Ducati Streetfighter V4 S Review – Motorcycle Test

Ducati Streetfighter V4 S Review

Ducati’s Streetfighter has traditionally been its most bonkers motorcycle. A stripped back superbike with hardly any concessions to sense and sensibility, the Streetfighter is the kind of bike those with a bit of an attitude problem seem to gravitate towards.

The V4 S version of the Streetfighter story is its most mental yet and has been since it came out back in 2020. It has closely followed the storyline of the Panigale V4, so when that model received its most significant update this year since its release in 2018, the SF was due to follow suit.

Ducati has gone full revolution with its sporty bikes for 2025. The Panigale V4 and V2 gained the new hollow double-sided swingarm and revised front frame chassis, the V2 even getting a fully revamped engine while the V4 gained subtle tweaks to the powerplant. The Streetfighter range thus gained everything the Panigale got, but we’ll focus on the V4 in this edition.

There’s three main things to concern yourself with the new SF V4—the new chassis, new electronics, and the small matter of a claimed 214 hp.

Ducati’s engineers were tasked with making the Streetfighter easier to ride at the limit, a job they already completed quite successfully on the Panigale late last year. “Easier” basically translates into “more feel”, and for that you need to go softer.

Thus, the Panigale-derived front frame on the Streetfighter has a claimed 40 per cent reduction in lateral stiffness, so when the bike is on its side, you can feel the tyres more and put greater force into them for better performance. And you don’t have to be going racetrack speeds to feel this benefit, although it does help…

There’s also a small change to the steering head via the inserts used which gives the Streetfighter 0.5° more rake for more stable steering manners.

The new frame is married to the new hollow symmetrical swing-arm, the first time a double-sided unit has ever been used on a Streetfighter in either twin or four-cylinder guise. Controversial at first, the new swing-arm has a claimed 43 percent reduction in lateral stiffness, and when matched to the new forged rear wheel, the rear of the bike is a claimed 2.9 kg lighter than the same set-up with the old single-sided swing-arm.

When talking about the V4 S, both ends are attached to Ohlins suspension (NIX30 fork up front and a TTX36 shock at the back) running the new Smart EC 3.0 electronic system, which is now so damn good, I’d happily go racing with it, whereas previously I’d only dare wait for the green light with conventionally-adjusted suspension.

The Ohlins system adjusts compression and rebound on the fly via the Objective Based Tuning Interface (OBTi). You can adjust the suspension manually if you like—preload adjustment is sadly still the old collar and lock nut job rather than a simple remote adjuster like on the R9 that costs two-thirds less—but there are four preset modes already in the ECU.

There is a slight change to the Streetfighter over the Panigale in that you’ve got a more progressive rear suspension link which makes the first part of the stroke a little more comfortable, which will no doubt smooth out low speed handling on the street (although seeing as we were only on track in Spain, I can’t comment on that here).

Combine all that with new Ducati-made forged alloy wheels that offer a claimed 22 per cent front and 23.5 per cent rear reduction in the moment of inertia, and that monstrous 214 hp Desmosedici Stradale V4 motor, and you have a motorcycle that is genuinely difficult to hang on to when you’ve got the revs in the reds.

I rode the previous generation Streetfighter V4 S at this very Andalusia circuit back in 2023 and I can assure you, the new machine is not that much faster in a straight line, but it gets around corners and, importantly, off them, much faster.

Side-to-side agility is a massive improvement on the 2025 edition, emphasised by how quickly the SF went from full lean on the left to snapping over to the right for the back straight. I damn near lifted the bike off the ground in the direction change, and once I slowed down my movements and understood how much more agile the new chassis was, I began to really appreciate the changes wrought.

There’s a curious trait I began to notice over the test in Spain. Compared to the Panigale, where all these changes made for a bike that was more jet than motorcycle, the same changes to the Streetfighter made it almost more intimidating than the old one.

You have absolutely zero wind protection while on the Streetfighter (duh), and with a bike that accelerates out of a corner this hard, not to mention hitting some 250 km/h at the end of the Andalusia circuit’s back straight, you really do feel like you’re in a fight—pun intended.

The 1103 cc V4 gains new cam profiles, 10 mm longer travel variable intake funnels, a new gearbox drum and a slightly reworked exhaust (it’s still rather ugly with that massive bread box under the engine), and the only thing separating you from disaster is the fact there are so many safety nets that allow you to slowly work your way up to the heavyweight ring.

You have three power modes in High, Medium and Low (Low being 160 hp. Yes, Low power mode is 160 hp…), plus all the electronics as part of the Bosch six-axis IMU.

Ready for them? Deep breath… Race eCBS, Ducati Traction Control, Ducati Wheelie Control, Ducati Slide Control, Ducati Power Launch, Ducati Quick Shift 2.0, Engine Brake Control, the Ducati Electronic Suspension, and four riding modes of Race, Sport, Road and Wet, all housed in the Ducati Vehicle Observer (DVO) system.

Having all those electronics at your beckon call isn’t new. We’ve had them for years, but they are part of the new generation that effectively learns how you’re riding and adjusts their inputs in a predictive way.

The DVO system integrates with the six-axis IMU to analyse the bike’s behaviour based on your riding style and the forces acting on it. With over 70 sensors on the bike, it enhances the precision of traction, slide, and wheelie-control interventions.

Unlike traditional systems, where traction, slide, and wheelie control operate with fixed parameters, the DVO system continuously adjusts these settings in real time. It dynamically responds to your grip and riding intensity, with the ECU constantly calculating/predicting the optimal balance to keep you in the ideal performance zone, which is a good thing when you’re busy trying to hang onto the bloody thing.

