Here is the First Photo of the Ducati Superleggera V4

What has four-cylinders, two sets of wings, and 234hp on tap? This bike, right here. Just leaking onto the internet a few hours ago (thanks for the tip, Dana!), here is what appears to be the first photo of the Ducati Superleggera V4.

The image seems to come from a leak at a private viewing event, which we can tell you is not the way to win the affections of Ducati CEO Claudio Domenicali, but with bikes arriving in May and production starting in April, a pre-production machine was surely going to end up on the internet before the Ducati Superleggera V4’s official debut.

If leaked information is to believed, this latest superbike from Ducati will make 234hp once the Akrapovic exhaust and ECU update have been installed, likely using a near-stock version of the Desmosedici Stradale R engine in all of its 998cc wonder.

While the engine seems to be pretty close to the current Panigale V4 R, the rest of this “super light” superbike is definitely not standard, as it will likely tip the scales 40 lbs lighter (382 lbs wet, by our math) than the already potent homologation special.

This weight reduction can be thanked from copious amounts of carbon fiber, titanium, and other exotic materials. For instance, the wheels and bodywork are certainly made from carbon fiber, and there is talk of carbon fiber swingarm as well.

As we can see from the photo, the suspension comes from Öhlins and the brakes from Brembo. The carbon fiber wheels and swinger are BST units, and there is an STM dry slipper clutch on the other side of the machine.

The big visual cue that this is the Superleggera V4 is the dual sets of winglets, which take inspiration from the Desmosedici GP16 (the outgoing MotoGP bike when this “Project 1708” was first conceived). Leaked information says that the winglets generate 110 lbs of downforce at 167 mph.

With only 500 units to be made worldwide, the Ducati Superleggera V4 was always going to be limited affair…but with its rumored $100,000 price tag, we imagine owning this bike will be quite the statement.