It’s been over 20 years since we first saw the Ducati Monster. On its release, the Monster stood apart from other production road bikes by bringing to the showroom floor the most basic and pure aspects of motorcycling in one package.

The Monster has always been about simplicity. As its designer Miguel Galluzi said in the day, “all you need is seat, tank, handlebars, engine and wheels”. Sure there were other nakedbikes at the time, but the Monster was pared back even further than they were, had better handling, and excellent performance out of the 900cc two-valve V-twin engine.

Over the years the Monster has always been the essence of the machine it started life as in the early ’90s. The styling and chassis design had always been an evolution of the first Monster with the engines various capacity air-cooled V-twins – 400, 600, 750, 900cc.

The biggest changes in the Monster’s lifespan in the first few years vwas the adoption of fuel injection and, by 2001, the biggest change was the addition of the water-cooled Monster S4 to the range.

In 2001, Ducati finally did what customers had been asking for and the increasing nakedbike competition in the market had necessitated. Slotting an eight-valve engine into the Monster, the new S4 ran a 916cc Desmoquattro engine from the Ducati superbike range. The S4 was heavy and fast, but moved too far away from the simplistic design principles the Monster was founded on.

Image: Alex Gobert.

It truly was a superbike without a fairing, and the styling wasn’t quite as neat and tidy as earlier Monsters. The following 996cc S4R and 999cc S4RS both carried the old superbike engines, and weren’t a radical departure from the Monsters of old in terms of styling and chassis.

With the styling design update to the Monster family in 2007, the 696 marked a radical change that still captured the styling of the first Monster. Soon enough the entire Monster family was updated, and there was a range of the new-styled machines from the baby 695 to the 1100.

But an eight-valver was wanted and the Monster 1200 was Ducati’s answer. Like the S4s before it, Ducati has rolled the previous model superbike engine into its biggest, baddest nakedbike. But this Testastreeta is the most evolved, refined version of the eight valver and it provides great control and useability of the stonking 107kW engine.

Not only is the engine a big step forward, the superbike-inspired chassis takes the big Monster into unchartered territory with a radical new design and control. To top it off, the whole package has been styled with the same minimilaistic priciples of the first Monster despite carrying Ducati’s most complex and evolved engine.

Ducati didn’t roll the old 1198 superbike motor into a new chassis. The gearbox, crank, rods, and primary ratios are the same as the 1198 and there’s been a jump in rear sprocket size, of course to suit road conditions better, but the biggest changes have come in the top-end of the Testastretta 11º.

Image: Alex Gobert.

Along with the adoption of the Continental fuel injection system, there’s a slight drop in the compression ratio and the power output is just shy of the 1198 superbike of a few years ago.

The mid-range and top-end power is huge on the 1200 Monster, and the bottom-end isn’t too bad at slow speed except for teetering along in traffic as there’s a bit of clutch work to keep things moving. But you expect that of a big V-twin, and as such the engine can not be faulted for performance and way in which it delivers its power considering how much is on tap.

Helping things somewhat is the availability of three riding modes. The traction and ABS works to varying degrees in each mode and combined with the power delivery altered by the ride-by-wire throttle, the Monster has a very different personality in each of the three modes – Sport, Urban and Touring.

Sport and Touring give the full whack of power, though touring is more progressive in its power delivery. Noth modes have different parameters for ABS and traction control. In Urban power is rolled back to 100hp and there’s full ABS and traction control. The Monster goes from a rip-snorting superbike without a fairing, civilised urban blaster or economical mile muncher at the tap of the indicator button.

The servicing intervals of the engine are out to 15,000km for minor services and 30,000km for slightly larger services that include the desmodromic cylinder head. That’s a very reasonable spread for an engine with so much performance, and will surely be the last thing Ducati needs to do to get away from a underserved reputation of higher servicing costs compared to the Jap fours.

Image: Alex Gobert.

Ducati has gone in a totally new direction with the chassis design of the eight-valve Monster, utilising architecture techniques like that on the Panigale superbike. The chassis is minimalist, and pares down the size of the bike very well.

There’s a small front section holding the headstock and the sub-frame is a very compact design bolting on at the rear of the engine. The engine is the main stressed member of the chassis, and thus does away with a majority of the central frame section.

The rear shock is mounted directly to the rear cylinder head with no linkages in between, while the swingarm is mounted through the traditional spot in the engine cases just behind the line of the countershaft sprocket.

The headstock is on a small section of frame fixed directly to the front and rear cylinder heads just above the inlet ports. The system is functional, minimalist, and aesthetically perfect. It is a faultless marriage of form and function.

Getting to the adjusters on the rear shock is simple and to front-end. The suspension may look like it is off the superbike, but is tuned for the road with a good amount of travel at both ends and a more progressive spring action.

Image: Alex Gobert.

It rides easily over he worst bumps of Aussie roads, and the Ohlins are brilliantly controlled through the stroke. The range of adjustment in the suspension system is more than any road rider will need, and if anything is to fault it’s the steering lock that is more akin of a superbike than a nakedbike.

Not only does the Monster 1200 carry styling hints of the first and second generation Monsters, but jump in the saddle and the ergos feel every bit like a Monster just a lot more spacious and comfortable. The ’bars are higher and further back, sitting the rider more upright, while the seat has a simple height adjustment function to give two available heights: 785mm and 810mm.

You can go lower again with an accessory low seat, and with such a small standover width it’s an attractive prospect for shorter riders. Pillion comfort is good, and there’s decent grab rails that double as a spot to tie gear off on the back seat if need be.

The attention to detail, quality of build and components more than justifies the recommended retail price of the Monster 1200 S. The base model Monster 1200 retails for $4000 less than the S at just under $20K.

The price difference between these two buys you seven more kilowatts and newton metres, three-spoke machined alloy wheels, M50 Brembo Monoblocs, 330mm front brake discs, carbon-fibre front guard and Ohlins suspension.

Image: Alex Gobert.

In anyone’s terms that is great value. But KYB and Sachs make excellent suspension, the M4 Monoblocs are faultess, and most of us aren’t going to feel 7kW or Nm difference at the volume the Monster puts out. The base model is the bike most people will find is enough, but I’m all for value for money and the extra cash for the 1200S is definitely worth it.

The 1200 S comes in white as well as the traditional red frame red bodywork that both models are available in. There’s a heap of accessories like carbon-fibre bits, exhaust systems, luggage, mirrors, screens and billet parts.

The Monster has been Ducati’s most successful model line with over 250,000 of them have built. The revamp that is the 1200 has seen this Monster become the best one yet. Like the first Monster, the retail price of the Monster 1200S higher than the Japanese nakedbikes, but these days there is a lot more competition around.

Pricing is right in the ballpark of all the ball-tearing European nakedbikes like KTM’s 1290 Super Duke R, MV Agusta Brutale 1090RR, Triumph Speed triple R and BMW K1300R. Like those other Euro machines, they offer so much more power, handling, quality and excitement than the Japanese nakedbikes at a slightly higher price.

Fortunately for the Monster 1200 S, I reckon there’s enough of all those attributes to make it the most successful Monster yet.

Specifications

Capacity: 1198cc
Power: 107kW @ 8750rpm
Torque: 125Nm @ 7250rpm
Wet weight: 209kg
Seat height: 785-810mm
Price: $23,990
Contact: www.ducati.com.au