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Formula 73 kicks off Ducati centenary celebrations
Ducati turns 100 this year, this Formula 73 just one of many specials on the way to celebrate the brand’s centenary
This is a big year for Ducati, given 2026 marks the 100th anniversary of its founding and is inspiring a run of commemorative bikes and special events over the course of the year.
This retro-inspired, limited-edition Formula 73 is one of the first, and celebrates the 1973 750 Super Sport Desmo, the first Ducati V-twin road bike featuring a desmodromic valve system and, as such, the inspiration for the brand’s superbikes since. On that basis it’s in with a shout as one of the most significant Ducatis of all, even if this new one is actually based on the current Scrambler 800! As such it has the same 803cc ‘Desmodue’ V-twin engine as the Scrambler with two valves per cylinder and desmodromic actuation for peak power of 73 horsepower at 8,250rpm.
This retro-inspired, limited-edition Formula 73 is one of the first, and celebrates the 1973 750 Super Sport Desmo, the first Ducati V-twin road bike featuring a desmodromic valve system and, as such, the inspiration for the brand’s superbikes since. On that basis it’s in with a shout as one of the most significant Ducatis of all, even if this new one is actually based on the current Scrambler 800! As such it has the same 803cc ‘Desmodue’ V-twin engine as the Scrambler with two valves per cylinder and desmodromic actuation for peak power of 73 horsepower at 8,250rpm.
Its tubular steel trellis frame is essentially that of the Scrambler, too, and is again appropriate to the original Super Sport Desmo in both construction and the distinctive aqua green paint. There’s also bespoke bodywork again inspired by the 1973 bike with contrasting silver and green colouring, upgraded cycle parts and lots of trick trimmings like a Termignoni exhaust, wire wheels, billet aluminium levers, Rizoma fuel cap and even a gold stripe on the tank echoing the original unpainted one on the 1972 750 Imola Demo that permitted the team to check fuel levels at a glance.
Just 873 Formula 73s will be built, each individually numbered in series with the model name and serial number on the top yoke, and each will also come with a certificate of authenticity as well as a collection of period images and sketches created by the Ducati Style Centre and presented in a special box. European deliveries will begin imminently with those to the rest of the world set to be completed by the end of summer.
Just 873 Formula 73s will be built, each individually numbered in series with the model name and serial number on the top yoke, and each will also come with a certificate of authenticity as well as a collection of period images and sketches created by the Ducati Style Centre and presented in a special box. European deliveries will begin imminently with those to the rest of the world set to be completed by the end of summer.
Ducati Formula 73 – the inspiration!
While the new bike looks cool there’s no harm looking back at what’s inspired it. So, for those not familiar with the story the 1973 Ducati 750 Super Sport Desmo was a production, road-going replica of the 750 Imola Desmo racer with which Brit Paul Smart triumphed in the 1972 Imola 200.
Back in the late 1960s Ducati, then known best for its lightweights and single-cylinder Scrambler, was in trouble. A new wave of ever larger, more powerful, multi-cylinder Japanese machines such as Honda’s CB750 had risen to dominance. Meanwhile by 1969 Ducati had been absorbed into a state-run entity and, that year, chief designer Fabio Taglioni was tasked by management to both build a 750 superbike and initiate a return to GP racing. In February 1970, Taglioni showed the first drawing of his proposed solution, this being a 90-degree, 750cc V-twin which was essentially two bevel-drive singles grafted together. That bike became the 1971 750 GT, the first production V-twin in Ducati history. At the same time Taglioni was working on a desmodromic 500cc GP V-twin, although progress was slow.
Back in the late 1960s Ducati, then known best for its lightweights and single-cylinder Scrambler, was in trouble. A new wave of ever larger, more powerful, multi-cylinder Japanese machines such as Honda’s CB750 had risen to dominance. Meanwhile by 1969 Ducati had been absorbed into a state-run entity and, that year, chief designer Fabio Taglioni was tasked by management to both build a 750 superbike and initiate a return to GP racing. In February 1970, Taglioni showed the first drawing of his proposed solution, this being a 90-degree, 750cc V-twin which was essentially two bevel-drive singles grafted together. That bike became the 1971 750 GT, the first production V-twin in Ducati history. At the same time Taglioni was working on a desmodromic 500cc GP V-twin, although progress was slow.
Then came the announcement of the first Imola 200, a production-derived race conceived as a European Daytona 200 open to 750s which would take place on 23 April, 1972 with entrants from all the leading manufacturers. Ducati instructed Taglioni to mount a full-scale assault and seven race 750 desmos – effectively hybrids of the 750GT and 500GP bike – were built. Smart was hired at the last minute before winning a legendary Ducati 1-2 ahead of regular factory rider Bruno Spaggiari.
The result not only put Ducati on the superbike map, but also established the firm’s template for sporting desmo V-twins, which it continued right up to the 2010s. As Taglioni himself later said, “When we won at Imola, we won the market, too.” A road-going replica, the 750 Super Sport, came at the end of 1973, proved a sensation and spawned a whole family of spin-offs. Later, in 1978, legendary British racer Mike Hailwood famously came out of retirement to win a fairytale F1 TT aboard a 900cc NCR-prepared version. And from there, Ducati’s superbike ‘signature’ of 90-degree desmo V-twin in a tubular steel trellis frame was well and truly set. Today an original, complete 750 Super Sport is one of the rarest and most collectable Ducatis of all, with prices often easily exceeding six figures. A tribute Formula 73, by comparison, will cost you just over £15,000!
The result not only put Ducati on the superbike map, but also established the firm’s template for sporting desmo V-twins, which it continued right up to the 2010s. As Taglioni himself later said, “When we won at Imola, we won the market, too.” A road-going replica, the 750 Super Sport, came at the end of 1973, proved a sensation and spawned a whole family of spin-offs. Later, in 1978, legendary British racer Mike Hailwood famously came out of retirement to win a fairytale F1 TT aboard a 900cc NCR-prepared version. And from there, Ducati’s superbike ‘signature’ of 90-degree desmo V-twin in a tubular steel trellis frame was well and truly set. Today an original, complete 750 Super Sport is one of the rarest and most collectable Ducatis of all, with prices often easily exceeding six figures. A tribute Formula 73, by comparison, will cost you just over £15,000!
