Ducati Desmo450 MX Unveiled as Brand’s First-ever Motocross Bike

The Ducati Desmo450 MX, the brand’s first-ever motocross bike, will be available in certain European dealerships from June 2025.

Powered by a 449.6-cc, single-cylinder engine which revs up to 11,900 rpm, the Ducati Desmo450 MX produces 63.5 hp and 53.5 Nm and is the only bike in the category with a desmodromic engine. Ducati claim that 70 per cent of the maximum torque is available by 4,200 rpm. It has a wet weight (no fuel) of 104.8 kg and an aluminium perimeter frame made up of 11 pieces, which Ducati say are approximately half the number of pieces competitors’ bikes’ frames use. The Desmo450 MX gets Showa suspension, front and back, with a 49-mm, fully-adjustable USD fork with 310-mm travel at the front and a fully-adjustable shock absorber at the rear with 301-mm wheel travel. The fuel tank has a capacity of 7.2 litres.

Oil and oil filter service has to be done every 15 hours whereas piston replacement and valve clearance checks both have to be done every 45 hours of usage.

Ducati say the Desmo450 MX is “the first motocross bike in the world equipped with a Traction Control system capable of precisely defining the actual rear wheel slippage” and that they have a patent pending on this system. Additionally, they claim that the system is able to identify situations where it shouldn’t activate at all, such as during jumps, so that performance isn’t limited.

Other electronic aids include launch control, riding modes and a quickshifter. The accessory catalogue is also comprehensive and includes add-ons such as an Akrapovič titanium slip-on silencer and Brembo Racing brake callipers. The Ducati Performance catalogue also allows customers to create a replica of the Ducati Desmo450 MX ridden in the MXGP World Championship by Jeremy Seewer and Mattia Guadagnini. The Showa suspension used in the race-specification bikes is the only component that can’t be added onto customer bikes.

Additionally, Ducati have collaborated with Drudi Performance to offer a full Alpinestars riding-gear set along with an Arai helmet and other additions like a Spidi rain jacket.

The Ducati Desmo450 MX is not road-legal and is designed for closed-circuit use; it will be available in select European dealerships from June 2025 and the rest of the world will follow after.