Weighing in at just 157kg with over 270bhp on tap, MotoGP machines are the finest motorcycles the human race can produce, capable of mind-boggling lap times, 63-degree lean angles and top speeds well in excess of 200mph. But while they might be the most capable bikes in the world, what are they actually like to ride?
End-of-season tests for the world motorcycle press used to be an annual occurrence after the final round of the season at Valencia, but the global have-a-go sessions were brought to a halt way back in 2007 following a run of expensive crashes.
Nine years later and MCN’s guest road tester and BT Sport MotoGP presenter Neil Hodgson is about to leave pit lane on the very Ducati Desmosedici GP16 on which Andrea 

Iannone secured his first victory since 2010 at the Red Bull Ring this summer.

It’s taken close to a decade for any manufacturer to let a civilian out on their priceless machine and even then it’s not a ‘normal’ rider, it’s Hodgson, a man that still has a place in Ducati’s heart having won the World Superbike championship for them back in 2003.

After taking a few minutes to calm down, Hodgson spoke to MCN about the once-in-a-lifetime experience. This is what he said…