New season, new colors, new adventure: in 2022 Fabio Di Giannantonio makes his debut in MotoGP and does so with the Gresini team, which starting this year with the support of Ducati is launching into a new project as an independent team. Diggia and the team of the unforgettable Fausto Gresini are back together once again and will make their debut in the premier class with one of the most competitive bikes on the grid: that of the Roman rider will be one of eight Desmosedici at the starting line and the rookie can’t wait to begin.
Needless to say, the goal is to be the best rookie of 2022, even though the season has yet to hit the ground running. In fact, MotoGP will fly to Malaysia at the end of the month for winter tests, where Di Giannantonio will return to the saddle of his Ducati after a first contact in Jerez in mid-November. The first impressions were very positive and the enthusiasm to get back to work on the bike is palpable on the day of the official presentation of the Gresini team.
Fabio Di Giannantonio has in fact removed the veils from the Desmosedici that he will drive in 2022 together with his teammate Enea Bastianini. He does not hide the thrill of making his debut in MotoGP and doing it with Gresini, one of the teams that most believed in him, sharing the garage again with Beast after having been on the team together in the past.
How did you prepare for this new step? What are the expectations?
“The preparation for MotoGP is certainly different from that of Moto2, because the races are longer and I will have to improve 100% physically as well. But I think I’ll be ready without any problem. It will be a new challenge, so I just expect to learn day by day, race by race, lap by lap. The goal will be to improve, understand, collect data and information. Now I want to start the season well ”.
After your first impressions in testing, what are the next aspects you will need to learn about MotoGP to start the season?
“From the tests I realized that I have to improve the corner a bit in the middle of the corner, I have to trust the tires more. Because with this bike it’s amazing how much you can lean and overall I have to improve everything, because basically I only did a hundred laps in two days, so now we are ready to go to Malaysia for seven days of testing. There I will understand better what my weaknesses are and what my strengths are, so I work on it “.
You have raced together as teammates in the past, but this year will be a little different. Do you expect to work more together this year than in the past?
“I think that in general in MotoGP there is more work to do, already for ourselves. But we have a good relationship, so I’m sure if I have questions for Aeneas or vice versa there will be no problem helping us. The team is also a huge family and Ducati’s way of working is to share data and information, so it won’t be a problem to share them, as well as comments ”.
Enea Bastianini, Fabio Di Giannantonio, Gresini Racing
Photo by: Gresini Racing
It will be your first year in MotoGP, how will your physical preparation be? Has it changed to be ready to ride MotoGP?
“Surely when you have a new bike you also need to understand when you can relax on the bike. It takes time, sometimes years. But in general the physical aspect is very important already from Moto3. Obviously you have to work a lot on cardio, but also on strength, because the bike has a lot of power, so it pushes and you have to do the same. Just in general you have to be the best athlete you can and you don’t have to be too big in terms of weight, but definitely the best version of yourself, I think ”.
Fausto will be with you with the spirit, what advice he has given you in the past do you carry with you to be able to go on the track?
“Fausto always told me to have fun. Having fun racing and experiencing the world of MotoGP, because when you have fun, everything gets easier somehow. Fausto has also left this mark on the people who work here, in the team and in the family. We continue to carry on Fausto’s teachings and I think it was great advice that I am understanding as I grow up. When I was little I only thought about getting on the bike and pushing, but when you have fun everything is better ”.
In your opinion, did you take the right path to get to MotoGP?
“Yes, I think I made the right path because in the end the important thing is to get to MotoGP in a certain way. I land in MotoGP with a Ducati where you can do really well, I tested the bike at Jerez and I liked it a lot, in my opinion with this bike here if I learned quickly I could already do very well from the first year. So the path has been what it has been, there are riders who do shorter, longer routes. But in the end everyone has their own story, this is mine and I think I made the right moves. Now we are here thanks to the Gresini family and Ducati who gave me this opportunity, I will obviously try to make the most of it ”.
You always seem very confident, but as a rookie do you fear anything in particular? Or do you have more of a MotoGP hunger adrenaline?
“There really isn’t too much room for fear in this world, in my opinion. If you are not the one who most believes in himself, no one will do it for you. So it is very important that you are aware of your means, your talent and the work you do at home too. I am very sure of myself, I know I can do well, obviously I have a lot of things to learn and I need time, but I’m sure I can get there. I say I’m nervous because obviously, like any driver, it’s an emotion. When you are little you start with the minibikes, you grow up and dream of getting as close as possible to the MotoGP, maybe one day try it or race it. This was done by Enea and I, like the other twenty riders on the grid, so it’s crazy. I’m thrilled to see myself on the MotoGP grid competing against the best riders in the world and trying to be one of them. It is more emotion than fear ”.
You and Aeneas visited the Ducati Museum. What is the bike or the situation that has moved you the most and that can inspire you?
“The Museum is always crazy, you see the whole Ducati history, all the riders who have raced before and therefore also the importance of being part of such a family. Honestly, every time I see Bayliss’s bikes I get excited, in fact I’ve always raced with 21 especially for him. He has always been my idol, so seeing his bikes there with which he raced, won races and titles is always an emotion. Every time you go to the Museum, I try to get there and I caress them a bit, I think how nice it must have been to ride those bikes there ”.
Enea Bastianini, Fabio Di Giannantonio, Gresini Racing
Photo by: Gresini Racing
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