Tom Cruise's Fake Ducati The "Night And Day" difference in a Ducati HyperMotard. Take a close look at this shot of Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz sitting astride a Ducati Hypermotard on the set of their new movie "Knight and Day." Notice anything odd? No? Take a closer look at the swingarm and especially the engine right in front of the crazy Scientologist's leg. That's right, this is actually an Aprilia SXV550 in disguise. It appears that the Aprilia is being used as the stunt bike for the movie, performing jumps, slides and other difficult tasks, while the Ducati is used for close ups and low speed shots where Cruise and Diaz are actually riding it. So why are the movie's creators ditching a sponsored placement for a bike from a rival brand? Simple, the Hypermotard is too heavy and too fragile to pull off the stunts the schlocky action flick requires, but the SXV is lighter, has longer travel suspension and is built specifically to take this kind of abuse. The two bikes aren't actually rivals, competing in different segments. The SXV is a proper lightweight supermoto where the Hypermotard is a larger, faster, more practical street bike. We're in no way saying the Ducati is a bad bike, it's just not built to do stuff like this. The Aprilia SXV550 weighs just 268lbs (dry) to the Ducati Hypermotard 1100's 379lbs (dry) figure. That makes the Aprilia easier to control and gives the SXV's suspension an easier time landing jumps. Like other supermotos based on dirt bikes, the SXV should also be quicker to accelerate in the specific environment of these stunts -- low speeds and short distances -- due to that lower weight and its very short gearing. What's all this mean? Well for starters, that's not Tom Cruise riding when you see the bike jumping or sliding. While the totally heterosexual movie star does ride, the studio's not going to let him do so at high speed in nothing but a chambray shirt and a smile. The other conclusion should be equally obvious, while the Hypermotard is an awesome street bike, it's in no way capable of performing most of the stunts you'll see in the movie, that stuff is better left for CGI special effects and proper dirt bikes. Originally post on HellForLeatherMagazine.com Update: Above we showed you an Aprilia SXV dressed up as a Ducati Hypermotard that Tom Cruise was riding on the set of "Knight and Day." A bit embarrassing for Ducati, right? It was and it caught them by surprise, they didn't know about the bike and didn't know why it was being used. Now, with Ducati's help, we've gotten to the bottom of the story. Turns out it wasn't the Hypermotard's ability that was the problem, it was Cruise's. According to Ducati and "Knight and Day's" stunt coordinator, Greg Smrz, the Ducprilia was at no point used for any scenes in the movie. What the Aprilicati was created for was an ESPN promo in which Cruise himself decided to do a 30-foot long, 3-foot high jump on camera. Apparently the looney tune is a good rider, just not up to the standards of a movie stunt person and there was obviously some concern for his well being, helmetless jumps and all. Thus the SXVtard. "He isn't as good a rider (although pretty good from what I hear) as the stunt guys, so they tried to make it at light as possible by using the Aprilia, and having a dummy passenger to make it easier and safer for him," explains Ducati. "It shaved 40% of the weight. They looked at pure dirt bikes as a cheaper alternative but the Aprilia was easiest to make look like the Hyper." Greg Smrz explains further, "If you will note, there is a 50lbs dummy on the back of Tom's motorcycle. The reason for this is weight. In addition, the Aprilia has longer travel suspension." That's right that weird-looking blonde chick on the back is actually a 50lbs weight intended to shift the bike + movie star + dummy's center of gravity backwards, ensuring the rear wheel would hit first when Cruise landed. So if you see a Ducati in the film, it's a Ducati, albeit likely a heavily modified one. According to Ducati, the bike's ability to stick huge jumps was boosted by, "totally different fork, shocks, link, rear subframe, weld beads on engine mounts, re-enforced steering head and swingarm mounts." If you see a Ducati doing unrealistic things in the movie though, that's probably CGI. Originally post on HellForLeatherMagazine.com

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