In our inbox today was an interesting email from Ducati, telling us that an updated press kit for the Panigale V4 R superbike was now available on the press site.

Why was there a need to modify the available information? Well, it seems a key technical component on the 998cc machine was changed…more specifically, the 2019 Ducati Panigale V4 R now comes with a dry clutch from the factory.

The move is driven by the Ducati Corse race team, with the WorldSBK rules requiring a homologated clutch. You can’t have a dry clutch on the race bike if the homologated street bike model doesn’t have one as well.

With the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati Superbike team confirming the use of a dry clutch in their pre-season testing, Ducati corporate had to make the appropriate changes to the street bike, which even meant last-minute clutch installations on the press fleet of bikes that were used at Jerez last Friday.

Sadly, only one spot was available for a US publication at the Panigale V4 R press launch launch, which of course went to the highest bidder. I’m sure you can guess their name.

So, we can’t tell you anything about riding Ducati’s newest superbike weapon, but we do know that the dry clutch comes from STM, and is of course of the slipping variety.

Specifically, it is the STM EVO-SBK dry clutch model, with nine pressure plates and an adjustable secondary spring.

A staple of the Ducati DNA, the rattle of a dry clutch is perhaps our favorite part of hearing a Ducati go by. Unfortunately, the sound they create is near impossible to get past Euro4 , EPA, and other noise restrictions.

We haven’t heard how Ducati is getting past this reality on the street side of the equation, but it makes our racer hearts flutter to see the dry clutch once again included in the Ducati superbike offering.

For the hardcore Ducatisti, perhaps there is now one more reason to like the Panigale V4 R, though we would have a hard time imagining why you didn’t already.

Source: Ducati