PICS: CHIPPY WOOD
It never ceases to amaze me that these days we consider the V2 Streetfighter as a ‘middleweight’ naked bike. Ducati quote just over 150bhp and 75(ish) lb-ft of torque for it, which are big numbers. Indeed, they are the same sort of number that graced the original superbikebased Streetfighter 1098 back in 2009. It could be argued that with those sorts of numbers, the Streetfighter V2 doesn’t really belong in this test, but it certainly doesn’t belong in a supernaked test any more than any of the other bikes here do, or likewise in a nakeds test alongside the likes of a Kawasaki Z650, Yamaha MT07, Triumph Trident 660 or Ducati’s own Monster. So here it is, with all its big numbers, big spec sheet and big price tag compared to the others, on the test pretty much due to not fitting in anywhere else.
The fact that there’s nearly £5000 difference between the Ducati and the cheapest bike in the group, and about 30bhp between them too, demonstrates just how this middleweight naked class has evolved in recent times, with different manufacturers taking different approaches.