Alessandro Valia is the man who develops the Ducati. From the Panigale V4 to the Hypermotard, including the latest StreetFighter and the Superleggera, the entire development of these motorcycles has been validated in his hands. But what is the job of development pilot?
Developing motorcycles, especially Ducatis, is a very high stakes game. And in fact, the job of Lead Development Rider has become one of the most sought after in the motorcycle industry.
The Ducati man in this position is Alessandro Valia. A former WorldSBK rider who still occasionally competes in the Italian Championship, Alessandro is considered one of the best development riders in the world, working closely with all departments of Ducati Motor Holding to create their products.
This very reserved character at first glance is an experienced and very likeable pilot. And calm is needed to master the impressive power of the machines he has in his hands, prototypes which are not completely finished and can suffer damage while the tests he carries out subject these motorcycles to strong constraints.
His career and his track record could make people envious. He emphasizes CycleNews, during an interview he gave them: “I rode in World Superbike in 2002. I was Italian Superstock champion in 2002, then I started with the development of the factory bike, Ducati 999, in 2003.”
“It was the same position that Michele Pirro has now. We worked on developing the engine, chassis and the whole package of the bike that won the world championship with Neil Hodgson in 2003."
The Ducati 999 became very well known, even though it was so different from the 916 and 998 of the time. “It was a big development for Ducati in terms of engine. It was more agile compared to the 998, but stable at the same time. So, I think it was a really good bike, really fast. »
Alessandro Valia's first development project was none other than the 16 Desmosedici D2006RR
But after developing motorcycles for competition, Alessandro moved on to production motorcycles. “In 2007 I switched to production motorcycles and started immediately with a masterpiece: the Ducati Desmosedici RR. It was my first love in the production of Ducati Motor Holding. It was truly a superb motorcycle, very exotic. » He adds that “during my first week in this new position, I understood the strength of the Ducati brand, because when I tested it on a normal road, everyone was there, everyone was excited when they saw this motorcycle. It was amazing to ride this motorcycle on a normal road. »
Indeed, in the history of Ducati, it is the first production motorcycle so close to a MotoGP, and the first V4 of the brand to be released in small series. And Alessandro is not without anecdotes about him: “It was really MotoGP. I remember the first day at Ducati Motor Holding when the project engineer of this bike asked me to test it in order to form an opinion on a normal road. »
Competition allows Alessandro to keep his pilot reflexes. Here, during the 2018 Italian Superbike Championship
When he showed me the bike, I said, “This bike? Are you sure ? » There was no license plate, no mirrors, nothing. It really was a MotoGP prototype. I said, "How can I go on normal roads with this motorcycle?" » He replied, "Put the plate in the back and go out and test it." » “I did so. Moreover, the police were very happy to see this motorcycle. It was incredible. »
And that's how a MotoGP rolled onto the road, with just a license plate. “It might have been funny when the police stopped me. They asked me for my papers and those of the bike, but they immediately understood that it was a competition prototype, and not a bike intended for the series. They even asked me to do a wheelie. I said, “No, you’re crazy. I would never do a wheelie in front of you. "They just wanted to make a video for their friends, so I did the show. It's crazy how much sympathy the Ducatis attract. »
But this motorcycle, despite its inimitable style, was only produced in very small series (1500 copies and not one more). Alessandro also worked on the 1090 range: “At the same time, I also worked on this motorcycle. It was a great bike. We also won a lot of races with her. It was a complete change of direction in terms of styling, coming from the 999. This is something I remember in one of the first meetings with Claudio Domenicali (CEO of Ducati), he said we wanted to go back to the basic with this bike, because it reminds it a lot of the 916.”
