di Giannantonio will try to “disturb the fight” between “under pressure” Bagnaia, Marquez
Diggia hopes to “steal some secrets and disturb a little bit the fight between the two under-pressure guys”
VR46’s Fabio di Giannantonio is out to “steal some secrets” and “disturb the fight between the two under-pressure guys” in MotoGP 2025.
Those ‘under-pressure guys’ are factory Ducati stars Francesco Bagnaia and new signing Marc Marquez, the overwhelming pre-season title favourites.
Dark horse di Giannantonio, starting his second VR46 season, will be the only other rider on a factory Desmosedici GP25.
“I think that we have an amazing opportunity to improve, learn from the best on the grid and show our potential,” di Giannantonio said in zoom call ahead of today’s Pertamina VR46 team launch in Jakarta.
“Our goal and our mission for this year is to enjoy every moment on the factory bike, which for the team and for me is an amazing achievement [in itself]. And improve on last year’s performances by trying to be on the podium.
“It will be amazing also to compare ourselves to them [Pecco and Marc], try to steal some secrets and disturb the fight between the two under-pressure guys.
“Because in the end, we have the same bike. So I want to be one of them, one of the best.
“So the goal is to arrive as close as possible to them, and in case we can, why not try to beat them?
"For sure I aim for something big.”
Regarding bike development, di Giannantonio confirmed his riding style is a blend of Bagnaia and Marquez.
“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,” he said.
“And since Marc joined Ducati, when I was checking his data, the particular thing is in 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 [if] we work on the same path, to speed up the development. But Gigi will manage this at his best for sure.”
The Italian, who won the 2023 Qatar MotoGP for Gresini, took a best result of fourth on a year-old bike at VR46 last season before skipping the final two rounds to undergo shoulder surgery.
Diggia, who estimates he is currently 85% fit, will ride a Panigale Superbike at Mandalika next week before travelling to the Sepang MotoGP test from February 5-7.
New team-mate Franco Morbidelli, like Gresini riders Alex Marquez and Fermin Aldeguer, will race a Desmosedici GP24 this year.
Peter has been in the paddock for 20 years and has seen Valentino Rossi come and go. He is at the forefront of the Suzuki exit story and Marc Marquez’s injury issues.
