TEST: Ducati Hypermotard 698 Mono

Bruce Wilson gives Ducati’s Hypermotard a jolly good workout. Here’s what you need to know…

Ducati surprised us all with the big reveal of its first mass-production single motor – which has been squeezed into the latest generation of its bonkers, but brilliant, Hypermotard.

Four years ago, someone at the factory reckoned they could create a powerful and playful motor by severing a cylinder from its now-defunct Panigale 1299 powerplant. The principle proved sound, and before it knew it, Ducati found itself in unknown territory, sporting a production-based single-cylinder in its range for the first time ever. And not just any single-cylinder, but one with magnesium casings, an over-square racing piston, and an aluminium cylinder sleeve designed and built for the second-generation Superleggera.

It’s one thing having a tasty motor, but the next challenge was coming up with a chassis to do it justice. The solution was found in the shape of a tubular steel, trellis option, using the engine as a stressed member. It also defied convention for typical supermoto-type machines by giving the Hyper a more relaxed, less MX-style fork angle; though it does get some typical long travel suspension at both the front and rear.

There’s a raft of electronics, too. Four rider modes, four levels of ABS, four levels of wheelie control, adjustable engine braking, and even launch control are some of the main talking points; but it was Ducati’s new slide-by-brake system that really captured my imagination. Supposedly making it impossible to highside into a bend, the tech links the front brake, rear brake, six-axis IMU and a few other systems to allow the user to get the rear wheel wagging.

The characterful engine didn’t take long to win me over, delivering a good punch out of bends and a ludicrous number of revs, too, meaning gears could be held for much longer than anticipated.

The bike felt nice and light and easy to pitch around, but let me be honest… we were all riding so slowly due to the minging conditions that the first three sessions taught us little more than survival techniques. I was half expecting to have worn solid through my boots by lunchtime, but luckily there was a little left on the sole, so I was able to play on the now almost dry track that afternoon.

To spice things up, Ducati exchanged our base bikes for the fancier RVE machines, which cost about £900 more and come kitted with a different paint job, plus an up-and-down shifter. And, they’d also been fitted with a full Termignoni race system (one-in-to-two… costing £2000) that not only boosted power by about 10bhp, but also saved roughly 6kg from the weight of the Hyper. Last but not least, to keep us on our sliders, the rubber was changed to Pirelli slicks, meaning we’d have no excuse for lean angles as we got stuck into the afternoon’s trio of sessions.

It didn’t take long for the genius of the Ducati to start shining. The thing that hit me first was how agile this bike was, being able to throw it on its side so effortlessly, and with the reassurance of a front end that felt heaven-sent. You only had to think where you wanted the Hyper to head and in an instant it was on the right path.

For a bike with more than 200mm of travel at either end, it was mad to think how stable the bike was, with my only gripe being the occasional bit of pumping from the rear shock when firing out of a bend at full lean.

I did get the chance to mess about with the electronics though, and gave my best go at making use of the slide-by-brake system. I never usually touch the rear brakes on road bikes, so the process of braking into a corner hard with the front anchor while stomping on the rear and somehow searching out an apex proved a little challenging. I could see that the system worked, especially having been given a masterclass in its functionality by Ducati’s head of product communications, Giullio Fabbri, but I just couldn’t get it right. I realised I could be a whole lot faster, more accurate, and content by riding it like a sportsbike, braking purely with the impressive, single-sided Brembo front caliper and making my desired line every time. Some people are blessed with the talents for supermoto, but I’m not one of them.

No matter though. Perched on its massive seat, gripping its wide bars, I had a permanent grin on my cheesy face as I twisted the fun-tube and indulged in the joys of the single-cylinder. At circa 70bhp (with the system fitted), the Hyper was hardly arm-wrenchingly fast, but around that track it made perfect sense and was more than quick enough. What’s more, the character of the engine was so enticing. Down low, it gave a real punch at the initial pick-up and never failed to deliver a crossed-up wheelie with a pop of the clutch.

I’d been worried the Ducati would’ve been too focused or gimmicky, but that simply wasn’t the case. And while the jury is still out as far as road riding goes, I daresay that you’d stomach its lack of comfort for the joys it brings.

WORDS: Bruce Wilson PHOTOS: Ducati/Alexphoto