Image: Supplied.

Incoming Italian marque Ducati will carry an optimistic outlook into its 450SX debut at Anaheim 1’s opening round of Monster Energy Supercross 2026, according to Ducati Corse off-road general manager Pablo Ciabatti.

The Troy Lee Designs Red Bull Ducati Factory Racing team will field two machines behind the gates this weekend, as Justin Barcia and Dylan Ferrandis lead the organization in its maiden campaign onboard the Desmo450 MX.

After making a full-time entry in the MXGP World Championship last year with success, Ducati has quickly established a SuperMotocross World Championship (SMX) effort with Troy Lee Designs and in association with Factory Connection, forming a strong foundation in the US.

“We prepared the ground to come to Supercross in 2026 – it was a lot of work, and I have to give credit to Ziggy [Rick Zielfelder] and his crew who did a fantastic job,” Ciabatti explained. “I think we shipped the first bikes here in March or April of 2025, and they have been working very hard since then.

“We said that even if the bike was not ready for 2026, we would continue to push forward. I’m very happy that Justin and Dylan believe in the project, as we need a lot of support in developing the bike. It’s not one of those bikes that is already proven and ready to win, but we believe that the potential is there, and we just need to work hard to get to where we want to be.”

Both riders form a highly-capable Supercross pairing, with Barcia a multi-time 450SX race winner and 250SX regional champion, while the 2021 450MX champion Ferrandis also claimed back-to-back 250SX West titles in 2019 and 2020.