Fabio Di Giannantonio has known Marco Bezzecchi since the early years of their careers – the two buddies are now MotoGP teammates at VR46
In the eight years he has spent in the motorcycle world championship so far, Fabio Di Giannantonio has ridden for the Gresini team for six years. In all three classes – Moto3, Moto2, MotoGP – “Diggia” rode for the racing team that was once founded by Fausto Gresini. In the upcoming 2024 MotoGP season, he will no longer be a Gresini rider but will ride for VR46, Valentino Rossi’s team.
As the successor to Luca Marini, who has moved to the Honda works team, Di Giannantonio is Marco Bezzecchi’s new teammate at VR46-Ducati. Although the two Italians have never been team-mates before, they know each other well.
“We get on well together. We’ve had some great duels on the track over the years. And we’ve even bumped into each other at the odd party. I can only say that we get on really well,” says Di Giannantonio about Bezzecchi.
“We’ve known each other since the start of our careers. In fact, we recently had old photos from 2015 in the Italian Championship in our hands. Back then, we were fighting each other for the title. Those are great memories. And the fact that we are now teammates in the MotoGP class is obviously great. I think we can be a strong team,” said the new addition to the VR46 team.
In fact, Di Giannantonio is the first rider ever to compete in the World Motorcycle Championship for the VR46 team, although he was not part of the VR46 rider academy. However, because he is now a regular rider in the team, “Diggia”, just like the academy riders, will be able to enjoy plenty of training laps at the much-cited VR46 Ranch in Tavullia.
“This is a great opportunity for me to learn from the others. And the fact that Valentino is now my boss will of course also help me. After all, he is the ‘GOAT’,” says Di Giannantonio about Valentino Rossi and the status that the nine-time world champion enjoys among his fans as the “Greatest Of All Time.”