Somkiat Chantra pushed hard to secure 15th place in the first race, adding points in the 2026 World Superbike held in Italy.
The 2026 World Superbike Championship, round 7, held its first race on the evening of Saturday, 13 June, at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli in Italy. The circuit length is 4.23 kilometers per lap, with a total of 21 laps contested.
In this race, "Kong" Somkiat Chantra, the top Thai rider from the factory team with bike number 35, started from 19th on the grid. His British teammate Ryan Vickers, number 17, started from 21st and did not finish the race.
Somkiat Chantra faced a challenging situation after a poor start that dropped him to 21st place. However, as he found his rhythm, he managed to overtake competitors up to 17th place mid-race, eventually crossing the finish line in 15th, 44.842 seconds behind the winner, securing an important point from a tough race.
After the first race, the Thai rider said, "The team tried to use a setup similar to the most recent test here at Misano, but the feeling was different. Now we need to analyze the data carefully with the team and see what we can do to improve the bike for the Superpole and Race 2."
Somkiat Chantra is scheduled to compete in the Superpole race on Sunday, 14 June, at 16:00 Thailand time, followed by Race 2 at 19:00.