by Michael Gougis

Mystique, personality, image – these are things that public relations agents, influencers and consultants spend much of their time manufacturing. But something that is real, something authentic, well, that grows organically, over time, into something that doesn’t just grab attention – it resonates.

And this is part of the attraction of the 1972 Ducati 750 Imola factory racebike, set to be offered for public sale for what is said to be the first time at Mecum Auctions’ Monterey sale on Aug. 15.

Ducati didn’t go racing – it dove into racing, let it seep into everything the company did. So when Italy, spurred on by the international popularity of the Daytona 200, decided to create a European version of the same race at Imola in 1972, Ducati went all-in to win it. And when they did, a city celebrated, and a legend grew.

A batch of seven factory-built racebikes, transported via a custom glass-walled Fiat van, showed up at Imola for the inaugural event. These were powered by a 748cc V-twin with a 10:1 compression ratio, desmodromic valve trains and a bore and stroke of 80mm x 74mm, with a pair of 40mm Dell’Orto carburetors with accelerator pumps. The trellis frame – along with the rest of the machine – was lightened at the factory wherever possible, and when the bikes hit the track, they were putting out a claimed 80 bhp and weighed 292 pounds dry. The bikes were long, with 60 inch wheelbases and 18-inch spoked wheels, but they worked.

In a 2004 interview published at onewheeldrive.net, Paul Smart recalled testing the machine at the Modena circuit immediately after getting off a plane from the U.S. and having his crew tell him that he would be racing on street tires because racing tires wouldn’t last the distance. He rode it and said, “I was really tired and my mood poor, and when I came into the pits I was ready to criticize and rip the bike to bits, but as I came in to the pits I knew something was up. The whole team was jumping up and down, clapping and patting me on the back. It seems I had just broken the world Champion (Giacomo) Agostini’s lap record — on street tires!”

The bike on auction, frame number DM750S751110, is one of two prepared for 1972 Imola winner Smart, according to auction information and documentation prepared by Ducati historian Ian Falloon. Ducati fielded four riders and finished 1-2, with Smart ahead of Bruno Spaggiari, the pair smashing the existing lap records and leaving early leader Giacomo Agostini on an MV Agusta behind before Agostini retired with mechanical problems. Ducati was confident that it would win and didn’t want its riders taking each other out, so Smart and Spaggiari were told that if they finished 1-2, the prize money would be split between them.

The victory was one of those moments historians point to as foundational in building the mystique that is the Ducati of today. After the race, the bikes went back into the glass-sided van, Smart and Spaggiari – exhausted, still in their leathers – went on top of the van, and they toured Bologna in a long victory convoy of horn-honking motorists. Smart recalled that the van stopped at the train station, where it was mobbed by thousands of elated fans and could not move. “We just joined in the party,” Smart says. “It seemed an entire city came out to celebrate this glory for Ducati, Bologna and Italy.”

Smart’s winning motorcycle is now housed at the Ducati Museum in Bologna, Italy. The motorcycle being offered is believed by Falloon to be the most original surviving example outside of Smart’s winning machine. It is also the first original 1972 Imola 200 factory racer to be publicly offered for sale, Mecum says.

The motorcycle retains numerous original components, including its fairing, fuel tank, seat, tail section, and one of only three surviving original sand-cast engine cases. According to the documentation, it has never been crashed, altered, or modified. The bike underwent a documented restoration in Germany during the 1990s using original, irreplaceable factory components. Restoration records include photographs, parts inventories, and notes from the professional restorer who completed the work.

Its provenance is further supported by historical photographs, technical documentation, and two authentication reports prepared by Falloon. The motorcycle was displayed at the Ducati Museum in Bologna for three years and previously appeared at the Nürburgring Rennsport Museum during the 1990s.

Also up for auction is a 1974 Ducati 750SS “Green Frame,” one of 401 examples produced. The “Green Frame” editions were produced by the factory to capitalize on its Imola success, and according to Falloon’s assessment, the unrestored motorcycle remains in highly original condition, has had only two owners since new, and is believed to be among approximately 10 surviving examples worldwide preserved to a comparable standard.