In the Practice of the San Marino and the Rimini Riviera GP, the Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team secured direct access to Q2 with Fabio Di Giannantonio and Franco Morbidelli, finishing fourth and fifth respectively.
The home atmosphere is always something special, and the Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team kicked off the San Marino and the Rimini Riviera GP weekend on a positive note: Fabio Di Giannantonio and Franco Morbidelli finished Friday at Misano in fourth and fifth place respectively, securing direct access to Q2 in front of their home crowd.
Di Giannantonio began his home weekend with a Top10 finish in FP1, continuing to make good progress throughout the day. Fabio improved both his race pace and his time attack in Practice, where he secured a Top4 finish with a lap time of 1’30”285. His fourth-place finish in the afternoon session earned the rider from Rome a direct access to Q2 for Saturday’s qualifying.
It was also a positive day for Morbidelli, who made significant progress. Franco was thirteenth in FP1, and he substantially improved his laptime in Practice, where he immediately was into the Top10. The Italian-Brazilian rider set a best time of 1’30”415, securing fifth place at the end of the afternoon session. His Top5 finish guaranteed him direct access to Q2.
The Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team will be back on track on Saturday for qualifying, which will begin at 10:50 am (local time). The Sprint will follow at 3:00 pm (local time). The San Marino and the Rimini Riviera GP will conclude with Sunday’s race, which will start at 2:00 pm (local time).
FABIO DI GIANNANTONIO
“I’m very happy with my performance today, it was exactly what I wanted. So, it was a good day and we’re satisfied with the speed we showed today on both tyre compounds. Especially with the medium, my pace was very good, so I think we can be close to the front. We just need to improve a little the braking because I’m still struggling and I can’t be as effective as I would like, but we’re there. Vale was in the garage today, we talked a lot and looked at the data together. We’re doing a great job, but when he’s here, everything is different.”
FRANCO MORBIDELLI
“It was a positive day; we managed to be in the Top10, which is positive. We worked well, as we always do, especially on Fridays. On my first time attack I wento on the green, but on my second one I managed to set a good 1’31”4. The feeling is similar to usual, but today we were able to maximise the potential of the bike. The Ducati is very strong here at Misano, it’s a great bike as always. But we always keep our feet on the ground and want to remain focused.”
