Two Years Later, Ducati Goes Back In

The current Panigale V4 rolled out at World Ducati Week 2024. Two years on, Ducati has gone back over it, and the number it leads with isn’t horsepower. It’s a stopwatch: Ducati says the 2027 bike averaged 0.4 seconds a lap quicker than the outgoing model in its own testing at Vallelunga. The Panigale V4 and V4 S for 2027 were announced on October 15, 2026. I haven’t ridden either one, so you won’t get a riding impression from me here. What you get is what’s in Ducati’s press release with the adjectives taken out and, at the end, the numbers next to three rival superbikes. Every figure for the Ducati below is Ducati’s claim.

More Revs, Longer Gearing

The engine is still the 1,103cc Desmosedici Stradale V4. For 2027 Ducati revised the exhaust, fitted a new high-flow air intake and recalibrated the lubrication circuit to cut friction losses. The claimed result: 218 hp at 13,500 rpm, which is 2 hp more than before, and 88.9 lb-ft at 11,000 rpm. That’s for the Euro5+ homologated bike. Ducati says most of the gain sits between 12,000 and 14,000 rpm, with 3.5 hp extra at 13,000 rpm, and that the bigger intake adds another 1.3 hp at 186 mph.

The rev limiter now sits at 15,000 rpm in second through fifth gear. That’s 500 rpm higher. The final drive goes from 16/41 to 17/42, so the gearing gets longer. Ducati’s reasoning is simple: you hold a gear longer and shift less. At Vallelunga, it says, that’s two fewer shifts per lap.

For track use there’s a new Akrapovič Full Racing Exhaust PRO. Ducati claims it adds 11 hp and 5.2 lb-ft and takes 14.6 lbs off the bike.

A Softer Front Frame

Here’s the chassis change Ducati puts first: the Front Frame is 12% less stiff sideways. The point, according to Ducati, is to keep the front tire working against the asphalt at big lean angles. It says that brings more front grip, a more precise turn-in and an easier time tightening your line toward the apex.

The longer gearing touches the chassis too. Ducati says it effectively shortens the wheelbase by 0.3 in (8 mm) and credits that with quicker direction changes. The V4 S also gets new adjustable clip-ons that can go up by 0.4 in (10 mm), a move Ducati links to what MotoGP bikes have been doing in recent years. That adjustment is for track use only. The base V4 keeps fixed clip-ons.

Two New Ways to Slow Down

Ducati calls Dynamic Engine Brake the key new feature. It replaces the old Engine Brake Control and uses the DVO (Ducati Vehicle Observer) algorithm to set engine braking from the actual load on the rear tire. Ducati says that makes corner entry more predictable and keeps the bike steadier when you’re on the brakes and already leaned over.

Next to it sits Race Brake Control, which Ducati says comes from its higher-end models. It puts more of the deceleration through the rear wheel. Together, Ducati says, the two let you brake later and carry more speed into the corner.

The rest of the list: a 6-axis IMU, Race eCBS with cornering function, DTC DVO traction control, DSC slide control, DWC DVO wheelie control, DPL DVO launch control and the DQS 2.0 quickshifter. Riding modes are Race A, Race B, Sport, Road and Wet. The dash is a new 6.9-inch full-TFT in an 8:3 format, and the bike comes prepared for the Ducati Data Logger and Ducati Multimedia System.

V4 or V4 S

Engine, frame, electronics and brakes are shared. Both run Brembo Hypure monobloc calipers, Pirelli Diablo Supercorsa V4 tires with a 200/60 rear, a 4.5-gallon aluminum tank and new biplane wings with bigger side endplates. Both leave the factory as single-seaters; the passenger kit is an accessory. Ducati lists full LED lighting with the turn signals in the headlight, but says that isn’t available in every market.

The V4 S runs Ducati Electronic Suspension 3.0: an Öhlins NPX-30 fork, an Öhlins TTX 36 shock and an Öhlins steering damper, all controlled by Öhlins Smart EC 3.0. It gets forged aluminum wheels and a lithium battery, and Ducati lists it at 412 lbs curb weight without fuel.

The base V4 swaps that for a fully adjustable Showa Big Piston Fork, a fully adjustable Sachs shock, a Sachs steering damper, fixed clip-ons, five-spoke light-alloy wheels and a lead-acid battery. Ducati’s figure: 421 lbs without fuel. It comes in one color, Ducati Red with an Urban Grey frame and black wheels.

The V4 S is also the first Panigale in the Ducati Factory Made program. You configure the bike and the factory builds it that way at Borgo Panigale: 11 colors, five of them from Lamborghini’s Ad Personam program, plus Corse and Performance liveries, and homologated parts like the Front Brake PRO and PRO+ packages, an STM dry clutch and adjustable footpegs. The release doesn’t say whether Factory Made is offered in North America.

March for Europe, April for North America

Ducati’s release puts no price on either version, the V4 or the V4 S. The timing is set, though: Ducati says the bike reaches European dealers in March 2027 and North American dealers from April 2027, with other countries following in the months after.

The Panigale V4 Next to Three Rivals

No ranking here, just the technical gaps. The Ducati figures are Ducati’s claims; the others come from the NastyNils database.

Start with the BMW S 1000 RR, which our database lists as the Panigale’s closest competitor. It’s a 999cc inline-four with 204 hp at 13,500 rpm and 83.3 lb-ft at 11,000 rpm. That’s 14 hp and 5.6 lb-ft below Ducati’s claim, with both peaks at the same rpm as the Ducati. Out back it runs a 190/55-17 against the Ducati’s 200/60.

The Honda CBR1000RR-R Fireblade is another 999.9cc inline-four. It makes 215 hp at 14,500 rpm, 3 hp less than the Ducati with the peak 1,000 rpm higher, and 83.3 lb-ft at 12,500 rpm, 5.6 lb-ft less and 1,500 rpm higher. Its rear tire is a 200/55-17.

The 2025 Aprilia RSV4 1100 is the closest current V4 in our database: 1,099cc, 217 hp at 13,000 rpm, so 1 hp less with the peak 500 rpm lower. It’s the one with more torque: 93.7 lb-ft at 10,800 rpm, 4.8 lb-ft above the Ducati and 200 rpm earlier. It also runs a 200/55-17 rear.

Weight is where the numbers don’t line up. Our database carries the three rivals at 434, 443 and 445 lbs wet. Ducati’s 421 and 412 lbs are without fuel. Those aren’t the same measurement, so I won’t turn them into a gap.