Superbikes don’t typically make us weak at the knees?but if we had to spring for something racy, it would probably be Italian. We wouldn’t say no to the 140 horsepower Ducati 848 Evo, for example.
So when NCT Motorcycles told us they had just finished an 848, we assumed the bike had been crashed. But no: the Austrian shop just wanted to build a sporty cafe racer?with classic looks married to modern tech.

?We wanted to customize a bike that?s younger than the ones we normally work on,? says NCT’s David Widmann. ?And we wanted to have a second reference bike for our work, after the Black Stallion.?
?These days it?s fine when you have a lot of customers, but sometimes you need to build a bike just for yourself, and to represent your company. Of course we will sell it one day?but right now it?s just for us, and to show off our skills.?
Together with his partners in crime?Kurt Kosjek and Manuel Tilke?David wheeled the Ducati into NCT’s Feldkirchen workshop, and got down to business.
The guys started by stripping the bike down to the basics, before piecing it back together with a custom subframe. Perched on top is a hand-made aluminum tail unit, complete with combination leather and fabric upholstery, and a neatly embedded LED taillight.

All the original bodywork is gone, save for the fuel tank. There’s now a full complement of aftermarket carbon fiber bits, including new front and rear fenders. NCT fitted new carbon side covers too, but sinc...