In the Sprint of the Australian Grand Prix, Di Giannantonio is fifth after battling for the podium. Morbidelli ends in fifteenth place.

The Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team ended the Sprint of the Australian Grand Prix very close to the podium with Fabio Di Giannantonio, who came in fifth after a last-lap battle. It was a challenging Saturday for Franco Morbidelli, who finished fifteenth.

Starting from the fourth row (1:27.116), Di Giannantonio began his comeback from tenth place, showing a solid race pace. Fabio fought for the podium in the Sprint all the way to the checkered flag, finishing fifth, just one tenth off the Top 3. The #49 rider currently sits seventh in the World Standing with 196 points.

After securing a sixth-row start in qualifying (1:27.789), Morbidelli had a difficult start to the Sprint, dropping to the back of the field. Franco fought back with determination to cross the finish line in fifteenth position. The #21 rider is sixth in the World Standing with 207 points.

The Australian Grand Prix will end tomorrow with the main race, which will start at 3:00 p.m. (local time, +9 CET) after a schedule change today due to the weather conditions.

FABIO DI GIANNANTONIO
“Starting from the fourth affected us a bit, but I had a good Sprint and managed to overtake three riders at Turn 4 – I’m really proud of that move! I had strong pace and a good feeling despite the gamble with the medium front tyre. I’m happy with the performance, but there’s a bit of bitterness about the result. It’s a pity we missed the podium, but hopefully we can make up for it tomorrow. I think I have good pace for Sunday’s race as well, getting a strong start and fighting at the front right away will be key.”

FRANCO MORBIDELLI
“It was not a really good Sprint, it’s been a complicated couple of days, we’ve been struggling with the setting of the bike and with the feeling. In the Sprint, we improved compared to yesterday and to this morning, but we are quite far off. Let’s see if we can make another bigger step tomorrow. On Sunday there will be a lot of wind, and it won’t help us if the feelings is the same as today. But let’s see if the weather conditions are safe enough, of course I’d like to race.”