In discussion with Carlo Ricci Maccarini, WSBK development engineer at the Bologna factory
“It was really interesting to start working with the bike which had, for example, a big disc at the front. It was in fact the first motorcycle that had 330 mm discs and a powerful engine with lots of torque. Really, truly, an Italian motorcycle. »
The V4 at Ducati, a revolution
“We started the development of the Desmosedici Stradale in 2015. We start with the new Panigale V4, and again it was another big step in the development because it was the first time that we put into production a motorcycle equipped with 'a V4 with this kind of power (not counting the Desmosedici D16RR). »
“It was a change in philosophy, that’s for sure. We wanted to add something high performance, which would allow us to win the World Superbike Championship. Last year we were very close to winning the Superbike championship, but as you know, it was not possible. »
An extract from the Panigale V4 presentation video. Alessandro handles it wonderfully
“But we would like to have something that can also be used on normal roads. This four-cylinder, the Desmosedici Stradale, is, I think, a magical engine because it's smooth and torquey over a low to mid rev range, and the power comes when you go to the highest part of the rev gauge . »
“It was really a change in our philosophy that we also put into the Streetfighter. This engine has the same timing as our MotoGP [Editor’s note: big bang] to have the torque available at medium revs but also the power at high revs and the smoothness of the four-cylinder. »
Chassis, engine, driving position, it is he who validates the development
The Panigale V4 was Ducati's first production motorcycle equipped with a V4. This new engine also made Ducati want to revive a myth, the StreetFighter. Alessandro went into detail about this project: “As with all projects, we start from the project sheet where we set the milestones for the vehicle. Then we work in parallel, so we start to define and sketch the aesthetics of the bike. Next, we look at its ergonomics and also the geometry. This is the first phase, where we do something like a patchwork on the vehicle and put different components from different projects, for example, the saddle of the Monster and the handlebars of the Multistrada or something else. »
“Then we start working on the position of the handlebars, saddle and footrests, the rider's triangle. Next, we confirm the position of the engine in the chassis. For example, for the Panigale and also the Streetfighter, we rotated the engine 42 degrees rearward in order to have more room for the front of the engine to get closer to the front wheel. Then we fix all the geometry, so the wheelbase, the chain, the offset of the bike, and we give character to the handling. »
Alessandro won the Chinese Superbike Championship in 2018 using a Panigale V4S very close to the production model. What better way to promote the brand in the Land of the Rising Sun?
One of the big problems encountered when developing a new motorcycle is to find the best compromise for a very wide range of riders: from the smallest to the tallest, from the thinnest to the heaviest...
“I start working on the bike trying to understand the market positioning and its mission. Then when I find something I like, we have a panel of test riders who have different backgrounds, different sizes. We do this test, this standard test, and there we understand whether my proposal is going well or whether something needs to be changed to make everyone happy. »
“It's not easy to satisfy all the drivers, but we're certainly trying to move towards having the best possible ergonomics. For example, our Panigale V4 is, I think, the most comfortable Hypersportive on the market because we placed the footrests not so close to the saddle. Its very important. Additionally, the handlebar position gives the upper body a natural position, so you don't have to move forward too much to avoid neck pain and so on. »
Alessandro then focused on the track and road development of future Ducatis, which accumulate thousands of kilometers of tests before arriving at dealerships.
