The Ducati 888 was a

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle steered by a handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long-distance travel, commuting, cruising ...

manufactured by

Ducati Ducati Motor Holding S.p.A. () is the motorcycle-manufacturing division of Italian company Ducati, headquartered in Bologna, Italy. The company is directly owned by Italian automotive manufacturer Lamborghini, whose German parent company is Au ...

as an upgrade to the

Ducati 851 The Ducati 851 is a 90° V-twin fully faired sport bike with liquid cooling and four valve heads. It was produced by Ducati between 1987 and 1992, when it was succeeded by the Ducati 888. Development The Ducati 851 was the successor to the air- ...

. The earlier 851 had introduced liquid cooling, computerized fuel injection and four-valve heads to the company's two cylinder motors. In 1991 Ducati increased the capacity of the 851 to 888 cc to create the 888. Both engines featured the Desmoquattro valvetrain concept in which a four valve per cylinder motor was given

desmodromic valve :''In general mechanical terms, the word ''desmodromic'' is used to refer to mechanisms that have different controls for their actuation in different directions.'' A desmodromic valve is a reciprocating engine poppet valve that is positively clos ...

actuation, with cams both opening and closing the valves. Ducati's desmodromic system reduces the frictional penalty from conventional valve springs. Production figures known for the various models are: 1991 models: 1200 × 851 Stradas, 534 × SP3 & 16 × SPS. A total of 1850 units. 1992 models: 1402 × 851 Stradas, 500 × SP4 & 101 × SPS. A total of 2003 units. 1993 models: 1280 × 888 Stradas, 500 × SP5 & 290 × SPO - for the American market. A total of 2070 units. 1994 models: 1571 × 888 Stradas & 100 SPO for the American market. A total of 1671 units. Over all years there was a grand total of 7594 units produced. Riding the Ducati 888, Doug Polen won first place in the 1991 and 1992 World Superbike Championships. After losing to Kawasaki in the 1993 World Superbike Championship, Ducati ceased production of the Ducati 888 and released the Ducati 916 which had a larger engine capacity. Continuing refinement yielded the next two generations of the Ducati Desmoquattro

superbike A sport bike (sports motorcycle, or sports bike) is a motorcycle designed and optimized for speed, acceleration, braking, and cornering on asphalt concrete race tracks and roads. They are mainly designed for performance at the expense of comfor ...

, resulting in the

916 __NOTOC__ Year 916 ( CMXVI) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Sicilian Berbers in Agrigento revolt and depose the independent Emir Ahmed ibn Kh ...

/996 and

999 999 or triple nine most often refers to: * 999 (emergency telephone number), a telephone number for the emergency services in several countries * 999 (number), an integer * AD 999, a year * 999 BC, a year Books * ''999'' (anthology) or ''999: ...

lines. In a 1993 road test of the 888SPO, ''

Cycle World ''Cycle World'' is a motorcycling magazine in the United States. It was founded in 1962 by Joe Parkhurst, who was inducted to the Motorcycle Hall of Fame as "the person responsible for bringing a new era of objective journalism" to the US. ''Cyc ...

'' measured a time of 11.25 seconds at , and a acceleration of 3.3 seconds. They measured a top speed of and a braking distance of of . The wet weight of their test bike was and the rear-wheel horsepower was at 8,740 rpm, and torque was at 7,000 rpm. Ducati said the 1992 racing version of the 888, the SBK had a dry weight of and at 12,000 rpm, and was capable of a top speed of more than .

Racing history

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...

Doug Polen Doug Polen (born September 2, 1960) is an American former professional motorcycle road racer. Polen was a dominant national and world champion road racer in the late 1980s and early 1990s, culminating with his Superbike world championships in ...

- Ducati 888SBK *

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...

Doug Polen - Ducati 888SBK

Notes

External links

Ducati 888 SBK91
at Ducati.com Heritage.
Ducati 888 SBK92
at Ducati.com Heritage.

888 888 or triple eight may refer to: * 888 (number), an integer * 888 BC, a year of the 9th century BC * AD 888, a year of the Julian calendar * 888casino, an online casino * 888chan, an image board * 888 Holdings, an online gambling company, trading ...

Sport bikes Motorcycles introduced in 1991 Motorcycles introduced in 1992 {{Motorcycle-racing-stub