That thing is awesome. I've always loved Honda's and thought about one of those for a bit before deciding on the Duc.
Out of curiosity how would you compare the two?
There is no comparing the two really, the approach of each is diametrically opposed but both get the job done effectively.
My 959 has gorgeous looks and amazing levels of detail but a few rough edges. The bike has a hard edge feel to it overall, suspension is stiff and unrelenting but rewards with stellar levels of grip and cornering confidence. The motor surges at lower rpms when hot and is a bit tricky when leaving a light, needs a smooth clutch release and a little gas or it bucks, just part of the Ducati owner experience. You have to ride the 959 the way it wants to be ridden, it feels like a race bike, you must come up to it's level or park it. It took me about 3500 miles to adapt to the 959 handling characteristics but now I can pretty much haul *** on it with confidence. It's not an in town bike for traffic or a long highway droner, you need to be on a mission with this machine.
If there is one word I would use to describe the Repsol SP it is "polished", as in ultra-refined. They took an already accomplished and well sorted platform and fine tuned and fettled it to near perfection. I have a '12 CBR1000RR and it is a good machine but everything on the SP just feels smoother.....better. The clutch take up, shifting, power delivery, vibration levels, brakes and suspension tuning are just awesome. The first time I rode it was on my favorite twisty back road and I immediately fell in love with it, like I hade been riding it for years. Would not touch a single suspension setting, they're on out-of-the-box settings so far and near perfect for me.
So in short, both bikes are equally quick and overall performance is comparable. I like both but for completely different reasons.:surprise:
