Legendary Ducati engineer Franco Farne dies

Franco Farne, one of the key engineers involved in the formation of modern Ducati, has died aged 81 after more than 50 years associated with the Italian firm.

Farne is one of the small band of engineers responsible for the Desmodromic valve design that has now become so intrinsic to Ducati engines on the road and track.

Farne worked with fellow Ducati legend Fabio Taglioni and the pair were fundamental in some of Ducati’s greatest racing moments including the win by Mike Hailwood at the Isle of Man TT in 1978 and also the famous victory of Paul Smart at the Imola 200 in 1972. Farne was one of the tiny number of people who worked at the Ducati racing department and kept it running throughout the 1970s.

Ducati’s Museum curator Livio Lodi said: “In the 1970s, Farné was part of the small nucleus of experts that kept Ducati’s racing department up and running. In those years, the racing department was separated from the rest of the factory and therefore also outside the state controlled management that ran the rest of the company.

“Ducati’s top racing bikes were created within a separate structure known as NCR, named for Giorgio Nepoti and Rino Caracchi. In those years, Farné and Taglioni were the only people that really believed in the importance of racing for Ducati’s overall success; the state controlled management did not appreciate the image and prestige that come with winning a race. As a result, Farné and Taglioni were constantly struggling to make ends meet with scarce economic resources.

“In the 1980s and 1990s, under the direction of the Castiglioni brothers, Farné continued to work for Ducati, now in the internal racing department. In 1996, when he was 62 years old, he was eligible for retirement but continued to work for Ducati.

“In 2000, Farné went to work for Bimota to manage their World Superbike team. When the Bimota team failed, because their sponsors didn’t come through, Farné went back to work with the NCR team, a move that essentially brought him back to Ducati.

“The list of riders Farne worked with in the racing department is impressive. It includes Bruno Spaggiari, Mike Hailwood, Ricardo Fargas, Paul Smart, Ricardo Fargas, Paul Smart, Franco Uncini, Benjamin Grau, Salvador Canellas, Virginio Ferrari, Mario Lega, Tony Rutter, Davide Tardozzi, Marco Lucchinelli, Raymond Roche, Giancarlo Falappa, Doug Polen, Carl Fogarty, Troy Corser and Pier Francesco Chili.

“Ducati is mourning the death of one of the most iconic figures in its history, one of the true pillars of history Ducati Corse department. Few people have been able to do so much and give so much.”