Ducati Monster

The Ducati Monster is among the most legendary names in the world of motorcycles. You see, the Monster ensured that the iconic Italian brand didn’t go bust, and in its almost three-decade journey, it has become the highest-selling Ducati bike in the world. Such has been the importance of the Monster that it has received only four updates in its lifetime, with the latest one being the most radical.

With the 2021 Ducati Monster, the Italian brand has focused on three key aspects: new styling, more power, and less weight. We got to ride the 2021 Monster at the BIC race track, and here’s what we liked and what we didn’t like about the new motorcycle. 

Being a Ducati offering, the 2021 Monster has been loaded to the brim with electronic goodies. You get three riding modes, eight levels of traction control, wheelie control (three levels), launch control, and cornering ABS with levels of intervention. The multiple-level intervention of the electronic aids helps the rider tune it based on their riding skill, making the new Monster more versatile and accessible to a larger audience. The intervention of the traction control, in my opinion, could have been more seamless, as on a few occasions, I felt it was cutting power a bit too early. 

As I mentioned before, the Monster does have a wild side, and the wheelie control system came to my aid in keeping the bike grounded and stable while exiting hard out of corners. A bi-directional quickshifter comes standard on the 2021 Monster, and while it’s not the most sophisticated unit out there, it does its duty well and is a boon while hooning around the race track. Coming to the crisp 4.3-inch TFT screen, Ducati has kept their UI quite simple, and you can toggle through the various modes and settings easily using the switch cubes on the left handlebar.

The Monster series of bikes have a 4. 3 inch TFT console providing a wide array of information and in a typical Ducati style, the bikes come loaded with features such as Ducati Power Launch (launch control) and a quickshifter. The bikes have an-LED lighting setup, with dynamic turn indicators. There is also a USB-charging socket on offer. The Monster SP comes with an optional pillion seat cover, along with hardware components such as steering damper and a flyscreen. The Monster SP boasts a road-legal black-coloured Termignoni exhaust, and it even comes featuring MotoGP-inspired livery, adding to its overall sporty appeal. Noteable electronic nannies on the SP variant include an eight-level traction control, four levels of wheelie control, and a three-level cornering ABS.

The 2021 Monster also receives a larger heart. It’s now powered by a 937cc, liquid-cooled L-twin motor rated at 111.5PS (2PS more) and 93Nm, which is an increment of 7Nm over its predecessor. The bump in output and the weight reduction result in thrilling performance. The throttle response is sharp, and because the bulk of the torque is available at low and mid-range revs, the motor is also very tractable. 

The linear power delivery is friendly, but if you go hard on the throttle, the front does get light easily, thus reminding you that the ‘monster element’ is still very much intact on this new bike. Despite the BS6 norms, Ducati has managed to maintain the throaty and rumbly exhaust note, however, at idle and low revs, the motor doesn’t sound very pleasing. It comes with 3 riding modes, with the ones on Monster SP getting re-calibrated to take advantage of its tweaked chassis.

For a Ducatist, the switch from a trellis frame to a monocoque frame might equate to blasphemy, but that should change once s/he rides the new Monster. The new frame is not only lighter but blesses the bike with lovable handling dynamics. On the Monster 821, one had to muscle the front end, while the 2021 Monster just tips into corners naturally. The massive weight loss also makes the new Ducati Monster easier to steer, and direction changes on chicanes are just effortless. 

Also, the new frame is more communicative and forgiving, which novice and intermediate skill riders will appreciate. Another aspect that aided in its handling performance is the Pirelli Diablo Rosso III rubber that not only offered good grip, but didn’t fade much even after back-to-back sessions on the track. 

The Ducati Monster is built on an aluminum-alloy frame, suspended by a 43mm front USD fork and preload-adjustable linked monoshock at the rear. The Monster SP, however, gets a new chassis, with a lightened rear sub-frame. When compared to the standard Ducati Monster, the SP edition gets gold-coloured, 43mm inverted front-fork, along with rear monoshock unit, both being made by Öhlins, providing full adjustability. Braking is handled by 320mm twin-discs up front, with Brembo M4. 32 radial callipers and 245mm rear-disc with floating Brembo callipers in the standard model whereas the SP variant gets superior braking prowess thanks to the Brembo Stylema callipers up front. The motorcycles roll on 17 inch alloy wheels, which are wrapped in 120-section front and 180-section rear tubeless tyres. While the Monster comes with Pirelli Diablo Rosso III tyres, the flagship Monster SP comes with the latest Diablo Rosso IV tyres.

The Ducati Monster series of motorcycles rival the likes of motorcycles like the Triumph Street Triple RS and the Kawasaki Z900.