg Tracy and the late Carlin Dunne before motorcycles were barred from competition following Dunne’s tragedy in 2019. Even Cycle World’s own Don Canet and Mark Cernicky had their share of success aboard Bologna-based machinery at the Race to the Clouds. If there’s one manufacturer that knows what it takes to conquer the Mountain, Ducati is it.
So it comes as no surprise that Ducati now brings us the all-new 2022 Multistrada V4 Pikes Peak, which it claims to be the sportiest iteration of the Multistrada platform it has ever produced. The motorcycle pays homage to the Mountain with a unique paint scheme inspired by the Desmosedici GP21 MotoGP project.
Ducati’s new Pikes Peak is the offspring of the Multistrada V4 adventure-touring machine that contested our recent big-bore ADV shootout, Ducati’s best-selling model in 2021. That means this bike encompasses everything that has made the latest Multistrada so popular: a flexible, rider-friendly V-4 powerplant; a rock-solid chassis; and the most premium rider amenities offered by Ducati. All of this blends with aesthetic and functional changes inspired by Ducati’s deep racing heritage.
As with the Ducati Multistrada on which it’s based, the Pikes Peak is powered by the 1,158cc Granturismo 90-degree V-4 engine. In this application the engine’s been recalibrated, with a dedicated Race mode using a softer redline strategy, a new quickshifter algorithm allowing for more aggressive downshifts, and even more direct throttle response. The fundamental components of the powerplant remain identical to the Multistrada V4, which produced a ripping 143.8 hp at 10,600 rpm and 77.8 pound-feet of torque at 7,400 rpm the last time we ran it on the in-house Cycle World dyno. The most impressive aspect of this motor is its linear power delivery, which sustains all the way up to peak output, and its flat torque curve, which shows at least 70 pound-feet of torque available from 4,500 rpm until its redline of 11,500 rpm.
Which is what makes the Multistrada so remarkable in motion. Ducati has done wonders in balancing its characteristics, finding good middle ground between high performance and everyday rideability. Opening the throttle brings gentle yet crisp initial power delivery as the bike settles the chassis and accelerates. The Granturismo is happy to lug at low revs, as low as 2,500 rpm, short-shifting through its well-spaced six-speed gearbox. It’s also completely satisfied with having its throttle yanked in aggression, which results in a power surge that will remind riders of its superbike roots. Through all of this, there are deeply emotional V-4 sounds from the titanium Akrapovič muffler that’s found as standard equipment on the Pikes Peak model.
It’s fair that Ducati anticipates the Pikes Peak will be piloted on the aggressive, howling end of the scale, as this motorcycle is chock-full of racing DNA. Its potentially wicked power is tailored and managed via a full suite of electronic rider aids including selectable settings of Ducati Traction Control (DTC), Ducati Wheelie Control (DWC), and power modes. To simplify the rider-aid suite, there are four selectable riding modes, each with preset parameters: Urban, Touring, Sport, and the aforementioned Race mode, featured here for the first time on a Multi.
The Pikes Peak’s power delivery is so docile that I preferred the Medium power mode and deactivated the rider-aid intervention all together; I found this provided the most visceral riding experience and the most direct connection to the rear tire, and was acceptable in most riding conditions. That’s not to say the traction and wheelie control systems are not superb for heavy-fisted hammering; dialing to level 3 of DTC and disabling DWC resulted in blistering corner exit speed with solid control and manageable wheelies, similar to the bike’s Panigale and Streetfighter siblings.
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