Today’s superbikes are awash with sophisticated electronics and rider aids, and none showcases the most advanced and fiendishly cunning systems better than Ducati’s new 2025 Panigale V4 S. The rider aids and electronics on this, let’s not forget, road-going machine have been developed, tested, and proven in MotoGP and World Superbikes. It embraces technologies used by Stoner, Rossi, Dovizioso, Bagnaia in MotoGP, not forgetting the likes of Bautista in WSBK.It’s easy to be dismissive and write off this direct connection with racing as marketing hyperbole, but ask Ducati’s highly regarded and straight-talking lead development rider, Alessandro Valia, how advanced the Panigale V4 S systems really are, and he says: “If we are talking about the DAVC (optional Race Pro software) suite (DTC, DWC, DSC), then we are at a level much higher than in MotoGP 10 years ago.”Ducati isn’t messing about here. The Bologna factory recently launched the 2025 V4 S at the Autodromo di Vallelunga circuit north of Rome, with every intention of confirming Valia’s claim. We had a full day in the saddle to test every key rider aid installed on the machine and, back in our box, assess the benefit it was delivering to the rider via data analysis with Ducati’s top technicians.There are four power modes for the 216 hp Desmosedici Stradale V4: Full, High, Medium, and Low. Additionally, there are five separate riding modes: Race A, Race B, Sport, Road, and Wet. Race A is configured for fast laps on slicks and adopts the High power mode, has low levels of rider-aid intervention, and puts the semi-active suspension on the Active Track 1 setting, which is configured to work with slicks. Ride on the road in this mode and the throttle would be too aggressive and the suspension too firm.

Race B is also associated with High power mode, with a little more support from the rider aids, and the suspension set to Active Track 2, which is designed for dry lapping on treaded trackday rubber. Sport mode is recommended for the road, but can be used on track and adopts Medium power mode (with an uncapped peak of 216 hp), Active Dynamic 1 on the suspension, and more rider-aid intervention, while the ABS is at a higher level of 6. Road mode also has Medium power with even more rider-aid support and is designed for cold or changeable riding conditions. Suspension is set to Active Comfort 1. Finally, a Wet mode has peak power limited to 160 hp in Low mode, while rider aids are dialed up high and suspension is on Active Low Grip 1. Its main function is to get you home safely if you’re caught in a downpour on the way home from the circuit.Each of the five riding modes comes with preset levels of rider-aid intervention, but of course, you are able to adjust these and trim your electronic package just so. The list includes Race ECBS, Ducati Traction Control (DTC), Ducati Wheelie Control (DWC), Ducati Slide Control (DSC), Engine Brake Control (EBC), Ducati Power Launch (DPL), and Ducati Electronic Suspension (DES) 3.0 with Öhlins. The 2024 Panigale also adopts Ducati Vehicle Observer (DVO), the Corse-developed predictive algorithm that, Ducati says, adds even more control and precision to DTC and DWC in particular.While this all sounds complicated, in reality—and on the bike—it isn’t. Essentially, a Panigale V4 S owner has five factory preset modes to choose from: Race A, Race B, Sport, Road, and Wet. For each, the available and relevant rider aids and setup of the Öhlin’s electronic suspension change and recalibrate automatically. Using the neat switch gear on the left bar and the beautiful and clear new TFT dash, you can simply move between the modes to match how and the way you ride. At a trackday you might start the day in Sport mode, then move to Race B as you learn the track. Then, perhaps toward the end of the day, when you are tiring and the tires are losing grip you can trim the rider aids within those modes to compensate. Essentially you are trimming the bike to how and the way you ride.

The question is: how do we test and evaluate such sophisticated technology? I’ve raced at a decent level on the roads and have 10 finishes at the Isle of Man TT, and managed a top 15 at the North West 200 last year. I was informed that my lap times at the recent Ducati presentation test were good enough to qualify for a national race—just—but, sadly, I can’t power slide a 216 hp Ducati Panigale in third gear, especially one fitted with Pirelli slicks in perfect conditions. Big MotoGP power slides that push the rider aids to the very limit? There’s no way this guy can do it.There is an answer though. Test in the wet. With grip vastly reduced, it’s easier (if more dangerous) to reach even a Panigale V4′s limits. In theory, given some torrential rain, we could put Ducati’s rider aids properly under the microscope like never before. Furthermore, Ducati agreed. All we needed now was some big black clouds.Chasing the DataConditions could not have been worse. Or should I say better? The rain was biblical with lots of standing water and rivulets running laterally curb to curb, but at least the air temperature was in the low 70s Fahrenheit. We fitted Pirelli full-race wets plus a clear visor and then set about tailoring the Panigale’s rider aids for the conditions.First, I asked my technician if we could just select Wet mode and go have a splash round with 160 hp instead of 216. The answer, a no, lies with the preheated wets, which need to be pushed hard from the pit lane in order to maintain that heat. If you start steadily, tire temperature can drop, lowering grip levels that can’t easily be retrieved. Wet mode is designed for the road, meaning we wouldn’t have enough power to generate the required heat, while the rider aids, including cornering ABS, would be too intrusive, and the active Öhlins suspension would be too soft. Wet mode is more of a get-you-home setting rather than a performance option.

