How Marc Marquez really felt about losing to Fabio Di Giannantonio at the Brazilian Grand Prix

Mela Chercoles, speaking on the Motociclismo YouTube channel, mentioned that even Marquez himself was surprised by the outcome.

“And Marc himself has also been left wondering how on earth Di Giannantonio could beat him in a battle for the podium, which wasn’t exactly expected,” Chercoles said.

He continued: “Well, Marc played it down and made it sound like no big deal. He said Diggia is also a good rider, right? And that’s it, and although he wasn’t feeling comfortable all weekend, he’s taking the positives from it.”

The Spanish rider then pointed out that he was going to mention that Alex Marquez had zero points from Thailand and needed to finish regardless of where it was. He added that track conditions were poor with gravel and loose tarmac making things difficult.

Fabio Di Giannantonio’s strong start has put him ahead of Marc Marquez

It wasn’t the case a year ago, but Di Giannantonio has found his footing this season. He’s shown that he can hold his own against Marquez in a way that wasn’t possible with the older GP25.

This time around, he looks far more settled on the new factory spec. His riding has been sharper and more confident, and it’s made a real difference early on.

The back-and-forth between the two continued into Brazil, where they went head-to-head again in both the Sprint and main race. Those battles gave Diggia some useful insights into how to approach future matchups with Marquez.

Carlo Pernat even noted that Diggia doesn’t seem intimidated by Marquez this season. After two races, it’s hard to argue against that point—the VR46 rider is making noticeable progress.