– Fabio Di Giannantonio will leave the VR46 team and race for KTM in the 2027 MotoGP season. The Italian will become the teammate of Alex Marquez at the Austrian brand.
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Di Giannantonio had so far a contract with Ducati. He had set Friday at the French Grand Prix as a deadline for the Italian manufacturer and VR46 to receive an offer that meets his financial expectations.
Already on Thursday in Le Mans, the 27-year-old said about his future that only a factory contract is an option for him: “I am a Ducati factory rider, I achieve good results and I think I do a good job.”
“That is why I believe I deserve it. I try to maintain this level for my future. I also think that is needed if you want to try to win the championship, win races.”
“Without [a factory contract] it would be, in my opinion, a step back in my career. Therefore, Diego (Tavano, his manager; editor’s note) is currently trying to give me the best options, and that is a factory contract.”
Ducati and VR46 responded to Di Giannantonio’s Friday deadline and asked him for more time to make a decision. However, they received no answer from his advisor Diego Tavano by Saturday.
Motorsport.com Spain, a sister platform of Motorsport-Total.com, spoke on Saturday with representatives of Ducati and VR46 who confirmed this.
“We asked ‘Diggia’ to give us a little more time so that we can make him an offer better tailored to his expectations,” explains a source from Ducati. “So far, however, we have not received any response.”
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Since no financial offer matching Di Giannantonio’s expectations had been received by the set deadline on Friday, his manager activated Plan B: to accept the offer from KTM and become a factory rider for the Austrians.
Di Giannantonio wants to become a factory rider for a manufacturer and at the same time increase his annual salary to around two million euros. Both ambitions are fulfilled with the move to KTM.
The move was sealed on Saturday evening in the paddock of Le Mans.
Two options for VR46: Bulega and Marini
With Di Giannantonio’s departure at the end of the season, Valentino Rossi’s VR46 team must find a second rider for next year. Fermin Aldeguer was already signed a few weeks ago. The Spaniard remains a Ducati factory rider.
Motorsport.com Spain learned that the options for this second seat are reduced to two riders: Nicolo Bulega and Luca Marini. Bulega dominates the Superbike World Championship and recently completed a first test with the new 850 Ducati.
“If ‘Diggia’ does not continue with us, our first option for his replacement is Nicolo,” says a Ducati source. The Italian brand would then take over the salaries of the two VR46 riders, Aldeguer and Bulega.
However, there is still one hurdle for Bulega’s MotoGP move: the situation of Marini. If Rossi’s half-brother neither stays with Honda nor finds another place on the grid, VR46 could bring him back.
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However, that would mean that the team would have to pay Marini’s salary on the one hand and fully finance the second motorcycle on the other.
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