It is among the least shocking bulletins of the 2025 MotoGP rider market, after Ducati’s Davide Tardozzi gave the sport away through the British Grand Prix.
However Fabio Di Giannantonio’s two-year contract with the Italian marque to race a full manufacturing unit bike at VR46 is a welcome transfer.
The 25-year-old’s transfer to MotoGP in 2022 with the Gresini squad was one thing late group proprietor Fausto had lengthy had in his plans, which stored the Italian out of Aprilia’s arms when it was scrabbling round for choices for the 2021 season.
Even after Fausto Gresini’s tragic dying early in 2021, his needs to advertise Di Giannantonio have been honoured by the group. However his rookie season wasn’t something to put in writing dwelling about, Di Giannantonio scoring simply 24 factors, whereas a lacklustre first half to the 2023 marketing campaign already plunged his MotoGP profession into doubt even earlier than Marc Marquez’s shock hyperlinks to the squad happened.
Fourteen rounds into 2023, Di Giannantonio sat on simply 54 factors. Then started an unimaginable run of kind that noticed him break into the highest six for the primary time, rating a maiden podium after which take a well-known first victory within the Qatar GP whereas his profession nonetheless hung within the steadiness.
Such was his kind within the again half of the 2023 season that Di Giannantonio was the third-highest scorer behind solely world champion Francesco Bagnaia and title runner-up Jorge Martin. Had it not been for a tyre strain penalty denying him a podium in Valencia, he would have ended up second of that trio.
Although there have been hyperlinks to Honda, Di Giannantonio discovered sanctuary with Valentino Rossi’s squad as Luca Marini’s substitute following his transfer to HRC.
Going up in opposition to Marco Bezzecchi, who was third within the 2023 standings, not a lot hope was given for Di Giannantonio to have the ability to outpace his highly-rated team-mate. However after 10 rounds of the 2024 marketing campaign, Bezzecchi is being properly and really trounced.
Di Giannantonio is at present eighth within the standings on 104 factors. At a present points-per-round tempo of 10.4, he’s on the right track to far exceed his 2023 haul of 151. Staff-mate Bezzecchi, who has struggled to get on prime of the GP23’s braking traits, has amassed simply 61 factors at this stage of the 12 months.
Bezzecchi does have a podium in hand over Di Giannantonio, however has solely outscored him throughout a weekend twice, talking to the consistency the latter has discovered on that bundle. On prime of this, he’s the second-best GP23 rider behind solely Marc Marquez – which is not any imply feat.
Fabio Di Giannantonio, Frankie Carchedi, MotoGP race, Qatar MotoGP 19…
A lot of Di Giannantonio’s kind will be attributed to his 12 months working with crew chief Frankie Carchedi at Gresini final 12 months. World champion with Joan Mir at Suzuki in 2020, Carchedi – who instructed this author final 12 months that his rider had a really totally different set-up to the opposite Ducati riders – helped get Di Giannantonio to be stronger underneath braking to get nearer to the opposite Desmosedici riders whereas additionally guaranteeing he may exploit his power of driving properly out of corners.
At VR46, Di Giannantonio has been welcomed into that fold regardless of being an ‘outsider’ so far as Rossi’s Academy is worried and has continued to develop as a rider working with David Munoz – who will transfer to Alex Rins’ storage at Yamaha in 2025 – as crew chief.
Such has been Di Giannantonio’s kind this season that he had no scarcity of curiosity, with Fabio Quartararo hyping him up as a most popular choice for a Pramac Yamaha seat previous to the summer time break.
Plan A for Di Giannantonio was to stay with VR46 and safe a manufacturing unit Ducati, which has come to cross. And it’s excessive reward from the Italian marque, because it scales again its manufacturing unit providing to only three riders for 2025.
Naturally, there will probably be extra expectation on Di Giannantonio’s shoulders now to start out usually muscling in on the rostrum battle on the GP25. He’s confirmed, although, that his resolve is robust and this gained’t be a chance he’ll let cross by.
Whereas his has been a narrative many have likened to one thing of a fairytale, it can’t be forgotten that this was a rider harbouring race-winning potential who was virtually left with no experience even after he’d breached the highest step of the rostrum.
‘What-ifs’ don’t rely for a lot in motorsport and your most up-to-date outcomes are largely what you’ll be judged by. However Di Giannantonio’s MotoGP journey up to now is proof that younger riders must be given extra time to adapt. Not everybody stepping up from Moto2 goes to be as immediately sensible as a Pedro Acosta or a Fabio Quartararo.
Wanting on the crop of rookies Di Giannantonio stepped up with in 2022, Remy Gardner – then reigning Moto2 champion – had his MotoGP hopes smashed after simply half a season, whereas Darryn Binder’s ill-fated Moto3-to-MotoGP step was a one-and-done job. Whereas his promotion with RNF was financially motivated, and his axing was conveniently timed with Aprilia taking on from Yamaha as its satellite tv for pc associate, he nonetheless had no likelihood to adapt.
Raul Fernandez, who additionally stepped as much as MotoGP with Di Giannantonio, was arguably as deserving of an prolonged keep within the premier class halfway by means of 2023 because the Italian was. However the playing cards fell for him that his contract with Aprilia after his sole 12 months with KTM was for 2 seasons, and flashes of velocity in 2024 in addition to the backing from Davide Brivio has earned him two extra years with Trackhouse on a manufacturing unit Aprilia.
With out query, Di Giannantonio’s new Ducati contract with VR46 is wholly deserved. Now let it function a lesson to an impatient mindset that has prevailed for too lengthy in MotoGP…
