Sunny skies and scorching tarmac set the stage in Barcelona on Saturday, and Fabio Di Giannantonio made the most of it. Despite a tricky Qualifying that left him sixth on the grid, the Roman rider pushed hard from the opening lap, slicing through the field and muscling his way into podium contention before the race had even found its rhythm.
Di Giannantonio held firm across all 12 laps to take 3rd, claiming his 2nd Sprint podium of the season after Brazil. The result lifts him to 4th in the World Championship standings with 91 points. He admitted after the race that the fight felt almost too short, believing he had the pace to challenge the two riders ahead if there had been more laps to run.
Teammate Franco Morbidelli had a rougher afternoon. Starting from 2nd on the grid, contact at Turn 1 ended any hope of mixing it at the front, and the Italian-Brazilian rider spent the rest of the Sprint fighting his way back through traffic. He crossed the line in 7th and sits 13th in the standings with 30 points. Still, Morbidelli noted the team’s progress, pointing to improved communication with engineers and the added energy of Valentino Rossi being present in the garage.
Sunday’s main race starts at 14:00 local time. With tyre strategy still open and Di Giannantonio feeling strong on used rubber, VR46 will be hunting for more.
