Fabio Di Giannantonio will go back to Europe for an “important appointment” regarding his left shoulder injury following the end of the MotoGP Japanese Grand Prix.
Di Giannantonio recorded his best weekend results at Motegi since his injury, finishing sixth in the Sprint and eighth in the Sunday race.
The VR46 rider dislocated his shoulder in Austria around the Red Bull Ring in August, leading to him playing catch-up in the rounds that have occurred since then.
After missing the event itself and reportedly relying on painkillers for the subsequent races, Di Giannantonio acknowledges he doesn’t want to make matters worse.
This “important meeting” will determine the severity of his injury and whether surgery is required, leaving the Italian in a predicament of what he should do next.
An option could be to see him undergo surgery and, as a result, miss the rest of the season so he can return to full strength to test his GP25 Ducati on January 31st.
“On Wednesday I have an important appointment to understand how will be my condition for the rest of this season, or next year. So after that we will understand everything,” di Giannantonio said via Crash.net.
“For sure, as I said many times, my goal is to do as many races as possible and finish the season in a good way.
“But also, the important thing is to arrive next year at 100% from the first test.
“So we have many things to consider. Let’s see. We have to consider my will to race but also to recover [fully] for next season.”
Di Giannantonio feels as fast like in the ‘old times’
The Italian described his weekend as “bittersweet” because he feels as though he is as fast as in the “old times”.
The 25-year-old finished in the points in the Sprint and Sunday race for the first time since Silverstone, the race weekend before the injury occurred.
“A bittersweet feeling because I’m super-happy about the weekend overall, because I have been fast like the ‘old times’ before my injury and we showed good speed again,” di Giannantonio said.
“But a pity for the race because the first lap was a real jungle and it destroyed a bit my result.
“I think we could have been fighting with Morbidelli and Binder [fifth and sixth] because my pace was really similar after the first third of the race.
“So, a pity, but happy with the race overall.”
