– VR46 team director Alessio “Uccio” Salucci currently sees his team at the top of the Ducati hierarchy in MotoGP. And the current numbers after four completed race weekends prove him right.
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Despite Alex Marquez’s victory for Gresini at the Spanish Grand Prix, it is VR46 that currently ranks third as the best-placed Ducati team in the team standings. Also in the rider standings, VR46 rider Fabio Di Giannantonio leads the Ducati faction, thanks to his third place in Jerez.
The situation is quite different for the Ducati factory team: In Jerez, it not only missed the podium again on Sunday but also scored no points at all. It has now been waiting for a top-3 finish for nine races. The last one dates back to last year when Francesco Bagnaia won the Japanese Grand Prix.
Salucci speaks of “great satisfaction”
In an interview with Motorsport.com Italy, a partner site of Motorsport-Total.com, Salucci expressed satisfaction with his own team’s start to the season: “This is great satisfaction. We really started the season well,” explains the longtime confidant of team founder Valentino Rossi.
He also sees the current strength as a result of last year’s development: “Last season was a bit inconsistent, but in the last five or six races, I felt that we were moving in the right direction, especially with Diggia.”
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Accordingly confident, Salucci currently ranks his team within the Ducati structure: “I am happy because we are currently the best Ducati team. I like that.”
Praise for consistent Fabio Di Giannantonio
“I am also pleased that we can provide solid support to the Ducati factory team,” the VR46 team manager emphasizes further. “They are watching us closely and see how fast we are. And that is exactly why we are here.”
Salucci attributes a decisive share of the current upswing especially to Fabio Di Giannantonio. “He rides incredibly well. He has understood how to ride this motorcycle,” Salucci praises him. The collaboration within the team, especially with Massimo Branchini, is also becoming more and more harmonious.
“Last year we changed the crew chief when Branchini joined, and now they are going into their second year together. They are working better and better together.”
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