Ducati Desmo450 MX Makes Its Debut
Cycle News Staff | March 19, 2024
The all-new Ducati motocross motorcycle, the Desmo450, made its racing debut over the March 16-17 weekend at round one of the Italian National Championship in Mantova.
In its first race, the Ducati Desmo450 MX won a moto in the hands of Italian Alessandro Lupino. The race took place in the opening round of the Italian MX Championship.
The brand’s test rider and eight-time Italian National Champion, Alessandro Lupino, raced the bike in its first public outing at the Mantova International Circuit. Lupino set the fastest lap times in both free practice and qualifying on Saturday, before leading every lap of the first race on Sunday. A poor start in race two saw the Italian charge back to seventh place, earning the Italian second overall behind Isak Gifting’s 6-1 moto scores.
“It has been two very exciting days; my debut with the Ducati has truly been a dream,” Lupino said. “They told me it would be, but today I lived it! Feeling like a Ducatista is a special feeling. Congratulations to all the guys who have worked on this project because, in a very short time, they have created a spectacular motorcycle with a lot of potential, doing an incredible job. Together, we have written a page in history: the first pole and first moto victory for the Ducati Desmo450 MX. Unfortunately, the second race didn’t go as I would have liked. I made a bad start and couldn’t recover. But that’s okay. Now the engineers have the data to analyze two completely different situations!”
Lupino and the Ducati team celebrate a very successful first outing.
“This weekend in Mantova we have written another chapter in the history of Ducati,” said Claudio Domenicali, CEO of Ducati Motor Holding. “Alessandro Lupino and our team gave us great fun, and despite it being the first motocross race in our recent history, we immediately demonstrated outstanding performance. The best time in free practice, pole position, and victory in the first race are truly a debut that lives up to expectations. We have collected a lot of information that will be essential to develop better the bike that will be available to all fans this year. coming. Congratulations to Alessandro and our entire off-road team, a fantastic start to a new story of sport and passion.” CN
