Before entering its new 1103 cm3 4-cylinder in the Superbike World Championship in 2019, Ducati decided to complete a season with this machine in the Italian National Trophy, a satellite event of the CIV, the National Championship, driven by Ivan Goi ( 37 years old) and Luca Conforti (42 years old).
It is Marco Barnabò's Barni Racing team which will enter these two almost official machines, with the help of Termignoni whose racing manager is now Ernesto Marinelli, ex-boss of the Ducati racing department in WSBK until the end of Last year. Termignoni seems determined to give Akrapovic a run for his money and we can measure his motivation by the complexity of moving the exhaust from under the swingarm (road) to under the saddle (racing).
The spare parts manager of the Barni Racing team will be very busy, with the Panigale V2 of Xavi Fores in the Superbike World Championship, those of Michele Pirro and young Samuele Cavalieri in CIV Superbike (and for the two Italian rounds of the European Superstock Championship), plus the two Panigale V4S ofIvan Goi et Luca Conforti in the National Trophy, since their cylinder capacity of 1 cm103 prohibits them from racing in the Italian CIV Superbike Championship.
For the team boss, Marco Barnabo, « This season, our team will make a big effort: continue the development of the Panigale R to confirm itself at high levels in the Superbike World Championship and develop the Panigale V4 for 2019. The Panigale V4 will be a discovery for everyone, and it is a great chance to be able to count on two experienced drivers such as Goi and Conforti. »
According to Ivan Goi, “It’s nice to be back in the Barni Racing team after a year away and it’s great to be part of this new adventure. There are a lot of similarities with my first experience with this team: in 2012 we started developing the Panigale R. Now we are facing the new era of 4-cylinders together, that's why I am really motivated and determined to make better this season.”
To Luca Conforti, who are " Even if the years pass, the desire to ride and pilot such an avant-garde vehicle is stimulating. The aim is to immediately put the V4 ahead in the standings and help the team with development, perhaps already with an eye on 2019 for the opportunity to race in the CIV Superbike. »
For fun, a short video on the standard V4:
Photos © tmcblog.com, todocircuito.com
