Portimao MotoGP: Fabio Di Giannantonio ‘back fit’, Alex Marquez ‘confident’ ahead of official Ducati debut

Gresini Ducati duo Fabio Di Giannantonio and Alex Marquez look ahead to the opening two rounds of the MotoGP season, following contrasting fortunes at the final pre-season test. 
Fabio Di Giannantonio, Gresini Ducati MotoGP Portimao 2023
Fabio Di Giannantonio, Gresini Ducati MotoGP Portimao 2023

Di Giannantonio ended the recent two-day Portimao MotoGP Tes🦄t unable to complete the final day following a crash which resulted in him suffering a concussion. 

The 24-year-old s🐲uffered a concus💟sion after a big impact with the gravel, which he called ‘insane’ due to its size.

But after making a full recovery ahead oꦛf this weekend’s season-opener, the Italian, who claimed a maiden pole during his rookie campaign at Mug♍ello, is ‘charged up’ and ready to make an impact. 

"I’veꦑ been feeling 100% fit for a few days now, and after the hit suffered in the test, it was important to get back in shape straight away," said the Gresini rider. "I’m charged up for Portugal and for the new race weekend format. 

"Portimao has always been a demanding track, so we’ll have to manage the energy well and get i💖n the points straight aꦯway. 

"We’ll see then where we’re at in Argentina, on a track that it’s usually quite dirty at the start of 🌺the weekend: it will be important to be quick straight away and be less conservative."

On the other side of the garage is new teammate Marquez, who enjoyed a very promising💛 pre-season with the Ducati outfit.

Alex Marquez, Portimao MotoGP test, 12 March
Alex Marquez, Portimao MotoGP test, 12 March

A constant challenger for the top five in both Sepang and Portimao, Marquez appears primed to mak🍒e an immediate impact despite the Spaniard confirming he still needs to ‘know the Ducati better’.

Marquez added: "Time to begin finally! We’re coming from a few days of very positive testing🐻 and I’m eager to test myself at the track. 

"I would have loved a few more days to get to know the Ducati better, but we’re at a good point already and t💞he first three-𝓡four races of the season will be key to find the right automatisms and feelings ahead of the season. 

"There’s a sprint⭕ race to discover, so we’ll dive into these first two weekends with ren🦋ewed confidence."

Read More