Why Ducati gets retro wrong … but once did it right | Editor’s Choice July 2026

Contributing Editor Phil West writes…

"Two of motorcycling’s most popular breeds of bike right now are retro roadsters and Ducatis, a combination of the two therefore a guaranteed winner, right? Instead we have the Scrambler family, sold under its own sub-brand and based on a fairly soft 800cc V-twin platform ranging from the Icon Dark to the Nightshift. They’re all worthy, pseudo heritage machines and a decent introduction into Ducati ownership but I can’t escape the nagging doubt they they’re not the bikes they could be, given the combination of generic looks and intrusion of modern tech like TFT dashes and a monoshock chassis.

“As such I reckon bikes like the Triumph Bonneville T100 and T120 and even the Moto Guzzi V7 do a better job of combining trad looks with enough modernity to make them usable. “Weirdly Ducati already had both beaten convincingly, in terms of style, performance and quality with its previous Sport Classics. These were perhaps ahead of the game when they arrived in 2005, lasting just a few years before being dropped in 2011 but, even today, arguably the best retro roadsters of all.

“But fret not. Although under-appreciated at the time the Sport Classic trio of 2005 Paul Smart 1000 LE and Sport 1000, followed in 2006 by the GT1000 can be found for sale right here on Autotrader. Prices may now be appreciating – the days of a £5K bargain Sport Classic are long gone – but, for around £7,500, a clean, low mileage GT1000 can still be had and, for my money, it’s the best Ducati retro of all.

“The Sport Classics were inspired by Ducati’s Pierre Terblanche-designed, limited edition 2002 Mike Hailwood replica MH900e, of which just 2,000 were made. That bike’s popularity persuaded Ducati to unveil a whole new range of prototypes under the Sport Classic banner in 2003 and the reaction there was sufficiently positive to put them into production, years before modern-retro roadsters really hit their stride. “Designed again by Terblanche, the first two production Sport Classics were the premium, limited edition Paul Smart LE inspired by the British rider’s 1972 Imola-winning 750cc racer, plus the unfaired (but otherwise largely identical) 1000 Sport, in turn modelled on the 750 Sport of 1973.

“Both used the same, proven, air-cooled 992cc 1000DS V-twin engine, already familiar from the 1000SS and first gen Multistrada, along with a tubular steel frame, new plastic tank, single, side-mounted rear shock, solo seat and trendy Pirelli Phantom tyres. The LE had a silver half-fairing (taken from the MH900e), green frame, Öhlins suspension and numbered plaque denoting its run of 2,000 machines and cost a fairly hefty £9,495. The Sport, meanwhile, was naked, had more basic Marzocchi suspension and was £7,495.

“A less extreme, more comfortable and upright, two-seat version known as the GT1000 (after the 1971 GT750) followed and, although not as stylish with its shorter tank and twin-shock rear end while also a little more basic in its spec with chrome rather than alloy rims it was also more practical and, at £6,999, more affordable, too.

“Sadly, however, it was already too late. Or, perhaps, too early! The LE was too expensive, the Sport too uncomfortable with its clip-ons and both, as single seaters, were too impractical.

“The GT with its different rear end and tank, improved things but hadn’t the same looks. An amalgam of the two – the Sport 1000 Biposto with the GT’s rear – arrived in 2009, but was too late, and none, in the days before ‘retro bikes’ had mass appeal, were successful. “For a few years a 1000 Sport was a used bargain with prices dipping under £4K. But with the surge in the popularity of retros since Triumph’s second-generation of Bonnevilles in 2016 used prices have skyrocketed. Today, the cheapest GT1000 is approaching £8K, a Sport or 1000S is well into five figures and the most collectable of all, the Smart LE, is 18 grand and counting…

“Personally, I’d go for a GT. A good 2007 example can be had for under £8,000 and for that you get all the retro appeal that is even more relevant today. Its 992cc V-twin puts out a competitive 92 horsepower, which is pretty much enough to keep on terms with big hitters like the Triumph Speed Twin 1200 while the handling – assisted by decent Marzocchi suspension and Brembo brakes – is on a par with most modern retros. It’s comfortable, upright, can take a pillion and is surprisingly practical. Best of all, compared with the plasticky Scramblers the GT is exquisitely styled and built with all the authentic design touches such as chrome twin dials, Monza fuel cap and wire wheels you could want.

“It’s proof, in fact, that progress isn’t always a good thing. Or rather it isn’t when it comes to a retro Ducati…”

​Search for a Ducati GT1000 on Autotrader​