Fabio Di Giannantonio explains Aragon crash

VR46 Ducati MotoGP rider Fabio Di Giannantonio crashed out of Saturday's Aragon Grand Prix sprint race. The Italian, who qualified seventh, fell at the penultimate corner on the second lap.

Di Giannantonio described a severe lack of grip from the very start of the 11-lap contest. He suggested a potential tyre issue but did not directly blame manufacturer Michelin.

Rider's account of the crash

"Well, the feeling from the start was really bad with the rear part of the bike," Di Giannantonio told Crash.net. "Since the beginning, maybe I'm one of the guys who never complains about the rear part of the bike, let's say."

He detailed how the problem caused the crash. "After two, three brakings, where I was braking normally but was arriving completely sideways, I was not stopping," he explained. "And as soon as the bike got a little bit of grip, I was out of the line too fast and I lost the front."

When asked for an explanation, he replied, "Who knows?" He also firmly dismissed the idea that changing track conditions due to heat were a factor. "Absolutely not. No, absolutely not," he stated.

Realistic goals and tyre choice

Without the grip problems, Di Giannantonio did not believe he could have challenged the leading Ducatis of Marc Marquez and Alex Marquez. He did, however, think a strong result was within reach.

"Well, for sure, we didn't have the pace of Marc and Alex," he continued. "I think not even Bez's one. I think they are riding really good here."

He would have been satisfied with that result, citing previous struggles at the circuit. "I would have been happy with that because we were struggling here last year. So, a top five here would be great."

For the sprint, the Italian ruled out using the soft rear tyre option. All Ducati riders selected the medium compound.

"Well, this morning I tried it, and I was dropping quite a lot," he said about the soft tyre. "Since the seventh lap I started to be slower than the medium. So, I was quite convinced about the medium."

He referenced a strong race at Aragon the previous year as evidence for his choice. "Also last year I did the race with the medium, and I did a really good race, recovering a lot of places."

The crash was costly for Di Giannantonio's championship hopes. He now trails series leader Jorge Martin by 46 points.