2023 Ducati MotoE Racer on Track

Ducati will officially enter the FIM MotoE series in 2023, but it’s already been seen testing an electric prototype racebike.

Starting in 2023, Ducati will replace Energica as the official supplier of the FIM MotoE championship that runs as a support class to the MotoGP series—and the firm’s future racer has already hit the track as it begins a year of testing and development in preparation for the challenge.

The decision to choose Ducati as the MotoE supplier seemed to be a bit out of left field when it was announced in October. The firm has previously been noncommittal about plans for electric bikes in its future, but the fact that a prototype racer is already lapping Misano less than eight weeks after the FIM’s announcement is clear proof the project has been underway behind the scenes for some time.

Carbon fiber dominates the V21L design, with a monocoque-style chassis likely housing the batteries. The motor will be liquid-cooled.

Ducati says the bike’s code name is “V21L” but hasn’t explained that choice. The “21″ presumably relates to the year of the project, but there’s no word yet on what the other elements of the title refer to. The company is being similarly tight-lipped about the machine’s specifications at this stage, but there are clues to the general architecture of the V21L in the testing photos that Ducati has released.

The bulk of the bike appears to be carbon fiber, with the material used for a central monocoque-style chassis that must house the batteries. The motor seems to be slung transversely below it, just ahead of and underneath the swingarm pivot point, driving through a single-speed reduction gearbox to the front sprocket on the left-hand side. It looks like Ducati has opted for liquid-cooling for the electronics and motor, with a small radiator mounted low down at the front of the belly.

Ducati’s focus on weight savings runs counter to previous electric designs, but comports with the firm’s stated goals of high performance with lightness.

The swingarm, with a rising-rate linkage attached to the low-mounted Öhlins rear shock, is also carbon, as is the self-supporting seat unit and the front bodywork. There appears to be a bolt-on cast or machined alloy section on the front of the battery box that forms the steering head, and aluminum is similarly used around the swingarm pivot—both will be easy to replace with different designs to tweak the bike’s geometry during the development period without requiring a redesign of the central carbon section.

The firm’s use of lightweight materials reflects a desire to buck the trend for electric bikes to be heavier than their gas-powered counterparts. The firm’s official press release tells us “the most important challenges in the development of an electric racing motorcycle remain related to the size, weight, and range of the batteries. Ducati’s main goal is to make electric motorcycles that are high-performance and characterized by their lightness available to all FIM Enel MotoE World Cup participants.”

Test riders have come away impressed with the prototype’s balance and similarity to MotoGP bikes.

Ducati’s long-standing development rider, Michele Pirro, has been first to taste the new bike on track and came away impressed. He said: “Testing the MotoE prototype on the circuit was a great thrill because it marks the beginning of an important chapter in Ducati history. The bike is light and already has a good balance. Furthermore, the throttle connection in the first opening phase and the ergonomics are very similar to those of a MotoGP bike. If it weren’t for the silence and for the fact that in this test, we decided to limit the power output to just 70 percent of performance, I could easily have imagined that I was riding my bike.”

Although the prototype has clearly been in development for some time, Ducati has already hinted that it won’t likely become a production model.

Roberto Canè, Ducati emobility director, adds: “We are experiencing a truly extraordinary moment. I find it hard to believe it is still not a dream! The first electric Ducati on the track is exceptional not only for its uniqueness but also for the type of undertaking: challenging both for its performance objectives and for its extremely short time scales. Precisely for this reason, the work of the whole team dedicated to the project has been incredible and today’s result repays us for the efforts made in recent months. We are certainly not finished yet; indeed, we know that the road ahead is still very long, but in the meantime, we have laid a first important brick.”

Although the V21L will be competing in 2023, we’re unlikely to see a production electric Ducati that soon. The firm has already been clear that it doesn’t believe that electric motorcycles, in their current state, meet its requirements in terms of performance, character, and weight. However, the V21L project gives a clear path to try to solve those problems, as well as giving Ducati vital experience in the electronics side, where it will be able to tap the vast knowledge of its parent, the Volkswagen Group. Since the firm has always used racing as the backbone of both its marketing and development, it’s clear the MotoE project is a crucial steppingstone toward Ducatis of the 2030s and beyond.

Until Ducati starts dominating the electric game in 2023, you may want something to hold you over until then - may we suggest Ducati's finest 2022 models?