Fabio Di Giannantonio, referee of the duel between Bagnaia and Marquez: "Try to annoy them"

The Italian will be riding the GP 25, the bike of the year, like the riders of the official Ducati team, Francesco Bagnaia and Marc Marquez. Given the domination of the Italians in recent months, he seems to be the only one equipped to come and tease them, which he assumes.

Published 28/01/2025 à 19:03

Cyprien Juilhard

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Fabio Di Giannantonio, referee of the duel between Bagnaia and Marquez: "Try to annoy them"

Fabio Di Giannantonio will ride a factory bike for the first time in his career. @DPPI

In just over a year, Fabio Di Giannantonio's career has taken a completely crazy turn. After a discreet first year at Gresini in 2022, despite a pole in Italy, the Roman started 2023 in the same way: with anonymous, even insipid performances until the announcement of the arrival of Marc Marquez in his place for 2024.

Without a seat for the following season, Fabio Di Giannantonio was awakened by the possible end of his career in MotoGP and has completely revealed itself in the Money team: fourth in India, he took his first podium in Australia the following week when Johann Zarco won. The improvement continued until the last rounds of the year when Fabio Di Giannantonio managed to win his first race in Qatar.

His victory has finished convincing Valentino Rossi and Alessio Salucci to offer him a contract at VR46 in place of Luca Marini, who was leaving for Honda. The 26-year-old rider's first season in Ducati's satellite team was less brilliant (10th), but convincing enough to offer him a privilege that had been almost unexpected a year earlier: a factory bike.

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Di Giannantonio will be the only satellite driver on a GP25

The Italian will benefit, for his second season at VR46, from a GP25, the new Ducati bike that Pecco Bagnaia and Marc Marquez will also have in the official team. The Borgo Panigale manufacturer supplied bikes of the year to the Pramac riders until last year – Jorge Martin and Franco Morbidelli – but the switch of Paolo Campinoti's team to Yamaha bikes has completely reshuffled the cards.

With only two satellite teams now, Ducati did not want to provide two official bikes to its customers. So, only Fabio Di Giannantonio will benefit, while his new teammate Franco Morbidelli will return to GP24 after having tasted GP25 last year with Pramac. “Di Gia” finds himself the rider best placed to interfere in the highly anticipated duel between Pecco Bagnaia and Marc Marquez.

Fabio Di Giannantonio (center) managed to contain the comeback of Pecco Bagnaia (left) to win his first GP in Qatar in 2023. @DPPI

The Ducati should – barring any huge surprises – be well ahead of the competition again and, despite their undeniable qualities, Jorge Martin (Aprilia), fabio quartararo (Yamaha), Pedro Acosta (KTM) or even Johann Zarco (Honda) will not be able to fight for the championship. Some should be able to get involved in the fight for victories – the Aprilia and KTM riders – as they have done in recent years, but the title seems once again promised to a Desmosedici.

In this chessboard, what place can Fabio Giannantonio occupy? That of the foil or conversely that of the party pooper between the two official Ducati riders? “Riding a factory bike and having the support of the Ducati team is a fantastic thing for both me and the team.” rejoiced the n°49 during the reveal of the VR46 livery. "It's a great achievement that gives me extra motivation, but also pressure. It's also a privilege." Di Giannantonio tries to relieve the pressure by assuring that nothing is harder than riding in the factory team, like Francesco Bagnaia and Marc Marquez, who will feel much more the weight of Gigi Dall'Igna's great expectations. On the contrary, the Italian intends to take advantage of the low expectations surrounding him to pull off big shots.

“I’ve been waiting for this moment my whole life. It’s a responsibility, of course, but it also gives me the freedom to ride without the immense pressure of being in the factory team. The real weight of expectation is on Pecco [Bagnaia] and Marc [Marquez]. We can have fun, be the underdogs and even try to annoy them. Riding at their level will be a chance to learn and improve. There are no disadvantages, only possibilities.” With Marc Marquez in his thirties, good performances could allow him to claim the Catalan's reins once his retirement is announced. But the eight-time world champion's regained health suggests that he is here to stay...

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