Fabio di Giannantonio will continue to race for VR46 until the 2026 MotoGP season after agreeing a deal with Ducati, Motorsport.com has learned.
As per the agreement, di Giannantonio has been guaranteed the full-factory spec GP25 from Ducati in 2025, having had to be content with year-old machinery during his first three years in MotoGP.
The Italian had a two-year offer from Yamaha to race for Pramac, but he is understood to have informed the Iwata-based brand on Saturday that he is not going to accept the contract.
This has paved the way for di Giannantonio to continue his association with VR46 for two more seasons, pending a final signature, although this time he would be directly contracted with Ducati - similar to the arrangement the Borgo Panigale brand has had with Pramac riders so far.
Valentino Rossi’s team already had a renewal option with him as per their contract, but Ducati has now brought him directly under its wing.
In this way, it can continue to keep four factory riders in its roster, with the one-time grand prix winner set to join Francesco Bagnaia, Marc Marquez and the young Fermin Aldeguer, who is set to step up to MotoGP next year.
Aldeguer signed a deal with Ducati at the start of the year, but is awaiting information on the team with which he will be making his debut. He could either be slotted in at VR46 or Gresini, with Pramac moving to Yamaha, and will be racing with what will be then an year-old GP24 bike in 2025.
After Pramac’s deal to become a Yamaha satellite team, VR46 will take on the role currently occupied by Paolo Campinoti’s structure. This means VR46 would function as a semi-official team with riders contracted directly to the factory and having access to same-spec bikes as Bagnaia and Marquez.
However, Ducati has decided to cut down the number of factory bikes on the 2025 grid from four to three, with the additional bike now being offered to di Giannantonio to convince him to stay with the Italian marque.
"Diggia is a rider that we like a lot and with VR46 we are working to bring that goal home a little bit. He is a rider who has grown a lot, we would be happy if we managed to keep him," explained Claudio Domenicali, CEO of Ducati, on Saturday.
All of it means that in just eight months Di Giannantonio has gone from being left without a team after the late signing of Marquez by Gresini for 2024 to becoming one of the only three riders on the grid to have the latest specification of MotoGP’s best bike.
Oliveira headed towards Pramac?
After di Giannantonio’s decision to stay put, Yamaha is now looking at Trackhouse rider Miguel Oliveira as its first choice for its new satellite team.
The idea is to pair an experienced hand with a rookie, with Oliveira and KTM outcast Jack Miller the only two real contenders coming with experience. For the rookie role, the most desired option is Sergio García, but Alonso Lopez and Toni Arbolino are also on the list.
