There are motorcycles built to go fast, and then there are motorcycles built to make you feel something. The Ducati Formula 73 sits firmly, defiantly, in the second camp, and Ducati knows it. Unveiled on February 12, 2026, as part of the brand’s centenary celebrations, the Formula 73 is a love letter to one of the most consequential machines ever to roll out of Borgo Panigale, the 750 Super Sport Desmo, wrapped in modern engineering and limited to just 873 numbered units worldwide.
The story starts in 1972, at the 200 Miglia di Imola, Europe’s answer to the Daytona 200 and the first major competition for production-derived motorcycles. Paul Smart and Bruno Spaggiari crossed the finish line in a 1-2 sweep aboard the 750 Imola Desmo, a moment so electrically important to Ducati’s identity that the brand built a street-legal replica for the public the very next year. That replica became the 750 Super Sport Desmo, the first road bike Ducati ever equipped with its now-legendary desmodromic valve timing system. The Formula 73 name connects all the dots: the FIM Formula 750 series began that same year, 1973. History, compressed into two words on a steering plate.
Designer: Ducati
Fast forward to 2026, and Ducati’s design team dug deep into the company’s historical archives to resurrect the look with surgical accuracy. The result is a silver and aqua green livery that mirrors the original 750 SS almost note for note, right down to the vertical gold stripe running down the fuel tank. That stripe, easily the most poetic detail on the whole bike, references the unpainted strip on the original Imola racer that allowed the team to check fuel levels at a glance without adding any instruments or weight. On the Formula 73, it becomes a design flourish that ties the bike to its racing lineage without saying a single word.
The silhouette is pure café racer: clip-on handlebars with bar-end mirrors, a short and sharp front fairing, tapered tail section, single seat, and a steel trellis frame painted green to echo the original Desmo’s frame. Spoked 17-inch wheels reinforce the period-appropriate aesthetic, swapping out the standard Scrambler’s cast units in favor of something with far more visual character.
Under all that gorgeous bodywork beats an 803cc Desmodue engine, an air-cooled L-twin with two-valve desmodromic distribution that happens to produce exactly 73 horsepower at 8,250 rpm. That number is deliberate, almost theatrical, and completely perfect. Torque comes in at 48.1 lb-ft at 7,000 rpm, and while those figures won’t rattle any Panigale V4 cages, that’s entirely beside the point. The engine’s voice, amplified through a custom Termignoni silencer developed specifically for this model, is the real headline. Raw, characterful, and loud in the best possible way.
The Formula 73 rides on the Scrambler platform, which turns out to be a genuinely smart choice. That means KYB suspension front and rear (a 41mm inverted fork up front, preload-adjustable shock out back), Brembo four-piston radial-mount brakes, and a wet weight of 403 pounds. It handles like a Scrambler, which is to say it handles accessibly, predictably, and with enough personality to keep city riding engaging and canyon roads entertaining. Pirelli Diablo Rosso IV tires add a layer of grip that the original 750 SS could only have dreamed about.
Ride-by-wire throttle, cornering ABS powered by an inertial measurement unit, Ducati Traction Control, a bidirectional quickshifter, two ride modes, and a 4.3-inch TFT display with Ducati Multimedia System and navigation are all standard equipment. Rizoma billet aluminum components including brake and clutch levers with integrated oil reservoirs, footpegs, and a fuel cap add premium texture to every surface your hands and eyes land on.
Each of the 873 units comes serialized on the steering plate, accompanied by a certificate of authenticity and a collection of period images and sketches from the Ducati Style Centre, all presented in a special collector’s box. Ducati has also produced a short film called “A Piece of Timeless” featuring Italian actor Stefano Accorsi, a committed Ducati enthusiast, exploring the emotional experience of riding the bike for the first time. It’s the kind of cinematic treatment usually reserved for something you’d hang in a gallery.
Pricing starts at $19,995 in the US, and £15,095 in the UK. European dealerships get first crack at the 873 units this spring, with global distribution completing before the end of summer 2026. For a machine built on half a century of mythology, with the kind of detail obsession that makes collectors and riders equally weak in the knees, $20,000 feels less like a price tag and more like a conversation starter.
