At the start of the 1970s, Ducati’s production motorcycles had been single-cylinder machines. As demand grew for more powerful sporting motorcycles, the factory developed the 750 GT, its first twin-cylinder road model. Fabio Taglioni drew the first sketches in 1970, and the bike entered production in 1971.
The 750 GT paired a 748 cc twin-cylinder engine with a road-going chassis. During development, a single front disc replaced the originally planned drum brakes. Maximum power was 60 hp and dry weight was 185 kg, figures that help place the model among the sporting road bikes of its era.
The distinction between the road bike and its racing descendants matters. Machines derived from the GT won the 1972 Imola 200, but those racers used desmodromic valve gear that the standard 750 GT did not have. That system reached a road-going Ducati twin the following year in the 750 Supersport Desmo. The GT’s significance lies both in the prehistory of a famous victory and in Ducati’s move from one cylinder to two.