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Ducati has nine new models to show us at EICMA, one of which is surely a feet-forward cruiser design that’s based off the Ducati Diavel. The teaser campaign for this new model has been going on for quite some time now, but we have been ignoring it since there was absolutely no substance to what Ducati was showing…until now.

Finally giving us a glimpse of what the hell the Italian brand has been saying with its “This is…” tagline, Ducati isn’t exactly showing the full monty, but it’s enough for us to recognize the belt-driven cruiser model that we’ve seen in spy photos.

We are not sure how such a model is going to be received by hardcore Ducatisti, but clearly Ducati is looking to expand its reach of new customers, and is looking to take a little bit of Harley-Davidson and Victory’s action.

Time will tell if it pays off – expect to see this new Ducati unveiled in one week’s time at the EICMA show in Milan.

Italian magazine Motociclismo has what it says are the first spy shots of the rumored Ducati Scrambler 400, the small-displacement sibling to the current Ducati Scrambler.

While normally it is easy to distinguish a new motorcycle model when it’s on the street, the photos from Motociclismo offer us little insight into how the Scrambler 400 is different from its 803cc kin. Checkout the photos on Motociclismo.it, and you will see what we mean.

This would suggest that we can expect to see a very familiar looking motorcycle make its debut at EICMA in two weeks’ time, with the most noticeable different being the Scrambler 400’s lack of upside-down forks.

It took us a little longer than anticipated to get Episode 6 of the Two Enthusiasts Podcast out the door, but we think it is worth the wait. To humble-brag, Quentin and I have a good conversation about the rumored Ducati Scrambler 400, and talk about how Bologna could finally enter the small-displacement motorcycle market (again).

We also cover the very intesting Yamaha PED2 & PES2 electric motorcycle concepts that debuted at the Tokyo Motor Show, and then segue into a conversation about the real demise of Mission Motors.

Of course, we can’t avoid talking about the happenings in the MotoGP Championship, though listeners should note that the show was recorded after the Malaysian press conference, but before the race. So we had no knowledge of the “Sepang Clash” at the time of this show.

Naturally talking about MotoGP leads us into finishing the show on the topic of professional wrestling. RIP Warrior.

As always, you can listen to the show via the embedded SoundCloud player, after the jump, or you can find the show on iTunes (please leave a review) or this RSS feed. Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter as well. Cheers!

Ducati has nine new models to showoff at the EICMA show later next month in Milan. We know one of them is the Monster 1200 R, and it seems very likely that we will see two more Ducati Scrambler models as well.

CARB filing documents point to a Ducati 959 Panigale, as well as a Ducati Hypermotard 939, which we expect to be mild updates to the current models, with obviously larger engine displacements.

All of this leaves another four models for us, though rumor suggests we could see some more variants of the Ducati Multistrada 1200 line come to market.

One of those variants is expected to be an off-road focused model, which will align better against the BMW R1200GS; while the other variant is thought to be a long-distance touring model, which will align better against the KTM 1290 Super Adventure.

One model were are unlikely to see is a revised sport-tourer, since the current Multistrada 1200 fills this niche quite well, but that doesn’t mean Ducatisti cannot dream of another ST model.

We have been hearing rumors of a smaller displacement Ducati Scrambler since the 803cc machine dropped on us last year. The rumors have varied in detail, with some quoting a v-twin engine, and others saying Ducati might finally bring back a single-cylinder engine to its lineup.

The displacement figure has also varied, with sizes quoted between 300cc and 600cc. In fact, only two things have been constant in the rumors we have heard: that Ducati is working on a smaller Scrambler, and that it would be cheaper than the current $8,500 Scrambler Icon, thus creating a better entry point into the Italian brand.

All of that has been too vague to publish, but there seems to be some clarity now on the new model, with a Ducati Scrambler 400 widely expected to debut in a month’s time in Milan.

A teething issue for a new model, Ducati North America is recalling a total of 869 units of its Multistrada 1200 & Multistrada 1200 S motorcycles for the 2015 and 2016 model years.

The bikes in question were built between December 1, 2014 and June 11, 2015, and have a kickstand that may break because of an incorrect length on the kickstand support tube.

Since a motorcycle falling over is a safety hazard, Ducati North America has filed a recall with the NHTSA, which will begin on November 16, 2015.

Has Valentino Rossi finally mastered qualifying? The Italian has struggled since the format changed, from the extended hour of qualifying which started out as free practice and ended up as an all-out time attack, to the frenetic fifteen-minute dash for pole.

