Ducati 888 SBK World Superbike worksracer & Doug Polen 1991 - motorcycle photo

Description

A superb and rare photo of former Superbike world champion
Doug Polen
seen in action with his
Ducati 888
Desmoquattro works racer during the World Superbike race of
France
, which was held at the circuit of
Magny Cours
, France, on
September 29, 1991
.
A magnificent photograph, as Doug Polen is seen on his way to
victory
in
Race 1
. He went on and also won
Race 2
, making the French Superbike round that day a double success! He also won the
1991 World Superbike Championship
. And also a year later, in
1992
. Both times with the amazing Desmoquattro
Ducati 888
!
Doug Polen
is a former world champion motorcycle road racer. He raced successfully in AMA Superbike, Japanese Superbikes, Superbike World Championship and Endurance racing. He was a private entrant in AMA in the early 1980s, before quitting racing to concentrate on business commitments. In 1986 he returned to AMA, ultimately getting a works Yoshimura Suzuki ride in 1988 before going to international racing. Polen joined Eraldo Ferracci's "Fast By Ferracci" Ducati team in 1990. He won the Superbike World Championship in both 1991 and
1992. In
1992 he also finished third overall in the AMA national championship. For 1993 he left the world championship to compete exclusively in the
United States
and won the AMA national crown. In 1994 he joined the Honda UK team in WSBK, inisisting on Dunlop tyres. He left the team in 1995 but not before teaming up with Aaron Slight to win the prestigious Suzuka 8 Hours endurance race on a Honda RC45. After returning to the AMA series, he set his sights on the Endurance World Championship and eventually won that championship in 1997. His total of 18 AMA pole positions was a record until Mat Mladin matched it in 2006. His 14 fastest laps in WSBK in 1991 is a single-season championship record.
The
Ducati 888
was the successor of the Ducati 851. The earlier 851 had introduced liquid cooling, computerized fuel injection and four-valve heads to the company's two cylinder desmo V-twin motors. In 1991 Ducati increased the capacity of the 851 to 888 cc to create the 888. Both engines featured the Desmoquattro valvetrain concept which in which a four valve per cylinder motor was given desmo valve drive, with cams both opening and closing the valves. Continuing refinement yielded the next two generations of the Ducati Desmoquattro superbikes, resulting in the 916 / 996 and 999 lines.
The
Ducati
motorcycle factory has an old and interesting history. In 1926, three brothers, Adriano, Marcello and Bruno Ducati, founded Societa Scientifica Radio Brevetti Ducati in
Bologna
to produce vacuum tubes, condensers and other radio components, becoming successful enough by 1935 to construct a new factory in the Borgo Panigale area of the city. Production was maintained during World War II, despite the Ducati factory being a repeated target for Allied bombing. Meanwhile, at the small Turinese firm SIATA (Societa Italiana per Applicazioni Tecniche Auto-Aviatorie), Aldo Farinelli began developing a small pushrod engine for mounting on bicycles. Barely a month after the official liberation of Italy in 1944, SIATA announced its intention to sell this engine, called the "Cucciolo" (Italian for "puppy," in reference to the distinctive exhaust sound) to the public. The first Cucciolos were available alone, to be mounted on standard bicycles, by the buyer; however, businessmen soon bought the little engines in quantity, and offered complete motorized-bicycle units for sale. In 1950, after more than 200,000 Cucciolos had been sold, in collaboration with SIATA, the Ducati firm finally offered its own Cucciolo-based motorcycle. This first Ducati motorcycle was a 60 cc bike weighing
98 lb
(
44 kg
) with a top speed of
40 mph
(
64 km/h
) had a
15 mm
carburetor giving just under 200 mpg (85 km/L). Ducati soon dropped the Cucciolo name in favor of "55M" and "65TL". When the market moved toward larger motorcycles, Ducati management decided to respond, making an impression at an early-1952 Milan show, introducing their 65TS cycle and Cruiser (a four-stroke motor scooter). Despite being described as the most interesting new machine at the 1952 show, the Cruiser was not a great success, and only a few thousand were made over a two-year period before the model ceased production. In 1953, management split the company into two separate entities, Ducati Meccanica SpA and Ducati Elettronica, in acknowledgment of its diverging motorcycle and electronics product lines. Ducati Elettronica became Ducati Energia SpA in the eighties. Dr. Giuseppe Montano took over as head of Ducati Meccanica SpA and the Borgo Panigale factory was modernized with government assistance. By 1954, Ducati Meccanica SpA had increased production to 120 bikes a day. In the 1960s, Ducati earned its place in motorcycling history by producing the then fastest 250 cc road bike available, the Mach
