Rick,
I plan to upgrade bike soon.
I see you are not that convinced yet with the V4.
But you gave it a second chance.
Why did you decide to try it again with a V4, instead of an R1 or BMW, (are Kawasaki and suzuki competitive also ?)
From a racers point of view, I understand it is always more special to race a Ducati, but if performance gets on the way, in the world of racing, any advantage is welcomed, and more if it comes at a lower price.
I've still got a couple PBs on my 2016 ZX10R, about six PBs on my BM, and one PB on the V4 22 bike.
I was extremely close to going for an R1, but fell for the Ducati marketing when the V4R was launched. And, tbf, the hardest thing has been finding a great setup. The other three mentioned machines, all have lots of setup data available. There's virtually none for the V4.
But, I'm doing this as a hobby, and to enjoy the sport. And, on that basis, the ownership proposition of the Ducati is hard to beat. I very much enjoy owning, and riding, the V4s. And I'm expecting/hoping, more PBs to come.
I think I would be faster on the R1, most people seem to be.
And, you'd hope, running an R1 would be far cheaper. I'm not looking forward to the V4R engine refresh (close to £9k). As opposed to an R1, where you'd just buy a new engine.
If I really wanted to change from the R1, and wanted race results fast, I'd go Honda Fireblade. Costs £40k though, which is about the same money as a V4R, and at least £10k more than the R1. For no faster lap times.