“Usually I work on development on circuits. So for every project we start at a large testing ground that we have in the south of Italy which is called Nardo Technical Center (also the technical headquarters of Porsche, Audi and Bentley) where there is a large 12 kilometer ring). It's really incredible, and confidential, very secure from the general public. There we can test the reliability of the motorcycle, the components, but also, we do a high-speed test from an aerodynamic and comfort point of view for the rider. »
The multiple tracks of the Nardo Technical Center where the Ducatis of tomorrow are developed
“Then inside this ring there is a track that looks like Mugello. It is seven kilometers long. And many other facilities, such as a track for suspension testing. They have a noise test track and also an off road test track. »
“We can start motorcycle development there and then move on to other types of roads. I have to check the behavior of the motorcycles also on normal roads. Its very important. Then we also have another type of test which is that of reliability which we start in Nardo, where we ride for 1000 kilometers, both on the ring where we go full throttle in sixth gear and then on the track . We do half a week on the track and half a week on the speed ring in order to have data more quickly. Then, we carry out runs according to the projects, but we drive from 50 kilometers to 000 kilometers, in the case of the Multistrada, for example. »
“These 100 kilometers are carried out on the road, and not on a test bench, to be as close as possible to how a customer will use it. We ride day and night. Not all night, but we ride most of the day and part of the night as well. »
He is also present during all press presentations of new models
Adaptation skills put to the test
Being a development rider also means knowing how to go from a Superleggera to a Scrambler, and knowing how to give the right directions to the Ducati teams. From off-road to elbows on the ground at high speed, you have to know how to do it all. “Certainly the approach is different, because the core business of Superbike has to be speed on the track, and this allows different riders who have different riding skills to achieve their maximum performance. Performance is at the heart of sports motorcycling. »
“When we talk about the Multistrada, we are changing our focus to be more focused on rider comfort, passenger comfort, aerodynamic protection, confidence and rider friendliness. »
“It's a completely different approach, but we want to keep Ducati's racing DNA, so with the Multistrada you will find a comfortable motorcycle that you can also use for a long trip, but when you turn the handle you feel the racing heart of the Ducati. »
The Multistrada was one of the first motorcycles to pave the way for the use of electronic suspension, a feature that has evolved significantly over the past 10 years. “ We were the pioneers of this technology. We immediately understood that it was really good for the driver and for the vehicle. We started working on the software that works with this suspension, and we've been developing new features all these years to have a real-time suspension setup on the vehicle. »
“The Multistrada is, I think, the example of this work where the system reacts immediately when you come to a hole on a normal road or when you perform maneuvers like braking, accelerating, wheeling or putting into gear. 'corner. Thus, we modify the damping in real time, and on the shock absorber, we work on the spring preload in order to change the load mode. »
“There are different technologies behind this system. For example, for the Multistrada, we have semi-active suspensions where we work in real time on the tuning, and they change the damping very, very quickly, going from maximum damping to minimum in a matter of milliseconds. »
Alessandro is very close to Ducati Corse and MotoGP riders
“On the Panigale, we have the suspension which reacts with a different philosophy. It only works on the different events which are, for example, braking, acceleration, then the middle of the turn.
“We work in these three different situations and we adjust the damping in order to have the best configuration. For both technologies we use the Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU), the sensor that gives us information about what the motorcycle is doing. If it accelerates, leans, wheelies. »
Technology from MotoGP
And the IMU used on production motorcycles is a big advantage. Alessandro adds: “ It was a big leap into the future because with this little magic box of such small dimensions, we understood everything about the bike. So we know exactly the lean angle, and this also introduced a great possibility for ABS in curves thanks to this sensor. »
“For traction control, we know exactly the acceleration and wheelie. You know that on the wheeling, we work in two different ways because our wheeling control is really precise, and it works both on the angle of it but also on the inclination rate. It's really precise but thanks to this sensor we were able to develop a strategy that works really well. »
“We share different technologies with MotoGP and Superbike. The IMU we use on the Panigale V4 is the same one we use on World Superbike. The same goes for control strategies. The traction control that we have on the Panigale V4, the Panigale V2, and also on the new Streetfighter, is the traction control that comes directly from the MotoGP Desmosedici GP18 prototype. »
“It's really a good thing because we are working with Ducati Corse to have a continuous exchange of technology. Our motorcycles are therefore truly equipped with the latest up-to-date technologies in this sector. There is a great exchange of information. This is really important for the development of production motorcycles. »
Alessandro Valia on the exclusive Superleggera V4 in Portimao, Portugal
For the pleasure of the eyes, and those who are not familiar with the driving qualities of Alessandro Valia, here are some videos with the Panigale V2 and V4.
