The chief designer of most Ducati motorcycles in the 1950s was Fabio Taglioni (1920–2001). His designs ranged from the small single-cylinder machines that were successful in the Italian 'street races' to the large-capacity twins of the 1980s. Ducati introduced the Pantah in 1979; its engine was updated in the 1990s in the Ducati SuperSport (SS) series. All modern Ducati engines are derivatives of the Pantah, which uses a toothed belt to actuate the engine's valves. Taglioni used the Cavallino Rampante (identified with the Ferrari brand) on his Ducati motorbikes, Taglioni chose this emblem of courage and daring as a sign of respect and admiration for Francesco Baracca, a heroic World War I fighter pilot who died during an air raid in 1918.
1950s
1960s
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1970s
In 1973, Ducati commemorated its 1972 win at the Imola 200 with the production model green frame Ducati 750 SuperSport. In 2006, the retro-styled Ducati PaulSmart1000LE was released, which shares styling cues with the 1973 750 SuperSport (itself a production replica of Paul Smart's 1972 race winning 750 Imola Desmo), as one of a SportClassic series representing the 750 GT, 750 Sport, and 750 SuperSport Ducati motorcycles. Ducati also targeted the offroad market with the two-stroke Regolarità 125, building 3,486 models from 1975-1979, but the bike was not successful.
1980s
Ducati's liquid-cooled multi-valve L-twins made from 1985 on are known as Desmoquattro ("four-valve"). These include the 907i.e., 916 and 996, 999 and a few predecessors and derivatives.
1990s
In 1993, Miguel Angel Galuzzi introduced the Ducati Monster, a naked bike with exposed trellis and engine. Today the Monster accounts for almost half of the company's worldwide sales. The Monster has undergone the most changes of any motorcycle that Ducati has ever produced. After more than a decade of manufacturing, Ducati continues to make innovative changes to this classic motorcycle.
In 1993, Pierre Terblanche , Massimo Bordi and Claudio Domenicali designed the Ducati Supermono . A 550 cc single cylinder light weight "Catalog Racer". Only 67 were built between 1993-1997.
In 1994, the company introduced the Ducati 916 model designed by Massimo Tamburini, a water-cooled version that allowed for higher output levels and a striking new bodywork that featured aggressive lines, an underseat exhaust, and a single-sided swingarm. Ducati has since ceased production of the 916, supplanting it (and its progeny, the 748, 996 and 998) with the 749 and 999.
2000s
* Monster 620,695,750,900,S2R, S4R
* ST2, ST3, ST4
* Paul Smart 1000LE, Sport 1000, Sport 1000S, GT 1000 Touring
* SuperSport 750, 900, 1000
* 748, 749
* 996, 998, 999, 1098, 1098S, 1098R
* Desmosedici RR