MV Agusta planning Multistrada rival?

LONG before Ducati made the original Multistrada the firm's name had already been applied to a very similar machine – the Ducati Elefant.

Yes, Ducati, not Cagiva. Back then, Claudio Castiglioni owned both firms, and in some markets – including America – sold the Cagiva Elefant with the Ducati badge on the tank, capitalising on the older firm's better recognition and emphasising the fact the bike was powered by a Ducati V-twin.

The simple fact is that long before the current boom for big trailies Castiglioni had recognised it was a market he wanted to be involved with. These days, with the Cagiva brand in suspended animation and with Ducati long-since sold off, he remains the boss of MV Agusta, and he's got plans to get back into the big trailie market.

Last year, MV Agusta revealed to its dealers that the new F3 triple would spawn at least two further bikes, one a mini-Brutale called the B3, the other referred to as a road-oriented supermoto. And now it has emerged that MV has gained a trademark on the name “Elephant” (with a “ph” rather than the old “f”).

With the F3 and F4 ranges basically mirroring each other, it would be no surprise if a four-cylinder, 1000cc take on the same idea also appears at some stage, providing MV can continue to find the finance it needs to bring on new models now its once again an independent company after its brief spell as a Harley-Davidson subsidiary.