His biggest problem, he always explained, was getting up to speed from the start: leaving pit lane and going flat out from the very first meters. He had spent a lifetime slowly sidling up to a blistering lap, rather than getting the hammer down as soon as the lights changed.

The switch from an analog to a binary format had been hard to swallow. Millions of older fans sympathized, as they faced the same struggle in their own lives.

Lorenzo, on the other hand, has thrived in the new format, having learned the skill while doing battle with Casey Stoner. The Australian’s greatest legacy was his ability to go as fast as possible the moment he left the pit lane.

I was once told by Cristian Gabarrini, Stoner’s crew chief, that when they looked at his sector times, they would see that he had set his fastest sector times on his out lap. To beat Stoner, Lorenzo had to learn to emulate him.

It’s only Friday, but already, one championship has been decided. Tito Rabat’s mission to outscore Johann Zarco was tough enough before he crashed at Almeria and broke his wrist, but trying to handle the immense braking stresses of the Japanese circuit with a freshly plated radius proved too much to ask.

Rabat’s attempt was brave, but ultimately doomed to failure. After riding in FP1, Rabat realized that it wasn’t so much the pain, but rather a lack of strength in the arm needed to control the bike safely. Forced to withdraw, Rabat’s title defense came to an end, and Johann Zarco became the 2015 Moto2 World Champion.

It was a rather bewildered Zarco who faced the press later on Friday. His mind was still focused on Sunday’s race, rather than on becoming champion. He could barely comprehend that he had already won the title.

Mentally, he had prepared to celebrate on Sunday, after the race, so the title had come unexpectedly early. It did not put him off his stride, however. Zarco was twelve thousandths slower than Tom Luthi in FP1, and nineteen thousandths faster than Alex Rins in FP2. He remains the man to beat in Moto2, exactly as he has been all year.

Motegi was the stage for a parade of the walking wounded on Thursday. The first question to half of the riders in the press conference was, “How’s the injury?”

The answers mattered quite a lot, given that Jorge Lorenzo is engaged in a battle to the wire with Valentino Rossi for the 2015 MotoGP crown, Marc Márquez has proved to be capable of being the joker in the podium pack, and Andrea Iannone is the dark horse always looking to disrupt proceedings at the front.

If any of those three are severely hampered by their injuries, it could have a major impact on the outcome of the championship.

There is, of course, one minor problem with asking riders how their injuries are, and how much trouble they are causing: you never know just how close to the truth the answer they gave you actually is.

This is not necessarily because they are trying to deceive you, but as Valentino Rossi himself pointed out, often, a rider does not know just how much trouble an injury will cause until they actually get on a bike and ride. “For me, I think it’s impossible to know,” he replied, when asked if he thought Lorenzo might be hampered by his injury at Motegi.

There is a management change coming for Ducati, as Jason Chinnock is about to be named the new CEO of Ducati North America.

This means that Chinnock will be replacing Dominique Cheraki, who will move into a new role with Ducati in Bologna, as Ducati’s new Dealer Network Development Director.

If the name Jason Chinnock sounds familiar to Ducatisti, it should, as he has previously worked at Ducati North America in sales, marketing, network positions, all at the director level.

And so the most crucial part of the season begins. Although you could justifiably make the argument that every race is equally important, the three flyaways to the Pacific Rim often punch well above their weight in terms of determining the outcome of the championships.

If riders haven’t all but wrapped up the title before heading East for the triple header at Motegi, Phillip Island, and Sepang, then events can throw a real spanner in the works of a title fight.

These are three grueling weeks of racing under any circumstances; throw in the pressure of a championship battle and mistakes are easily made.

The first challenge the riders face is the sheer amount of travel it takes to get from one race to the next. First, they must spend at least 18 hours on planes and at airports traveling from Europe to Tokyo.

They face a further two-hour drive to get to Motegi, and unless they are well-paid enough to be staying at the circuit hotel, will have a 50-minute commute into the circuit every day ahead of the race.

On Sunday night or Monday morning, they return to Tokyo for another 10-hour flight (or longer, if they can’t fly direct) to Melbourne, and a drive down to Phillip Island. A week later, another flight to Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia, this time an 8-hour flight.

After the Sepang round, they finally get to head home, another 17+ hour return flight back to Europe, and a week to rest up ahead of the final round of the season at Valencia. They travel from a wet and humid Motegi, to the chill of Phillip Island’s early spring, to the sweltering tropical heat of Sepang.