Gabriele Rumi

The man behind the Fondmetal and, latterly, Minardi F1 teams, has died, aged 61.

The one-time hilIclimb competitor’s Fondmetal company supplied alloy wheels to F1 teams, and from 1983 he sponsored Piercarlo Ghinzani in an Osella.

In 1990, he took over the team, renaming it Fondmetal, but closed it after two poor seasons. He bought Minardi in 1997, but sold the cash-strapped team last year.