Fare evasion? We’d love it!

Black always works. For leather jackets, sunglasses, Italian espresso. And, quite obviously, for motorbikes too. Ducati, at any rate, has now given its Monster a good dose of darkness. The result goes by the name of Monster Dark. And it looks rather good.

That said, this ‘dark side’ concept is by no means new. Ducati launched the first Monster Dark back in 1998. At the time, it was a deliberately minimalist, matt-black interpretation of the legendary naked bike. Almost three decades later, the idea is back. And it shows once again that good design sometimes thrives above all on what you leave out.

Black is back. Again.

The new Monster Dark is all about black. The fuel tank, wheels, seat – everything is tone-on-tone. Added to this are deliberately unpainted components such as the front frame section, the exhaust end caps and the air intake snorkel. This creates a pleasantly understated look. And it allows the Monster’s characteristic silhouette to stand out all the more.

Technically, it remains true to the current, fifth generation of the Monster. The 890 cubic centimetre V2 engine delivers 111 PS and produces 91.1 Nm of torque. It also features an aluminium monocoque frame, Showa suspension, Brembo brakes and a comprehensive electronics package with four riding modes, cornering ABS, traction control and wheelie control.

The bike weighs 175 kilograms without fuel – four kilograms less than the previous Monster generation. And with a seat height of 815 millimetres, it remains pleasingly accessible. An A2-compliant version is also planned.

Less is Monster.

The real beauty of the Monster Dark, however, isn’t its list of features. It’s the philosophy that perfectly defines it.

When designer Miguel Galluzzi created the first Monster in the early nineties, he followed a very simple idea: strip away everything superfluous. Engine, fuel tank, seat, two wheels. That’s it. The result was one of the most influential motorbike icons of all time.

The new Dark serves as a reminder that this guiding principle still works perfectly well more than three decades later. Especially at a time when motorbikes are competing for attention with ever more technology, ever more power and ever more visual spectacle.

The Monster Dark will be available at Ducati dealers from November 2026.

And anyone who still claims that black isn’t a colour has probably never seen a Monster.