You’ll be glad for that DVO system when you crank the Streetfighter up into Full power with all the controls dialled back to level one (and in the case of wheelie control, off). The rush of arm-stretching torque is quite prodigious, but the thing is, it doesn’t stop. Acceleration just keeps going and going as you throw yet another gear at the engine via the smoother action Quick Shift 2.0 system.

And it wouldn’t be a Ducati sportsbike (it is a sportsbike, tell me I’m wrong) without some slightly ostentatious aero thrown in via the wings. Ducati claims 45 kg of downforce at 270 km/h, which is a jump of 17 kg over the 2024 Streetfighter.

Without testing the old and the new back to back, it’s hard to quantify the difference, but I will say the 2025 Streetfighter is dead smooth when you start clicking fourth, fifth, and sixth gears and the speeds really start going north. That’s another reason why it’s quite difficult to hang onto, because you’re going exponentially so much faster all the time.

Another handy thing is the Race eCBS that applies a little bit of rear brake while you’re heavy on the front Brembo Hypure four-piston anchors. If you’re not a rear brake user like me, this is a bit of a godsend as the Race eCBS helps you to tighten your line, effectively helping you square corners off so you can stand the bike up earlier and get on the gas sooner. It’s subtle but it works, offering you the magic trick of going faster but being safer as you do it.

Physically, the Streetfighter is slimmer and more compact than in 2024. The handlebar is mounted 10 mm closer to the rider and, like the Panigale, the footpegs are mounted 10 mm further inside the frame than before. You also get a thicker seat, which proved quite comfy after six very hard sessions of the undulating Andalusia venue, so I’m sure it’ll be just fine for big mile days in the saddle, if those are your intentions.

I say this every couple of years, but I really do wonder just how much faster we’re going to go with 1000 cc+ supernakeds. Bikes like the Streetfighter are now so fast, I have little doubt a decent rider on this bike would blitz most riders on Japanese superbikes in track day or race situations.

It therefore begs the question—what is the point of it all? I suppose Ducati’s answer has to be, like that of McLaren or Koenigsegg, because we can. From $43,100 ride-away, you are paying an absolute premium for your Streetfighter V4 S. You could pay $38,400 ride-away and get the base model, but then you’d be without that exceptional Ohlins Smart EC3.0 suspension, which for me is worth every penny.

The 2025 Ducati Streetfighter is without doubt a naked Panigale. It’s as close to the full superbike as the model has ever been. And as a nakedbike lover from the days when I smashed my dad’s Yamaha XJR1200 up the back of a car, I for one am all for it.

See the Ducati Australia website for more information.

2025 Ducati Streetfighter V4 S Specifications

Specifications
	Desmosedici Stradale 90° V4, counter-rotating crankshaft, Desmodromic timing, 4 valves per cylinder, liquid-cooled
	157.4 kW (214 hp) @ 13,500 rpm
	120.0 Nm (88.5 lb-ft) @ 11,250 rpm
	Electronic fuel injection system. Twin injectors per cylinder. Full ride-by-wire elliptical throttle bodies. Variable length intake system
	6 speed with Ducati Quick Shift (DQS) up/down 2.0
	Straight cut gears; Ratio 1.80:1
	1=38/14 2=36/17 3=33/19 4=32/21 5=30/22 6=30/24
	Chain 520; Front sprocket 15; Rear sprocket 42
	Hydraulically controlled slipper and self-servo wet multiplate clutch. Self bleeding master cylinder
	Aluminium alloy “Front Frame” with optimised stiffnesses
	Öhlins NIX30 43 mm fully adjustable fork with TiN treatment. Electronic compression and rebound damping adjustment with Öhlins Smart EC 3.0 event-based mode
	5-spokes forged aluminium alloy 3.50″ x 17″
	Pirelli Diablo Rosso IV Corsa 120/70 ZR17
	Fully adjustable Öhlins TTX36 (SV) S-EC 3.0 unit. Electronic compression and rebound damping adjustment with Öhlins Smart EC 3.0 event-based mode. Aluminium hollow symmetrical swingarm
	5-spokes forged aluminium alloy 6.00″ x 17″
	Pirelli Diablo Rosso IV Corsa 200/60 ZR17
	125 mm (4.9 in.) – 130 mm (5.1 in.)
	2 x 330 mm semi-floating discs, radially mounted Brembo Monobloc Hypure 4-piston calipers with Race eCBS. Self bleeding master cylinder
	245 mm disc, 2-piston caliper with Race eCBS
	Digital unit with 6.9″ TFT display and Optical Bonding technology, 1,280 x 480 px resolution, 8:3 aspect ratio
	Single seat, if passenger seat kit accessory is mounted: Two seats
	Riding Modes, Power Modes, Race eCBS, Ducati Traction Control (DTC) EVO, Ducati Wheelie Control (DWC) EVO, Ducati Slide Control (DSC), Engine Brake Control (EBC) EVO, DRL
	Ducati Power Launch (DPL), EVO, Ducati Quick Shift (DQS) up/down 2.0, Full LED headlights with Daytime Running Light (DRL), Öhlins steering damper, Suspension (DES) 3.0 with Öhlins Smart EC 3.0, Öhlins steering damper, Lithium-ion battery, Quick adjustment buttons, Pit Limiter, Auto-off indicators, Forged aluminium wheels, Coming Home
	Ducati Data Logger (DDL), Cruise Control, Tyre Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS), USB port, Ducati Multimedia System (DMS), “Turn by Turn” navigator*
	24 months unlimited mileage
Maintenance Service Intervals	12,000 km (7,500 mi) / 12 months
Valve Clearance Adjustment KM
Consumption (WMTC/Emissions)	Bike specifications and equipment may vary from market to market. Please refer to your local dealer for further information

2025 Ducati Streetfighter V4 S Images