MotoGP | Diggia: “Grateful for Quartararo’s words, it’s not a given”

In a frenetic MotoGP that is preparing for the summer break with a rider market in great ferment, Fabio Di Giannantonio smiles. The Roman shows up at the Sachsenring as the “market man”, torn between two or even three choices that announce great future projects. Diggia is contested by several teams, a situation completely different from last year and which shows the growth implemented in 2023.

One of the options is to stay with the VR46 team, but there is also Yamaha, which has knocked on his door offering him the M1 of the Pramac team. The new challenge of Paolo Campinoti’s team is tempting Saywhich is strongly tempted by the M1, not as competitive as the Ducati, but with a solid growth project.

Here comes the dilemma: better a GP25 or an M1? “If I knew, I would have already signed!”, begins the Roman from the VR46 team with a smile, who then explains: “We are working and soon I will know too, together with you! In my options there is only room to ride a factory bike next year. In the position I am in and for the speed I am showing, I think I deserve a factory bike and I am only considering projects with factory bikes”.

How things change after a year: if for 2024 Say he had found a bike only at the end of the season, now he is disputed between several teams: “I am very grateful for my situation, which is beautiful. We come from a very difficult moment last year and we managed, with a lot of work, to catapult the situation. Now we are in a moment in which I am the market man and it is a very beautiful thing”.

“But this is also the moment when you have to stay focused and decide well about the future, because in that case it will be two years. They are long, you have to decide on the project and I want to be in a condition that allows me to do really well. I am at an age where I think it is important to do well on the track and I need the best project to do it. You have to choose between two beautiful situations… Or three. So in the end it is not so difficult to concentrate on the track. I do a beautiful sport, a wonderful job, this is not the real difficulty. It is just deciding well about our future, but we are talking about two really beautiful situations”, explains the VR46 standard-bearer.

He has a relaxed face and a calm smile Saywho knows he has the opportunity to choose projects that motivate him and that he considers solid for his growth. Among these is, in fact, Yamaha. Although the bikes are not winning at the moment, there is a long-term project, especially with factory bikes, which is the Roman’s primary interest: “I am very flattered by the fact that Yamaha is interested in me and I like that a manufacturer is interested in me. This is a reason why Yamaha is an option for me, and this is also why I am evaluating it”.

The flattery also comes from Yamaha’s top man, Fabio Quartararo. The 2021 world champion was clear and indicated Di Giannantonio as the ideal figure in the development of the project. According to the Frenchman, the Iwata manufacturer needs a rider like him to be able to return to the top and the Roman is thrilled to hear nice words from Quartararo.

“I am very happy and grateful for these compliments. Fabio, in addition to being a friend, is also a rival on the track and it is never a given to receive these nice words from a rival. We spoke and it was also a cool moment. We are seeing, then the final decision is up to me. It is normal and it is right that he tells me his opinion, listen to how we work in that project, then obviously I have to discuss it with my staff”, he explains Say.