The Ducati Brothers founded the company in 1926 but it was only to manage electrical components. During the Second World War the Italian government took over the Ducati company and started the development of motorcycles.
In 1946 Ducati produced a clip-on 50cc bicycle engine which sold very well. Under the supervision of Fabio Taglioni, Ducati would start to produce many great motorcycles. The first to be produced under his guidance was the Grand sport Marianna (100cc). The following model was the Desmo which won a lot of races. The Desmo roadster line included 250cc, 350cc and 450cc engines with simple styling. The 1964 Mach 1 (250cc) was also very cable of winning races due to it's light weight and had a superb handling.
Ducati didn't need any extras and produced the 900ss as the most naked bare legal super bike that was on the market in the 70s. It was a raw racing bike and everything on it was designed for speed. In 1971 Ducati had released the 750GT shortly followed by the 750 sport. In 1975 the engine was improved to 846cc and the 900ss was a fact.
Ducati ran into financial problems during the beginning of the 80s and by 1985 the state owned company was bought by Cagiva. Under guidance of Cagiva the 851 Strada was introduced. After which the engine was enlarged to 888cc and the foundation for the very successful 916. The 916 was such a success in design, power and riding comfort that it soared Ducati straight to the front of the super bike scene.
A smaller version of the 916 was also developed, the 748. However the 916 didn't change in design until 2002. The new look was quite futuristic and many fans had to get use to the design. But it stayed a hit.
