Ducati Multistrada 1200 Enduro: Live from the launch!

We've just arrived at the launch hotel in Sardinia for Ducati's world press test of the new Multistrada 1200 Enduro.

Before the press conference kicks off later on we wanted to show you a few pictures from our iPhone of the new 1200 Enduro in all its accesssorised 160bhp glory. Just look at that Termignoni pipe for a start. We've already tried to fit a pipe in our bag but got rumbled.

Ducati has made no bones about this bike being fully equipped to take on the world, and while it may look a bit like a standard Multistrada there are hundreds of changes to the bike. In the metal it's a whole different bike.

It sits higher, it's wider, the riding position is different to take on off-road riding, it's designed to be more comfortable, carry more luggage and generally look a whole lot harder than the standard Multistrada. Think of it as a direct rival to the BMW R1200GS Adventure and KTM's 1290 Super Adventure.

For instance, the Multistrada 1200 Enduro has 8-level traction-control, 8-level adjustable wheelie control, cruise control, a skid plate, full LED cornering headlights, cornering ABS, and 30-litre aluminium panniers and a centre stand. And that's just for starters. It costs £16,690 in red or £16,890 in grey or white.

The whole theme of the launch is global adventure, so no surprises that we'll be riding some 150km on road and around 70km off-road tomorrow.

We'll bring you the full technical glory later on and when we ride the bike, but for now, we wanted to share these pics with you of the bike at its launch in Sardinia. We're very excited to be riding it tomorrow. More later.