The Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team is back to Brno for the first time after 2020. Fabio Di Giannantonio will be the only rider for the Tavullia-based team; Franco Morbidelli will not participate to recover from the left shoulder injury.
MotoGP returns to Brno after a four-year absence from the calendar, and Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team is ready to take on the turns of the Czech circuit for the first time in the premier class with Fabio Di Giannantonio. Franco Morbidelli will not take part to the Czech GP due to the left shoulder injury he had in the crash in the Sprint at Sachsenring.
Following his latest medical check on Monday in Italy and an intense rehabilitation and physiotherapy plan in the last 48 hours, the Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team and Franco Morbidelli decided that the #21 rider will not participate to the twelfth GP of the season to focus on the recovery of his left shoulder. Franky still has pain in the injured area, he will be at Brno to work together with the team in the garage and out of the track, continuing with his physiotherapy program.
The Czech weekend will be crucial for Di Giannantonio, who aims to confirm the good feelings on the Ducati Desmosedici GP despite his crash on Sunday at Sachsenring. Fabio claimed his first podium and his maiden world championship victory in Brno, and he will race for the first time in MotoGP with the team in the Czech Republic, arriving fourth in the World Standings with 142 points.
The Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team will hit the track on Friday for the first practice sessions. On Saturday the qualifying will start at 10:50 a.m. (local time, CET), the Sprint will follow at 3 p.m. (local time). The Czech GP will end on Sunday with the main race, that will start at 2 p.m. (local time).
FABIO DI GIANNANTONIO
“I like Brno track. In the past, I claimed a podium on wet conditions, and I took my first victory in Moto3. I stood on the podium also in my debut season in Moto2. But now we race in MotoGP. Everything will be slightly different with the new asphalt, but we arrive with very positive feelings. We are ready and the goal is to keep staying on the direction we took.”
FRANCO MORBIDELLI
“Following two days of medical checks, physiotherapy sessions and rest, we decided together with the team to miss this GP at Brno. It’s always difficult to take decisions like this, but after a heavy crash like the one I had in Sachsenring – and in this moment of the championship before the summer break – it doesn’t make any sense to take risks, because the pain is still persistent. Obviously, it’s not an easy moment, but I received a lot of support from all my team, the VR46 Riders Academy and all the fans who look forward to seeing me fully recovered. This weekend I will be at Brno because I want to keep working with my staff, and the team gives me the opportunity of continuing at the track all the physiotherapy program to come back to Austria as much recovered as possible.”