With this in mind, we opted for a bespoke setup and much more of a conventional track setup. Power was set to Medium, not Low as you might expect, which gives full torque in the higher gears. Compared to the conventional Wet mode, DTC was at intervention level 7, not 8; DWC was at 3 not 6; EBC remained the same as Wet mode on 3; and ABS was set to 3 instead of 7. The third-generation Smart EC3.0 Öhlins suspension was put into a customized Active Track 4 setting. So, apart from DSC, which remained at Wet mode’s level 2, very different from the standard Wet mode.Heading out onto an empty track on a brand-new Panigale V4 S in treacherously wet conditions was a strange feeling. I knew I had to put the hammer down yet my every instinct was to have a good look at the circuit first. So after a quick look over my shoulder as I entered the track, it was head down behind the screen with a tap on the perfectly slick race-shift gear selector, feeding in those angry Italian horses.Immediately, rainwater runs from the screen and sculpted bodywork as I take turns 1 and 2 in fourth gear (normally fifth into sixth in the dry). Into turn 4, it’s heavy on the ABS-assisted brakes, keeping that precious heat in the front Pirelli, while trying to be smooth. Exiting turn 5 into 6, it’s hard on the gas and time to be brave.

I’ve only done 30 percent of the lap but can already feel the rider aids working. The traction control and slide control are working overtime as I feed nearly 220 bhp onto the Pirelli wet. The system is sublimely smooth, no bangs or misfires, but clearly holding me back as it meters the flow of power and torque.The final section of track from turn 8 is tight and technical and the opposite of the rapid first section. In this section you still rely heavily on the rider aids, but also chassis feel, with knee sliders desperately seeking the Italian racetrack.Like a normal trackday, session one is all about finding your feet, evaluating where the grip is, which curbs can be clipped and which can’t. The wet conditions are forever changing as the rain gets heavier then briefly relents, and sometimes a wider line has more grip than the conventional line. After several laps without blinking, it’s time to head back to the pits to check out the data. Am I as good in the wet as I like to think I am, or is it the rider aids controlling the slides?

Segment by SegmentGood data takes no prisoners but can also be extremely illuminating. This section gets very technical and will involve graphs from Ducati showing channels of data. Below each graph will be the explanation of what you are looking out. Let’s break down the track segment by segment with loads of data.

Autodromo Piero Taruffi.jpg | Track map of Autodromo Vallelunga Piero Taruffi.Turns 1, 2, and Curva Grande

Traces show that as I gain in confidence I’m getting faster and faster through turns 1, 2, and 3, the scary-quick Curva Grande. The three lines in the yellow box show my apex speed is higher. As the line rises after the yellow box, you can see I’m carrying more speed around the long turn 3 before breaking for turn 4 at close to 150 mph.But what is making me quicker in this section isn’t bravery, it’s those predictive rider aids. Take a detailed look at the highlighted green box in the image above: The throttle position is the purple line, which is almost 100 percent open. The amount of torque I’m requesting (white line) is also nearly 100 percent and matching the throttle. But the green line, which is actual engine torque fed to the back wheel, is way below the purple and white lines in terms of percentage of maximum. I’m in fifth gear with 100 percent throttle, asking for 100 percent torque, but the Ducati is giving me only as much torque as the system deems necessary to keep me safe.Turns 4, 5, and 6: Cimini

Same again in turns 4-5-6, called Cimini. In the highlighted yellow box we are comparing two lap times; the red line’s 2.03.22 and the blue line’s 2.04.08. The faster lap (red line) shows I’m getting on the power sooner and going to 100 percent throttle on the exit.But again it’s the rider aids doing all the work. The highlighted green box shows 100 percent throttle (purple line), that the torque request nearly matches the throttle (white line) but the torque going to the back tire (green line) is much less. The large spikes you see in the green actual-torque line are the rapid quickshifter upshifts.In this section I start accelerating at around 60 mph, aggressively opening the throttle to 100 percent (purple line), upshift and accelerate hard all the way to 155 mph. I’m using third, fourth and fifth gear and 100 percent throttle, but the traction control (DTC) is limiting the actual torque to the wheel because the wheel is spinning (bottom red line, which shows rear wheel slip).Despite the horrendous conditions, I’m purposely riding like an idiot; going to full throttle and asking for all of the torque, but as the green line clearly shows, the Panigale will only give me a limited amount of precisely controlled torque. Otherwise I’d simply lose the rear.Getting Cimini Wrong

