Desmo450 MX

The dawn of a new era: the first Ducati motocross bike

Born to compete, developed on track. The Desmo450 MX is the first Ducati motocross bike with desmodromic timing designed to carry Borgo Panigale racing DNA off-road. Lightweight, powerful, essential, it combines advanced technology and maximum performance to ensure speed, control and pure adrenaline. The know-how gained in MotoGP and WorldSBK, combined with comprehensive research work and the support of sector professionals, has resulted in the development of a motocross bike that embodies Ducati racing DNA. This race-ready production 450 is designed to provide both amateurs and more demanding riders with maximum performance and reliability.

Explore the main features.

Design

A necessarily simple bike, on which every detail is conceived and designed with the sole goal of offering performance and functionality. A lightweight and resistant frame and a chassis designed for maximum control. The new Desmo450 MX is designed to offer ultimate freedom of movement. The Desmo450 MX vehicle was designed to ensure minimum bulk and maximum resistance. Developed directly on the racetrack, its structure affords agility, control and extreme durability. The aluminium perimeter frame was designed with the minimum number of weld joints to eliminate weak points and heighten structural stability.

Engine

The Desmo450 MX was built around its beating heart: the 63.5 hp Desmo450 engine, the first four-stroke single-cylinder with desmodromic timing in the history of motocross. Designed before anything else, it was the engine that gave shape to the bike itself, redefining the concept. Complete with resonator and made from a blend of steel and aluminium, the exhaust respects the 2025 FIM/FMI regulation dictating that exhaust noise cannot exceed 109 dB with a tolerance of 2 dB.

Chassis

The Desmo450 MX is equipped with an aluminium perimeter frame which allows for an engine intake duct that is as straight as possible and with the right incline, to optimize air intake efficiency and hence performance. This layout, in turn, dictated the use of aluminium for the frame, which is designed and built using innovative techniques to optimize stiffness, weight and strength. In developing a frame with limited elements, a “weldingless” philosophy was adopted, as reducing the number of weld joints as far as possible consequently limits the number of weak points, for heightened reliability.

Technology

The Desmo450 MX brings Ducati electronics excellence to motocross. A technological package that, for the first time in MX, introduces adjustable Traction Control that can effectively measure rear wheel slip on the ground, intervening directly based on the loss of grip. The throttle response of the Desmo450 engine can be adjusted with two different throttle response maps. With the Smooth setting, the engine response is smoother and more progressive than with the Dynamic setting, which promises more direct delivery.