Description
After his team of modified Moto Guzzis won the 1984 and 1985 U. S. Endurance Championship and the 1987 Pro Twins series, U. S. Moto Guzzi guru Dr. John Wittner was made an offer he couldn’t refuse. Summoned to Italy by Guzzi godfather Alejandro de Tomaso, Wittner, a former dentist turned endurance racer, was asked to help develop a new world-beating superbike. Guzzi revealed a prototype at the 1989 Milan show and named it for the famous Florida circuit (where they won the 250-mile endurance race in 1985), but in typical Italian fashion it took until late 1991 for the Daytona to go into production. Although the hot rod Daytona engine was based around the classic “big block” air-cooled Moto Guzzi transverse V-twin, in the end it retained only the crankshaft and crankcases of the standard engine. Using the 78mm stroke of the 948cc Le Mans 1000 combined with new plated alloy cylinders with a 90mm bore, it displaced 992cc. A bright red sport fairing melded into the gas tank just above the Daytona’s all-new cylinder heads, grandly marked “OHC 4V” for overhead camshaft 4-valve. This fabulous example has only covered delivery mileage after 24 years and is currently showing 208kms from new. Finished in red this Daytona would make the perfect addition to any collection, and considering it is probably the lowest mileage example in the world, a one-off opportunity.