The graph above shows what happens when you nearly get it wrong. We are still in the turns 4-5-6 Cimini section, but this time driving through turn 6. Again, I’m at nearly 100 percent throttle (purple trace) and asking for almost full torque, while the actual torque supplied to the rear wet is much less. But now the conditions have worsened, there’s even more rain, and the rear is sliding with 2.5 degrees of yaw, meaning the back wheel is no longer in line with the front. Front-wheel speed is consistent but the rear-wheel speed is not—and the yaw line shows the slide.On one occasion I got a little too carried away with 28 degrees of lean angle and the system saved the slide in 0.06 of a second, way before I could. I physically still reacted to the slide, closing the throttle, but the system had intervened before I could.Turn 7, Campagnano: On the Brakes

We didn’t try the most extreme and race-focused eCBS, the new linked braking system that activates a percentage of rear brake when the front lever is squeezed and trails the rear brake up to the apex, even after you have released the front. But we did set the cornering eCBS to level 3 which is designed to be used on a track. The front applies the rear automatically and we can see this working in the data.The throttle grip (purple line) goes from fully open to closed, and the brakes are applied. I’m only braking with the front brake. In the highlighted green and yellow boxes, the top blue line is the amount of brake pressure I’m applying, while the actual brake pressure being applied by the cornering ABS is the green line underneath—this prevents the front from locking. The white line is rear brake pressure—remember, I’m only applying the front brake, the system is doing this automatically. ABS is also working on the rear, which is also being applied automatically.The bar chart in the top right shows this in actual figures. I’m applying 0 bar of rear brake pressure, but the system is applying 3.8 bar of rear brake pressure, which is obviously reducing my braking distance, making the bike more stable and giving the front brake and tire an easier time. I didn’t touch the rear pedal on any occasion, but the eCBS system repeatedly applied the rear, and we can see this throughout the data over the entire lap.Turns 8, 9, and 10

On the exit of turn 9 you can run your tires over the inside curb, which today is obviously very slippery. It took a while to build up to this, but I wanted to see how the system would operate with a dramatic loss of grip while riding over the curb.Again, throttle position and torque request are high (purple and white lines, respectively) but as soon as the rear wheel touches the wet curb, the rpm peaks, rear wheel speed peaks, and rear slip goes crazy. There’s a dramatic spike in the traces. But almost simultaneously, the DTC reduces actual torque to minimize the wheelspin—that’s the green line below throttle grip (purple) and requested torque (white). Once the Panigale’s rear wheel is beyond the curb, the rpm is restored and torque is reintroduced.Turn 15, Roma

Finally, the exit of turn 15, Roma, onto the start/finish is particularly tricky, especially in the wet. You’re accelerating toward the finish line but still banked over in a relatively low gear. Each lap I forced myself to accelerate earlier, striving to get to full throttle with the bike still leaned over, putting all my faith in the genius of Ducati’s electronic engineers.The highlighted yellow box shows the wide opening of the throttle (purple line) with the actual torque going to the back wheel much lower (green line). The V4 S is in second gear, the engine is at 10,429 rpm, the throttle position is 95.5 percent open, and the chassis is at 29.8 degrees of lean.I’m trying to accelerate hard, with lean, in the wet—not the brightest idea. I’m requesting nearly 80 lb.-ft. of torque, but what is actually going to the rear wheel is 69.2 lb.-ft or 10 percent less than what I’m requesting. We can see the slide on the graph (red line) and the data shows the front wheel at 125.1 kph and the rear wheel at 135.9 kph. You can see that I’m riding like a fool and you can see how the 2024 Panigale V4 S is making me look like a hero.VerdictThere will always be an argument for and against rider aids. Many point out that some of the best racing in the world is found in British Superbikes (BSB) where there are no rider aids allowed and you can see the bikes sliding. However, we are not all BSB riders—even if we think we are.The latest rider aids are designed to make riding on the road and track safer, easier, and should you wish, faster. My best lap time in the wet during this test was a 2.03 (my personal best in the dry is 1.45) which shows how bad the conditions were. Typically, I am approximately 10 to 12 seconds slower in the wet depending on the track. But without the Ducati rider aids working in the background, I’d estimate that my best time would have been 2.05 or 2.06, while achieving those times would have required draining amounts of concentration.

With such a complete and integrated network of riding modes and rider aids fighting in my corner, I could relax, knowing I had this priceless safety net. I knew I could go to 100 percent throttle and it would save me. I knew I could jump on the brakes and that the cornering ABS would keep me upright and on line. The laws of physics still apply; you can still lose the front off the brakes, the rear can wash out, and you have to concentrate, but you don’t have to be a pro racer to have fun in the most difficult conditions.The average trackday enthusiast can reach new heights. Finessing your bike’s setup has never been easier or quicker or more rewarding. If you arrive at a soaking-wet circuit, turn all the rider aids to max, feel them working, then come back a little, until you’re comfortable.

I’m truly amazed by Ducati’s latest electronic technology; to see the data and see what is actually happening was an eye-opener indeed. It’s all too easy to jump off a modern superbike convinced that a hot lap time is all your own work. Clearly, it was our Panigale doing all the clever stuff while keeping its rider upright and out of the gravel. Alessandro Valia is right, we really do have better rider aids than Rossi and Stoner ever had on their MotoGP Ducatis.