Gigi Dall'Igna is an essential character in the Grand Prix paddock since he is the General-in-Chief of the now formidable and feared Ducati Red Army. But it doesn’t just stand out for its function. He also stands out with a personality that is cold on the outside but hot on the inside. It is better to follow your instructions and your convictions because to oppose them is certainly to lose the game in the long term. Ask the yet resilient Dovizioso. He came up against people who were more stubborn than him. A character trait that the one affectionately nicknamed “goatee” by Johann Zarco claims.
The results speak in its favor and rarely at the end of a MotoGP season the indicators have been so green among the reds of Ducati. The only downside is this failed drivers' title, and it has lasted since the last one acquired in 2007. But the big boss of the Ducati brand Claudio Domenicali is not choosy: he is happy with the turn of events and the work of his competition manager.
But before getting there, we had to work hard and move mountains. A strength that Gigi Dall'Igna anchored in him: “ I am stubborn. Sometimes this leads me to exceed the limits, other times it is a side of me which represents a limit, because it wastes your time when you persist on things which are not objectively right ", he declared on MowMag. A stubbornness which also helped him to impose himself in Borgo Panigale where we learn that the reception was quite cold… “ When I joined Ducati, I was probably seen more as an enemy than a boss. This means that I can manage people, business well. It's fundamental in today's MotoGP ". We will recall that before, Dall'Igna had the happiness ofAprilia.
Gigi therefore has convictions which push him to encourage his bosses to think outside the box, to explore new horizons. But behind it, there are not only strategic considerations. There is also a philosophy of life. A thought that he declines when talking about the new challenge of his builders which is the MotoE, and his always idea, to make Moto3...
Gigi Dall'Igna envy KTM and Honda
He says thus: “ I think MotoE is an interesting and important opportunity for the development of motorcycling. This represents a complicated technological challenge, more so than MotoGP in terms of the reasoning it takes to make it work well. I only think about the energy recovery and management aspect. Brief, it leaves room for human imagination to find space to give new forms to thought ". Quite a program, indeed.
But there is also this Moto3 which tickles him: “ it's the smartest thing a manufacturer can do. Competing in the lower classes allows drivers to grow and gain confidence. The example is KTM's supply chain, like Honda's. They have a privilege, it would be very important for Ducati. And even more than Moto2, I think the key is Moto3. This is where the drivers are well understood. The relationships I had with Lorenzo, Bautista and others, which I had from the beginning, are impeccable thereafter ».
The idea of the sector is underlying this approach where KTM seems to be one step ahead by structuring an incubator for talents who are then followed throughout their careers. Here too, it is a strong economic and strategic issue. A land where Ducati is absent. But the brand is currently asserting itself as having the best motorcycle. It therefore reverses the direction of supply and demand for the moment. Waiting for, Gigi Dall'Igna also has his feet on the ground by recalling what will have to be done in 2022: “ we now feel well prepared to take the final step and expectations are only high. Winning the world championship is difficult, but we will all put our soul into bringing the riders' title back to Ducati, because it has been missing for too long. It is now forbidden to make mistakes ».
