Fabio Di Giannantonio may have bee💫n ranked behind Remy Gardner, Raul Fernandez and Marco Bezzecchi in this year's Moto2 world championship, but he emerged fastest of the 2022 MotoGP rookies in their first official test, at Jerez.

Rid🐻ing for the new Gresini Ducati team, the Italian was 22nd out of 27 riders after his first day on the Desmosedici GP21, when Fernandez was top nဣewcomer for Tech3 KTM.

Di Giannantonio was then delighted to start day two with the same lap💛 time, going o꧃n to cut 1.1s from his best over 45 windy laps.

That put the triple grand prix winner 19th overall, 1.656s from factory Ducati pace setter Francescoܫ Bagnaia but only one-second behind the next best riders and 0.163s ahead of Fernandez.

Gardner, who like team-mate Fernandez had some previous MotoGP laps at Misano, was 22ndꦇ, with Marco Bezzecchi (VR46 Ducati) 25th and Darryn Binder (RNF Yamaha) - jumping straight from Moto3 to MotoGP- 26th.

"We just started this morning with the setting as we left the track yesterday. So I was super 🔯happy because on my first run I was already as fast as the day before," confirmed di Giannantonio.

"We started to work a bit on the electronic side of the bike, to try to understand well to improve on more power, less power a🍸nd all the controls we have at the moment. At the end I was impr🎉oving my feeling.

"It's a pity that the day 🍰is a bit ruined by the wind, because the conditions were a bit critical. There is a lot of grip but a lot of wind, so especially in the fast corners now the Moto🐟GP bikes have the wings so it's difficult to control the bike in the fast corners.

"But overall I'm super happy."

di Gia🎉nnantonio said the start of the new MotoGP adventure had instantly refreshed him after a mentally draining Moto2 campaign.

"Honestly 🐽coming to Valencia, I was so tired mentally most of all. But now I don’t want to stop, I would like to ♊have more tests or a race to continue to learn the MotoGP!" he smiled.

Seventh in this year's Moto2 standings, the highlight of di ♎Giannantonio's season was undoubtedly the emotional win, at the same Jerez circuit in May, which he dedicated to late team boss Fausto Gresini.

"I have goosebumps because Gresini is the team that believed in me since the beginning," 'digia' said. "ꦫThey gave me the opportunity to arrive in the world championship an💖d to achieve great results in Moto3, then achieve great results in Moto2 and then make my debut in the premier-class.

"It's something amazing. I'm just so grateful."

Team-mate Enea Bastian🔴ini, arriving at Gresini and the GP21 after a rook♕ie season highlighted by two podiums on a GP19 at Avintia, was eighth fastest after just 25 laps on the final day.

“The wind was too strong so I chose to not throw away the good things we had done. We were always quick, even race-pace wi𝄹se," Bastianini said. "We did not turn the set-up around: we only did a few little changes to be even more comfortable on the bike.

"Ducati’s DNA hasn’t changed, but the bike has improved in all areas. I must admit I 🎀was quick even with the wind, which is a condition th🦄at doesn’t suit me well.”

As a rookie, di Giannantonio will be back on track at the Sepang Shꦬakedown test at the end of January, with Bastianini then joining the action when the official test begins at the start of February.