Ex-Casey Stoner Ducati sets new record at auction

A Ducati with a strong Aussie connection recently sold at auction in the UK, setting a new record price for the marque, as well as one of the higher prices achieved by any motorcycle at auction.

The bike in question, a Ducati Desmosedici GP7 from the 2007 MotoGP season, was joined by a Desmosedici GP3 from 2003 and other machines with racing pedigree at the Iconic Auctioneers sale in the UK, held on 25 August as part of the Silverstone Festival.

What made the GP7 special, apart from its record-setting price, is that it was one of the bikes ridden by Casey Stoner to the 2007 MotoGP World Championship – his and Ducati’s first. Stoner had stepped up to the premier class the year before with LCR Honda, while Ducati made its MotoGP debut in 2003. Loris Capirossi would achieve Ducati’s first MotoGP race win in that debut season and finish fourth in the Riders' Championship, while Ducati finished second in the 2003 Constructors’ Championship, behind Honda.

In 2007, new MotoGP regulations reduced engine size from 990cc to 800cc.  The GP7 that Ducati built to meet the new rules featured a 799cc, 90-degree desmodromic DOHC V4 producing 220+bhp (164+kW) and capable of speeds in excess of 190mph (305km/h). The engine was fitted into a tubular steel, trellis-style frame with a pressed aluminium swingarm. Fully-adjustable Öhlins front and rear suspension, Brembo brakes with 305mm carbon front discs and a 220mm steel rear disc were other features in a package that weighed just 148kg.

It was thought Honda would be the prime beneficiaries of the new rules, but Ducati proved to have adapted better, with the GP7 showing amazing straight-line speed. Stoner won on his debut with the GP7, then an additional nine more times in 2007’s 18-round season, only finishing off the podium on four occasions. Such was Stoner’s dominance on the GP7 that he wrapped up the Riders' Championship with three rounds remaining on his way to delivering Ducati their first MotoGP Constructors' Championship.

While the bike auctioned by Iconic Auctioneers is from that winning 2007 season and bears the designation ‘D16GP7 CS1,’ what races Stoner actually rode it in are unclear. As riders only had two bikes for a race weekend and possibly one or two more for spares and testing across the season, it’s a strong possibility this bike was used in several of the Aussie’s ten wins. All that’s confirmed is a scrutineering sticker from the 2007 Spanish GP, which ironically, was one for the few races Stoner didn’t win that year.

Rebuilt by Ducati expert Dave Allenby, the ex-Stoner Desmosedici GP7 had formed part of a private collection for many years before being acquired by the vendor in 2020.

Offered for sale in running condition, maintained by Ducati technicians and fitted with updated electronics, plus 17-inch wheels instead of the original 16.5-inch, the GP7 carried a pre-auction guiding range of £380,000 - £400,000 (AU$565,000 – 594,000 approx.). It just eclipsed that to sell for £402,500 (AU$598,520 approx.).

While the final price is a little over half of the AU$1.1 million that the ‘Jack Ehret’ Vincent Black Lightning was auctioned for in 2018, it still puts the Stoner GP7 in the Top 10 on the all-time list and comfortably the most expensive Ducati sold at auction. In 2020, a rare 1965 Ducati 125cc four-cylinder race bike went to auction with a £600,000 high estimate, but didn’t sell.

The 2003 Desmosedici GP3 consigned for this auction is arguably just as significant as the GP7, coming from Ducati’s MotoGP debut year and ridden by Loris Capirossi. However, a championship-winning machine has more appeal and that was reflected in the GP3’s final price of £201,250 (AU$299,250 approx.), but this was still above estimate. Like the Stoner GP7, the Capirossi GP3 had been maintained and was offered in running order.

"We are more than delighted with the result of these two MotoGP bikes,” said Mark Bryan, Motorcycle Manager at Iconic Auctioneers. “They have been sold to an international buyer, which just goes to the show the global reach of our marketing.”

For more details and additional results from this auction, go to: iconicauctioneers.com