What Valentino Rossi advised Fabio Di Giannantonio to do behind the scenes before scoring his best result of 2025

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VR46 may end up with two riders in the top five of a motorcycle championship for the first time ever in 2025 after a solid first half of the season.

Both Fabio Di Giannantonio and Franco Morbidelli have been consistent and have only finished outside the top 10 once each in 2025.

While VR46 haven’t competed for a race victory yet this season, they’re always in the lead group. It’s why they’re third in the teams’ standings.

It’s an encouraging sign for Valentino Rossi, whose team is edging closer to contention for titles. Just look at Gresini and Pramac, who have been able to do so in recent times.

Pedro Acosta shouldn’t leave KTM to join VR46, according to Maverick Vinales, but the young superstar would be thrust straight into podium contention if he did.

Rossi and VR46 have told Acosta they’ll wait for him, but it’s unclear whether that means until the end of this year, or 2026, when his contract with KTM expires.

READ MORE: Fabio Di Giannantonio shares what’s ‘not nice’ about Pedro Acosta being linked to VR46 for the 2026 MotoGP season

Valentino Rossi warned Fabio Di Giannantonio about tyres before Italian Grand Prix result

Di Giannantonio was seen mocking Francesco Bagnaia after he overtook him late in the Italian Grand Prix to score a podium.

Of course, for both of them, it was a very important race as it was their home event in front of a bumper crowd.

Both were desperate to hoist a trophy in front of the Tifosi, and Di Giannantonio nurtured his tyres slightly better, walking away with third place on the day.

And the advice of boss Valentino Rossi earlier in the weekend may have come in very handy, after he warned his team about which tyres to use.

“Soft and hard are not the tyres to go for,” he said ahead of the sprint race, as was revealed on the team’s YouTube channel.

READ MORE: Fans are all saying MotoGP must do one thing to Franco Morbidelli after ‘typical’ Italian Grand Prix crash

Why Valentino Rossi might opt to sign someone else to VR46 in 2026

Currently, VR46 have a coveted seat on a Ducati satellite bike for 2026, and are yet to decide who to put alongside Di Giannantonio.

Morbidelli is 30 years old and has been making more and more mistakes recently, costing his team valuable points.

With some young and exciting talent available, Rossi may opt to copy Gresini’s approach (they signed a 20-year-old Fermin Aldeguer for this season).

With big regulation changes incoming for 2027, taking next year to assess a rider or take a gamble might be a good idea. There are some hot prospects in Moto2, and if they don’t work, Acosta is free for 2027.