Ducati Streetfighter V2, Track Test

Ducati has yet again mopped the floor up with the competition to claim our ‘Performance Bike of the Year’ award this year – its third on the trot since 2020. Two years ago, it was the Panigale V2 that bagged the honour, and last year, it was the Streetfighter V4 S. This year’s winner is the Streetfighter V2, which is, interestingly, an amalgamation of the aforementioned winners. Best of both worlds, then, in the proper sense of the phrase!

Technically, the SF V2 gets all the goodies from the Panigale V2, except for the swanky bodywork. It also gets a one-piece handlebar instead of the racy clip-on bars. The styling, meanwhile, is a carbon copy of the Streetfighter V4 – it’s got a stripped-down racer look, along with that Joker-grin face, and the overall bodywork is reminiscent of a steroid-infused bodybuilder. On the move, though, the SF V2 isn’t as mental or lethal as its V4 sibling, owing to its 955cc Superquadro 90-degree V-twin motor, which develops less power and torque at 151bhp and 101Nm, respectively, as compared to the V4’s 205bhp and 128Nm. That said, ‘less’ here is a relative term because even with 150 odd horses, the SF V2 packs more grunt than an average Joe’s mind can comprehend. In typical Ducati twin fashion, the engine is brutal. There is a heady hit of torque low down, which starts to hammer down heavily once the motor revs past 4,000rpm. Until about 8,000rpm, you are kind of holding on to your dear life because the acceleration is just relentless. Rev it close to five figures and now it becomes a matter of life and death! There’s just SO. MUCH. PERFORMANCE.

'There’s a heady hit of torque low down, which starts to hammer down heavily once the motor revs past 4,000rpm'

The suspension is fully-adjustable on both ends – Showa BPF at the front and Sachs at the back. And it gets all the modern Ducati electronics – traction control, wheelie control, quick-shifter, cornering ABS, three riding maps, and what have you. With a near-faultless base setup and electronics, which work brilliantly in the background, the SF V2 goes apex-bashing with the precision of a surgeon’s scalpel. It’s way more manageable and less intimidating than the V4, for sure, but, at the same time, it’s not tame. And that’s again down to the engine’s power delivery, which, as mentioned above, comes gushing in at different intervals within the rev band. It doesn’t reward mediocrity. If you want to master it, you better bring your A-game. It’s still a wild child, but, then, that’s a requisite, otherwise, how would it be a Ducati?

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