Thai rider Somkiat Chantra secured a top 9 finish in his debut test of the 2026 World Superbike Championship at Jerez.
At the 2026 World Superbike Championship held at Circuito de Jerez, Spain, "Kong" Somkiat Chantra, the top Thai rider from the factory Honda HRC team, completed his first test with the No. 35 race bike.
The World Superbike Championship 2026 test took place on 26-27 November at Circuito de Jerez, Spain. It marked the first time "Kong" Somkiat Chantra, a Thai rider with MotoGP experience, rode a World Superbike race bike.
After two intense days of testing, the Thai rider focused on adapting to the No. 35 race bike and worked closely on bike setup with Honda HRC engineers, completing a total of 142 laps at Jerez.
The test results showed that Somkiat gradually improved his lap times consistently, finishing 9th overall (excluding unnamed test riders) with a best lap of 1 minute 39.494 seconds, 1.669 seconds behind the leader. He was the fastest Honda rider in this test, 0.314 seconds quicker than his British teammate Jake Dixon, No. 96.
Somkiat Chantra said, "This first test was excellent. Above all, I tried to learn how this bike and the Pirelli tires work. We did many laps and tests. Over these two days, we continuously improved and discovered new strengths of the bike. I need to ride more laps to understand the feel of the tires better, as I still had braking issues today. I need to build confidence with the bike."
He added, "But I believe once we understand it, we can push harder in the 2026 season. I’m enjoying it, and our team is amazing. I have fun every time I ride on the track, and I’m very satisfied. Regarding my expectations for World Superbike, I can only say I will give my all in every race and try to score as many points as possible."
The 2026 World Superbike Championship will officially start its first race at Phillip Island, Australia, from 20-22 February 2026.