A long lap penalty usually buries a rider’s afternoon. Instead, Fabio Di Giannantonio turned his into a comeback at the TT Circuit Assen on Sunday.
Di Giannantonio Charges Through the Dutch GP
The Italian dropped several spots after braking too early off the line from the second row. However, he stayed calm and clawed back position after position. A long lap penalty then interrupted his rhythm. Yet Diggia refused to settle.
Once he served the penalty, he immediately hunted down fourth place again. He crossed the line as the best Ducati rider on a punishing afternoon. Moreover, the result strengthens his third place in the championship with 177 points. He now sits just 16 points behind new leader Jorge Martin, his closest gap of the season so far.
His weekend already carried momentum after a Sprint podium on Saturday. Therefore, fourth on Sunday felt like the maximum reward for a tough day.
Morbidelli’s Rough Day at Assen
It was a far harsher Sunday for Franco Morbidelli. He started 16th after a penalty, then lost more ground at Turn 1. As a result, he was recovering from the opening lap. While pushing hard to climb back, he crashed out on lap nine without injury.
For the first time this season, Morbidelli left a Sunday race with no points. He now sits 16th overall with 43 points. Still, the VR46 camp pointed to clear progress in pace across the weekend.
Team boss Pablo Nieto called it the maximum possible after a difficult build-up. He praised the effort behind Diggia’s charge and backed Morbidelli to turn his speed into results soon.
Next comes the German GP at the Sachsenring from 10 to 12 July. Before that, the team heads to World Ducati Week at Misano. With the title gap shrinking, Di Giannantonio arrives in Germany believing the podium fight is wide open.
