MV Agusta chief Claudio Castiglioni has died aged 64.
Mr Castiglioni was originally an executive with Cagiva, then his family's metalworking company. But he took the chance to combine business with his fascination with motorcycles, and set up a separate operating arm to purchase iconic, but struggling brands Ducati, Moto Morini and Husqvarna. Under Mr Castiglioni's stewardship, Cagiva became the world's fifth largest motorcycle manufacturer in the late 1980s.
Mr Castiglioni is arguably best remembered for his overseeing the appointment of designed Pierre Teneblance - developer of the 851 and 916 models for Ducati, followed by his ongoing love affair with exotic sportsbike and famed racing marque MV Agusta, which was acquired by the Cagiva group in 1991.
Italian motorcycle companies are like soap-operas; they cannot go from one day to the next without some form of drama. And Cagiva was no different.
Monetary difficulties caused by Cagiva's non-motorcycling divisions saw Ducati, Moto Morini and Husqvarna sold to venure capitalists Texas Pacific Group. Later difficulties saw Mr Castiglioni sell MV Agusta to Malaysian company Proton - later buying it back after then owners Harley-Davidson sold it back to Mr Castiglioni as they decided to streamline their product range.
Mr Castiglioni's son Giovanni now heads up MV Agusta.
Meanwhile, there has been another twist in the tale of the Isle of Wight TT. Readers of earlier columns will recall my interview with Kara Rann, the young woman behind the campaign to bring road racing to the Isle of Wight.
At the time, Ms Rann reported that the Isle of Man TT organisers had been somewhat less than effusive and had not offered support or guidance. But it seems they are taking the IoW idea somewhat more seriously in the background.
According to Isle of Man radio station EnergyFM, plans for a TT World Series are being put into place. It seems the IoM Treasury are looking for a consultant to perform a feasibility study.
The Island's Department of Economic Development (DED) wants to create a series of road racing events using the TT brand to generate more income for the Isle of Man, and is quoted as saying the series "Would be an attractive commercial opportunity for host locations whilst protecting the TT brand."
So would this mean bringing together the IoM TT, the Northern Ireland road races, an IoW road race and perhaps something on the Nubergring? I believe six races are required to achieve world championship status (this is why the old road racing world championship disappeared, as race numbers reduced as circuits were lost), and the above should just about meet the target.
Watch this space.
Back with the IoW campaign, Kara has promised an official website will launch shortly. In the meantime, you can show your support by joining the campaign on Facebook. Just search for "Isle of Wight TT".