Sixth place in the Hungarian GP for Franco Morbidelli, who is the best Independent rider at the finish line. Technical problem for Fabio Di Giannantonio, who is fifteenth.
The Sunday of the Hungarian Grand Prix poses a challenge for the Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team, which puts up a good fight with Franco Morbidelli, finishing sixth in the race and top Independent rider. Bad luck for Fabio Di Giannantonio, who started from the pit lane due to a technical issue.
Starting from fifth on the grid, Morbidelli was very close to the front in the first laps and fought for the podium positions. Franco finished the Hungarian Grand Prix in sixth place, heading to parc fermé as the top Independent rider. After Sunday at Balaton Park, the #21 rider sits sixth in the World Standings with 161 points.
The front-row start slipped away for Di Giannantonio, who was forced to start from the pit lane on his second bike due to a technical issue in his first one. Despite a difficult start, Fabio showed good pace and managed to score a point by finishing in fifteenth place. With the result of the Balaton Park race, the #49 rider is seventh in the World Standings with 154 points.
The Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team is back on track in two weeks for the Catalunya GP, that will take place at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya from 5th to 7th September.
FABIO DI GIANNANTONIO
“Unfortunately, already on the formation lap the bike was lacking power, and the Ducati technicians tried to analyze what was going on. I had the same issue on the Warm-Up Lap, so I had to start from the pit lane with the second bike. It’s a shame, because even with the tyres we didn’t choose, we were still very fast and consistent. It’s a missed opportunity, but we keep our heads high. We had a great weekend, we did a good job, and we’re finally starting to understand this Desmosedici GP25. Yesterday we had a great qualifying and an amazing Sprint, it’s a pity about the race, but that’s racing. I’m proud of my team, they’re doing an excellent job. We have to be happy and take the positives.”
FRANCO MORBIDELLI
“It was a difficult race, we expected a different performance from the soft tyre, and I tried to make it last for as long as I could, managing right from the start. Unfortunately, I couldn’t do that, and I had less speed than the guys I was with. At the end, I made a good defense on my rival, but I had to drop one position. Anyway, overall, it has been a good weekend for the team, yesterday we got back to having an interesting speed, we got on the podium in the Sprint. Today, even if I didn’t have a good feeling, I was there, so we can be happy with this weekend.”
PABLO NIETO - TEAM MANAGER
“I think we must always look at the positives: we hadn’t had Diggia on the front row since the race in Austin, so that was very encouraging. On Saturday, we did very well in qualifying and had a spectacular Sprint, with our riders finishing second and third. Unfortunately, on Sunday we had a technical issue with Diggia, and when that happens, there’s nothing you can do. We couldn’t fight for it, but that’s part of motorsport. With Franco, it didn’t go bad. Of course, you always want more, especially after yesterday’s Sprint podium. But I think we should be happy because finishing in the Top 6 is a good result, and in this case, we were also in parc fermé as the top Independent rider.”
