The Ducati Panigale V4 R is many things—but generally speaking, one thing it isn’t is stealthy. Even without hearing it, it’s a design that absolutely needs to be noticed—from the tip of the nose to the last centimeter of the tail. That’s understandable—after all, the team from Bologna itself uses phrases like “pure racing adrenaline” and “designed to elicit a symphony of emotions” when describing this machine.
What you now see before you marks a significant change in approach, as captured by spy photographers at an undisclosed location, somewhere in Italy. It’s most definitely a Ducati Panigale V4, but there are several details that seem to point to it being an updated V4 R, in particular.
At first, all you see is a blacked-out Panigale V4. There’s matte black everywhere, from the front fender to the tail. The fork is even black, which almost looks strange because we’re so used to the gold that we just expect to see it, and are almost surprised when we don’t.
Gallery: Ducati Panigale V4 R Spy Photos
Silver letters ghost that 80s-style Ducati logo down the left side of the fairing. (Since we don’t see the right side at all in these photos, we can’t say for sure what’s on the other side.) The look is almost muted—and if it wasn’t for that Ducati logo, we might think it was simply for purposes of disguise. However, no OEM is going to slap their logo down the side of a bike if it’s trying to keep things quiet, right?
Then, if you look deeper, you start to notice other strong details. The wheels seem to have come directly from the Panigale V4 SP2. In some shots, you can also see a beautiful titanium Akrapovic exhaust tucked up neatly underneath this bike. The chain guard is also different—and you’ve probably also noticed the silver tank, which is one of the only non-blacked-out bits present on this bike, that we can see in the photos.
There’s a surprising lack of carbon fiber visible on this bike. However, if the objective is stealth and maybe even understated power, then this Panigale V4 variant—possibly an R—very likely fits the bill.
