Ducati 1199 Panigale vs. EBR 1190RX - Superbike Comparison Test

Beautiful late-afternoon desert sun made everything glow as if the light were coming from within all the objects in view. Even the weeds looked good.

But we are convinced the Erik Buell Racing 1190RX and Ducati 1199 Panigale do actually produce their own light—and not just from bulbs and LEDs.

A long day spent riding two world-class superbikes on the amazing 1.8-mile East Loop at Pahrump, Nevada’s Spring Mountain Motorsports Ranch, will have that effect on you.

Ducati is the accepted ruler of the V-twin superbike world and often has been the V-twin ruler of World Superbike, too. Not so much with the current MotoGP-inspired "frameless" twin, but still, it's got a great record.

Our history with Erik Buell's motorcycles has been long and occasionally checkered. But the EBR 1190RS we tested almost two years ago at Miller Motorsports Park ("Superbikes 2012") was a stellar track bike, if a somewhat flawed streetbike. Oh, and our carbon-fiber-adorned model cost $44K. The new 2014 1190RX remedies streetability (mostly; read on) and cuts price to $18,995, exactly the same as the standard-model (manually adjustable suspension) Panigale we have here.

Learn more:

VIDEO DYNO COMPARISON: 2014 EBR 1190RX vs. 2014 Ducati 1199 Panigale

Yes, “streetability.” It’s certainly a part of the intent of these bikes, so we commuted, droned on the freeway, and ran a fast, fun, safe pace on back roads. But the true design focus for these identically priced bikes is to be the ultimate road-legal track weapon.

And this was pretty clear in the daily grind. If the road is the “rock,” the Panigale is the proverbial “hard place.” Its seat, suspension, riding position, and wind protection are all pretty unforgiving. Plus, it’s like sitting on a barbecue in an oven when riding in traffic on the sunny, 85-degree days we were enjoying during the test. You just can’t run a huge loop of exhaust header under a minimalist tailsection and not toast the rider.

The EBR’s seat is broader, flatter, and more comfortable. The bars are higher and set at a less steep angle, plus the fairing is wider and taller, giving better wind protection on the road and making it easier to tuck in at the track. Engine heat is felt through the “gas tank” (it’s actually just an airbox/engine cover since fuel is carried in the frame), but overall the EBR is a much cooler ride than the Duc. Biggest detriment to the EBR’s day-to-day usability is the very heavy clutch pull. The Ducati’s is feather-light by comparison. The EBR gets the nod on the road, though, even with its mechanically noisier, harsher engine and heavy clutch, primarily because it performs as well as the Duc but asks for less sacrifice from its enthusiastic rider.

SIGNATURE PIECES: The EBR’s perimeter brake and eight-piston caliper feature cooling scoops. Ducati emphasizes the single-sided swingarm on the Panigale.

Of course, what we really came for was the racetrack. Both EBR and Ducati have a love for racing that runs right down to their molecular DNA, and it shows in how well these bikes work at speed.

We staged the ultimate private track test day. Spring Mountain’s recently commissioned East Loop is a fast and fun road course with smooth pavement and lots of grip (once we blew off the dust with our morning setup laps and photos). Road Test Editor Don Canet was our man at the controls and I gave chase (as most of us usually do with Canet).

Right from the early laps, it was clear this would be a close race. Both bikes are beautifully set up from the factory with loads of grip, composure, and more power than the rear tire could take when feeding it in on corner exits.

This latter point—engine power—was a surprising study in contrast. The peakier Panigale really didn’t start to pull hard until about 7,000 rpm, whereas the EBR’s delivery was very strong from 6,000 revs and generally gave the rider more options with its broader and more abundant torque. The RX gives up nearly 6 horses on top, but you’d never know it on the track: Peak speeds on the front straight were within a few mph.

| * Great TC/rider-aid package * Gorgeous sounds * The light superbike| * Engine heat cooks you on the street * Comfort not even an afterthought * Bring back legendary torque| |EBR 1190RX

| * Killer power and awesome torque * Laser-accurate chassis * The American-made superbike we've been waiting for| * Holy heavy clutch! * Better shift-light solution * No quickshifter|

Both TC systems work very well, but Ducati’s delivered smoother intervention and greater flexibility thanks to the ability to change modes (and therefore TC/ABS/engine-braking levels in the three customizable “maps”) on the fly.