1. In
the 1970s Ducati began producing large-displacement L-twin (i.e. a 90° V-twin) motorcycles and in 1973, released an L-twin with the trademarked desmodromic valve design. In 1985, Cagiva bought Ducati and planned to rebadge Ducati motorcycles with the lesser-known Cagiva name (at least outside of
Italy
). From the 1960s to the 1990s, the Spanish company MotoTrans licensed Ducati engines and produced motorcycles that, although they incorporated subtle differences, were clearly Ducati-derived. MotoTrans's most notable machine was the 250 cc 24 Horas (Spanish for 24 hours). Ducati is best known for high performance motorcycles characterized by large capacity four-stroke, V-twin (90° twin-cylinder) engines featuring a desmodromic valve design. Modern Ducatis remain among the dominant performance motorcycles available today partly because of the desmodromic valve design, which is nearing its 50th year of use. Desmodromic valves are closed with a separate, dedicated cam lobe and lifter instead of the conventional valve springs used in most internal combustion engines in consumer vehicles. This allows the cams to have a more radical profile, thus opening and closing the valves more quickly without the risk of valve-float, which causes a loss of power, that is likely when using a "passive" closing mechanism under the same conditions. While most other manufacturers utilize wet clutches (with the spinning parts bathed in oil) Ducati uses multiplate dry clutches in many of their current motorcycles. The dry clutch eliminates the power loss from oil viscosity drag on the engine even though the engagement may not be as smooth as the oil bath versions, and the clutch plates can wear more rapidly. The chief designer of most Ducati motorcycles in the 1950s was the late Fabio Taglioni (1920-2001). His designs ranged from the small single-cylinder machines that were successful in the Italian 'street races' to the large-capacity twins of the 1980s. Ducati introduced the Pantah in 1979; its engine was updated in the 1990s in the Ducati SuperSport (SS) series. All modern Ducati engines are derivatives of the Pantah, which uses a toothed belt to actuate the engine's valves. Taglioni used the Cavallino Rampante (identified with the Ferrari brand) on his Ducati motorbikes, Taglioni chose this emblem of courage and daring as a sign of respect and admiration for Francesco Baracca, a heroic World War I fighter pilot that died during an air raid in 1918.
This is a very nice and very rare
non period
photo that reflects a wonderful era of Ducati ‘s rich motorcycle history in a wonderful way. This is your rare chance to own this photo, therefore it is printed in a nice large format of ca. 8" x 12" (ca. 20 x
30 cm
). It makes it perfectly suitable for framing!
Check out our other Ebay auctionsfor more Ducati and other motorcycle images
and use the shipping discount!
Shipping costs will only be $ 7.00 regardless of how many photos you buy.   For 5 or more photos, shipping is free!
(Note: A. Herl, Inc. does not appear on photo, for ebay purposes only)
No copyright expressed or implied. Sold as collectable item only. We are clearing out our archives that we have gathered from various sources.
All items always sent well protected in PVC clear files
and board backed envelopes.
We have photographs that came from professional collections and/or were bought from the original photographer or press studio! They are all of professional and excellent quality.
After many decades of professionally collecting photographs and posters we are clearing out our archives. They make the perfect gift and are perfectly suited for framing. They will look gorgeous unframed and will be a true asset nicely framed with a border. They are a gorgeous and great asset in every home, workshop, workplace, restaurant, bar or club!
First come - first served. And you can always contact us for your requests. Please ask any questions before the auction ends.