2026-on Ducati Hypermotard V2 SP review

Ducati Hypermotard V2 expert review

4 out of 5 (4/5)

It may be a surprise to learn that Ducati’s V-twin street supermoto, the Hypermotard, is 20 years old (hence the hashtag ’20’ on the SP’s side panels). The original air-cooled Hypermotard 90bhp 1100 became a sensation when it was drifted into a corner by superbike star Rueben Xaus giving a thumbs up.

It then starred in the film Knight and Day with Tom Cruise before evolving into the liquid-cooled 2013 Hypermotard 821 with 110bhp. It grew again in 2016 to become the Hypermotard 939, and was followed by the 2019 Hypermotard 950 with 112bhp. With each model came an up-specced SP sibling to accompany it.

Those bikes were all characterised by a hooligan attitude combined with Ducati’s then-signature Desmo V-twin, tubular steel trellis and single-sided swingarm. The result, in varying degrees, being a mischievously entertaining ‘skids and wheelies’ style ride and an increasingly extreme (and tall) SP version that excelled and… made little practical sense at all.

But for its 20^th anniversary, that’s all changed – well, nearly…

Like this story? You can get more MCN in your life by clicking here and asking Google to make us a preferred source.

Is the Ducati Hypermotard V2 right for you?

Reasons to buy:
+ Lightest and most powerful Hypermotard to date, weighing in at 177kg with 120bhp
+ High-end and exotic components
+ Exciting, characterful engine

Reasons to avoid:
– High price, significantly more expensive than previous iterations
– Impractical for everyday use
– Niche appeal, losing real-world value for most riders

The new V2 follows Ducati’s latest V-twin family (as kicked off with 2025’s Panigale V2S and Streetfighter V2S, then was followed earlier this year with a new Monster, with the DesertX imminent) in using the all-new, lighter, more compact ‘non-Desmo’ 120bhp 90-degree V-twin.

The steel trellis frame and single-sided swingarm has also now been ditched in favour of the new family’s aluminium monocoque double-sided swingarm combination. Although both are modified specifically for the Hypermotard – the swingarm, for example, is slightly longer. 

It also gets the latest switchgear, an enlarged 5in colour TFT dash and an impressive full ‘suite’ of electronic riding aids, including four riding modes, four ABS settings, traction control, wheelie and engine braking control, a quickshifter and even an optional Ducati Power Launch and pit lane Limiter.

That’s just the standard Hypermotard V2; if you go the whole hog with the SP (as we tested at Modena near Bologna), you also get fully adjustable Öhlins 48mm forks (in place of 47mm Kayabas), 1.4kg lighter forged wheels, fiercer Brembo M50 callipers (not Stylemas), a Sachs steering damper, a lighter lithium battery, a carbon mudguard stay and fancy paint, all for £3800 over the £13,495 stock, plain red Hypermotard V2.

Ducati Project manager Giacomo Davoli said the aim had been to make the new bike ‘more hyper than ever’, specifically to make it lighter, more powerful and compact and thus easier to ride. After five 20-minute track sessions around Modena, I can’t argue.

The stock V2 weighs just 180kg, 13kg less than its predecessor, the Hypermotard 950, with 4.6kg being slashed from the chassis alone. Taking it up a notch further, the SP is just 177kg, 14kg less than the 950 SP, and both the new bikes now put out 120bhp (up from 112bhp) so those are the first two boxes ticked.

Both the standard and SP models now have an 880mm seat height – 10mm lower than the previous SP but 10mm higher than the previous standard bike. That means the SP we rode is noticeably more manageable, but prospective buyers of the standard bike should bear the change in mind.

The new SP also, unsurprisingly, impressed and proved a hoot to ride on track – but then it would, wouldn’t it? Modena’s a tight, mid-level circuit with shades of a kart track’s character to it and all but one corner taken in second gear. Perfect, in other words, for supermoto-style shenanigans, and the racers among us revelled in it. The SP’s nimble, lightweight nature was welcome; its Öhlins suspension was impeccably classy, and its meaty M50 brakes were barely troubled.

But for me it was the new V2 engine that shone out, as it had before on the Streetfighter V2, for its broad drive, character and hunger for revs. The new dash and electronics also dazzle with potential, while the whole package seduces you with refinement and class.

Nor does it end there. That new motor also now only requires valve checks every 45,000km (or 28,000 miles), while, despite the loss of the single swingarm and trellis frame, the V2’s looks, thanks to the retained, signature ‘beak’, tubular subframe and underseat pipes, are still unmistakably ‘Hypermotard’.

Is it better? The SP, in every measurable way, is. The real question is, is it worth it? Well, the Öhlins, M50 calipers, forged wheels, lithium battery and fancy paint, for £3800 extra, seem justifiable. If your version of justification is the world launch of the new SP, on an ideal Italian racetrack paired with co-riders to dice with, tyre warmers and limitless refreshments, it is one hundred percent worth it.

But I also can’t help feeling that, at £17,295, when the old 950 SP was £15,995, and when bought for a British, real-world environment, the SP is now even more an extravagant, near-pointless toy and a niche of a niche for an exclusive few. But the world would be a far duller place if it didn’t exist.

Feast your eyes

New-generation engine

Latest ‘non-Desmo’ V-twin (as in the Panigale V2S and Streetfighter V2, Monster and now DesertX) is more compact and lighter, with 120.4bhp @ 10,750rpm and 69lbft @ 8250rpm, the most powerful Hypermotard yet.

Monocoque upgrades

Now with an aluminium monocoque frame and double-sided swingarm, which is a bespoke lengthened arm for the Hypermotard over the other Ducatis. Combined with a tubular steel subframe and, at 177kg, which all adds up to a 14kg weight saving over the older, outgoing SP.

Special Parts

The upspecced SP version gets fully adjustable Ohlins, Brembo M50 calipers, forged wheels, a steering damper, a lithium battery, a carbon mudguard stay and fancy paint all for £3800 extra over the £13,495 stock bike.

MCN Verdict

It’s hard to fault the Hypermotard V2 SP. It’s lighter, more powerful and more accessible, as intended. It also has an improved spec and ridiculously long service intervals. However, as is the same with any SP, it is simply hard to justify purchasing one. Few motorcycles are so solely fun-focussed, single-minded and… impractical.

We didn’t try the standard version, but I know exactly what it’s like: it’s a V-twin street supermoto with 120bhp to hoon, wheelie and slide until the cows come home, and little else.

The SP is the same – but more so. If that’s what you want, maybe you live in Monaco or Switzerland, ride exclusively on alpine passes or kart tracks, and want another toy in your ‘stable’; if that is true, you won’t be disappointed. But for the rest of us, who occasionally tour, commute or take pillions, you’d be much better served by a similarly powered Streetfighter or Monster instead.