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Di Giannantonio: "Challenging Marquez and Bagnaia on the GP25? In MotoGP nothing is easy"

"The pressure will be on their shoulders, I can think about having fun and learning. I will arrive at the tests 85 percent fit and in Lombok I will be back on the bike for the first time since the operation."

MotoGP: Di Giannantonio:

The 2025 season will be full of new developments, it will see many seat changes, the passage of Spanish world champion Martin to Aprilia carrying the #1, as well as the birth of the Ducati 'dream team' composed of Bagnaia and Marquez. The spotlight, however, will surely also be on Fabio Di Giannantonio, in his second year in the VR46 team, and who will be riding the brand new GP25 this year , the third and only other rider given the chance to tame it on the track, joined in the box by Franco Morbidelli on the GP24.

So this will be both a huge opportunity and a big responsibility for the rider from Rome to improve and shape up to the top riders in the category, Bagnaia and Marc Marquez in primis. A pressure that Fabio does not mind, after all we are talking about a rider who just over a year ago risked leaving the category, only to prove to everyone that he deserves to stay in the premier class by taming a bizarre GP23 that put a strain on his brand colleagues, except for Marc Marquez.

His shoulder injury on the 2024 season finale, however, meant that he had to bring to a premature conclusion his championship, a painful but necessary decision in view of what is shaping up to be a golden opportunity for Fabio Di Giannantonio to prove his worth on the track. An injury recovery from which Fabio reassures to be going well, although he has not yet had a chance to get back on the track to train. So all that remains is to wait for the first laps on the Panigale V4S in Mandalika to get a clearer idea, before the crucial tests in Sepang that will officially kick off the 2025 season.

You will face testing soon, where are you with your recovery from injury?
"I'm doing very well, it's been a long winter in which we've worked a lot," Fabio said, "I'm coming to the tests at a good 85 percent, the mobility of the shoulder is almost complete but there is still some strength missing. It will be interesting to see the sensations on the bike because I haven't been on it yet, however off the track I feel I am ready to face this season."

Is there a program for your return to the bike before testing?
"Yes, after the team presentation we will go to Lombok, we have a few days to ride the Panigale V4S. It will be three days of training and my first chance to see how the shoulder will behave on the track before the official tests at the beginning of the season, honestly I can't wait to get back on the track."

Do you already have goals for this season?
"Right now the main goal will be to do better than last season. In the first half of the championship it will be mostly important to understand and fine-tune the new GP25, so on the one hand it will be a different role than what I was used to. When you have a bike from the previous year you already start with a good base package and can focus on performance right away, whereas with the new bike there is figuring out the way, so it will be a new approach to the race weekend. It's clear, though, that I'm expecting the best package on the grid so it will be important to be fast right away and study Pecco and Marc's data as best I can to try to stay as close to them as possible."

Last year you were the rider most comfortable on the GP23 after Marc. In Barcelona you were not able to test the GP25, it will be a big jump, what do you expect from the new bike?
"It will be a big jump of two years going from the 23 to the 25. With the GP25 I will have all the official material and the latest evolutions, so it will be a big change for me. Last year I was very effective on the GP23, although not the most effective. This year, with this bike, I will have a chance to be among the best."

How do you experience having to compare yourself with Pecco and Marc, this year's 'dream team' of the factory Ducati team? They are not the two easiest riders to have to deal with.
"It's great, and I like the idea that I can learn a lot from them. I never thought that racing in MotoGP was easy, we compete at a very high level against the strongest riders in the category, which to date are the two of them and others. To be able to work with them on the same project is a fantastic opportunity. I think the pressure of having to win will be mostly on their shoulders, we will be able to have a little more fun, I will try to steal their secrets and maybe disrupt the fight between them a little bit. Having the same technical package will be a chance to have fun and learn, and why not even get some good results."

This will be your second consecutive year with the team, and getting on an official Ducati may be an advantage. Will this stability help you better handle the pressure of facing the best riders in MotoGP?
"It's good to have this kind of pressure, it means we have everything we need to do well and we can get good results. So I like having this pressure, it was what I was looking for. Morbidelli and I will have two different paths, he will start with a bike he already knows, while I will have to find my way on the GP25. Obviously I will try to be the best rider on the team, but above all I will try to be the best on the track, which will be the main focus."

In addition to having to compare yourself with the two factory team riders, there have been many seat changes this season, which one are you most curious about?
"I am most intrigued by the riders who have come off the Ducati, to observe what they will no longer find as a feeling on the bike, to see what they were used to and what they will no longer have, to better understand the strengths of the Ducati. Among them of course I am very curious about the world champion Martin, but also my former teammate Bezzecchi, because last year we raced with the same bike. In general, however, I will be focused on my performance, I want to be among the best. I've never compared myself much with my rivals, I never have, but I'm aiming for something great this season."

Dall'Igna said that in the development of the GP25, Pecco and Marquez may follow different paths. Between them do you feel more akin to one of them as a riding style, or will you follow your own path?
"In 2023 I was really a hard braker, and I was comparable to Pecco, but with the bike of last year it was much more difficult for me to do it. And since Marc joined Ducati, when I was checking his data, the particular thing is the way we use the throttle, we were quite similar. So as you said I have something of each one. Thinking about the project and development, maybe we will have three different ways to work, but also I think the best way would be to work on the same path, to speed up the development. But Gigi will manage this at his best for sure. In these winter meetings I have not had any kind of information about any limitations on customizing our package. So I think I will also have the eventual opportunity to go my own way from a technical point of view."

Automatic Translation by DeepL

Translated by Julian Thomas

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