Fabio di Giannantonio will enter his fifth MotoGP season in 2026, but for the first time, he’ll do so with the same crew chief he worked with the previous year.
The Italian began his premier-class journey in 2022 with Donatello Giovanotti at Gresini during a challenging rookie campaign. He then achieved his first podiums and a race victory in 2023 under Frankie Carchedi. When Marc Marquez joined Gresini in 2024 and reunited with Carchedi, Di Giannantonio moved to VR46, working alongside experienced former Valentino Rossi and Luca Marini crew chief David Munoz.
However, Munoz left to join Yamaha as Alex Rins’ crew chief this season, leaving Di Giannantonio to start his first factory-spec Ducati year with Massimo Branchini. Branchini previously supported Casey Stoner in 250cc and later won Moto2 titles with Johann Zarco, Remy Gardner, and Augusto Fernandez. He entered MotoGP in 2023 with Zarco and later stayed at Pramac before joining VR46 when the team switched manufacturers.
After a podium-free 2024, Di Giannantonio and Branchini enjoyed a far stronger 2025 campaign, earning nine podium finishes across GPs and Sprints and taking sixth overall in the championship. However, inconsistency on the GP25 remained an issue, despite Marc Marquez achieving 11 wins and Francesco Bagnaia also adding multiple victories.
Di Giannantonio noted that frequent staff changes can set a team back before progress appears, but he believes continuity with Branchini will help in 2026. He added that the biggest challenge this season was the inconsistent front-end feeling of the GP25.
Despite the difficulties, VR46 continued refining their working approach. Team manager Pablo Nieto confirmed adjustments were made within the rider–crew chief–data engineer dynamic, which produced improved results. Di Giannantonio finished the season strong, placing inside the top six in six of the final eight races, including three podiums.