A quick word about the dash setups: Menu navigation was easy on both, but the EBR buttons are harder to operate since they’re up on the unit and not on the bar like the Duc’s. Also, the Panigale’s tach is more legible at a quick glance, and the bright-yellow TC-intervention light and progressive, bright-red shift lights were awesome. The EBR shift indicator was hard to see because it’s just another thing on the TFT display.

The RX seemed to have been geared specifically for this track, and its transmission was a study in quick, sure shifts. But the Panigale shifted great, too, and has a factory quickshifter (not present on the EBR) that made the job of cutting fast laps that much easier. I commented to Canet that I thought the Panigale’s slipper-clutch action was a bit smoother. He just scoffed and told me to get better at blipping downshifts.

The biggest issue we faced with the EBR was the perimeter-style front brake. We were impressed with the normalcy and good performance of the 1190RS brake at Miller, and Senior Editor Blake Conner had no issues slowing the RX during his first ride at the JenningsGP track in Florida, but our RX in this test had an ever-present vibration during any brake application. It was mildly bothersome on the street but became an issue at the track, reducing our ability and confidence to trail-brake down to the apex at the limit. It had to have hurt the lap times to some degree. A call to Erik Buell revealed the problem. "We have had an issue with the rotor supplier where about 15 percent of the discs have a different grinding texture," Buell said. "This has just surfaced as our production volumes have ramped up. We are warrantying, of course." A good replacement couldn't be obtained before the end of our test. (Update: We received a new disc/wheel combo and new brake pads following this test and performance was normal).

The brake issue makes the EBR’s lap times and rideability all the more impressive. Canet was just 0.15 of a second faster in final timing riding the Ducati, and I posted my best time on the EBR, going about a half-second quicker.

Still, the Ducati was the picture of stability during hard braking on the 140-plus-mph front straight, and those conventional Brembos offered world-class feel and lower lever effort. We found no reason to activate the Panigale’s ABS (there was enough grip to lift the rear at your command!), but it’s there if you need it. While the EBR’s rim-brake setup allows for a very light cast wheel that definitely showed itself in easier cornering transitions and turn-in, there is something to be said for Brembo’s manufacturing and development advantage of having so many motorcycles running its brakes around the world.

So our conclusion here is a little inconclusive, mostly due to the brake issue with the EBR. The news here is Erik Buell and his small-but-growing team at EBR have built a competitive, relatively affordable superbike right here in America. If you have one molecule of national pride, now is the time to be proud that we finally produce a motorcycle like the 1190RX. But in our battle here, the Ducati takes it by a hair. Even though it’s not as comfortable on the street, it has a smoother engine, better overall refinement, and a chassis that’s just as awesome as the EBR’s. The base mechanical packages and track performance were similar, but the Ducati packs more features into its well-executed electronics (ABS, quickshifter, engine-braking control) and just has a bit more overall polish. But, clearly, the war is just beginning.

» Go to next page for lap-time data and specifications.

Our Racelogic VBox Sport GPS datalogger allows an analytical look at the quickest lap Road Test Editor Don Canet achieved aboard the two machines. We have divided the lap into three splits, each with different performance demands. The first split rewards tire edge grip through a medium-speed series of corners that has little to no positive camber nor room to accelerate between turns. The second split incorporates the main straight where the highest speed is reached, plus the track’s most demanding braking zone, which is followed by an increasing-radius right that rewards midcorner grip, drive, and stability. Split 3, which ends at the start/finish line, adds a vertical dimension as you plummet downhill into a banked bowl. Confidence in the front while trail-braking played a key role in the bowl, as well as in the quick side-to-side left/right transition leading to the finish.