Somkiat Chantra, the Thai rider, secured 13th place and scored points in both races at the 2026 World Superbike Championship Round 10 in Italy.
The 2026 World Superbike Championship Round 10, the Ikma Italian Round, took place at the Cremona Circuit in Italy from 25 to 27 September. This event was a key opportunity for Honda HRC to develop and test their approach under the leadership of Somkiat Chantra, the top Thai rider with bike number 35, alongside his British teammate Jake Dixon, who races with number 96.
Somkiat worked hard with the team to find the ideal setup, but in the first race on Saturday he faced front tire grip issues. Nonetheless, he started from grid position 17 and finished 13th, 37.019 seconds behind the winner, earning 3 points. Meanwhile, Dixon finished in 9th place.
In the second race on Sunday, Somkiat again started from grid 17. Early in the race, he lost ground, dropping to 20th place. However, as his pace improved, he gradually climbed to as high as 12th before finishing 13th, 35.438 seconds behind the winner. He earned another 3 points, placing him 21st in the championship with a total of 16 points. His teammate finished 6th.
Somkiat Chantra said, “I’m very happy for Jake and the team. We are all working together to improve the bike, hoping this will help us challenge the front group. Today, the bike setup was good, but I had unexplained issues early in the race. When I tried to push, it was hard to control the bike under braking, but towards the end, we increased our speed and gained some positions. Overall, the results were quite good, and I’m satisfied with what we achieved here.”
Somkiat’s next mission is in Japan, where he will compete in the 2026 MotoGP Round 16, the Japanese Grand Prix, from 2 to 4 October. He will race for Honda HRC Castrol, stepping in for the team’s main Spanish rider, Joan Mir, who is currently recovering.
The next round of the 2026 World Superbike Championship will be held from 9 to 11 October at the Estoril Circuit in Portugal.