Chantra and Kunii battle through a gruelling Sunday at Most
Autodrom MostThe fifth WorldSBK round at Czechia’s Autodrom Most serves as a learning experience for Honda HRC factory rider Somkiat Chantra and replacement rider Yuki Kunii, who completed the weekend’s final races on Sunday. Honda HRC will now move on to an important test at the Misano World Circuit in Italy on 20-21 May, which will mark the return of Jake Dixon to the Honda HRC garage.
After making the most of morning warm-up, riders Chantra and Kunii lined up together on row seven of the starting grid for the morning’s Superpole race. Chantra made a good start but was unable to make much progress before a crash ruled him out on lap two. Fortunately, the Thai rider was unhurt, but he was unable to continue with the race. Lying seventeenth, Kunii gained one position mid-race and worked hard to maintain concentration over this frenetic ten-lapper. A consistent rhythm saw the Japanese rider complete this short race in sixteenth position.
The weekend’s final race ran at 15.30 local time (CET) in very cloudy conditions, with a few drops of rain falling while the riders were on the grid though not during the race. Chantra and Kunii again commenced from row seven for this second 22-lapper, with both maintaining their positions through the opening laps. On lap seven, Somkiat received a long lap penalty for having cut Turn 1 and, in serving this penalty, the gap to those ahead inevitably opened up, with the Thai rider and his Japanese teammate losing ground to their closest rivals. Intent on completing the race as strong as possible, Chantra maintained his focus, improving his pace lap by lap and making up almost six seconds to the group ahead in the closing stages before crossing the line P18, just ahead of Kunii, P19.
Honda HRC will be on track for an important test at Misano World Circuit – Marco Simoncelli on 20-21 May. This test will mark the return to the Honda HRC team of Jake Dixon, who will rejoin Chantra in the garage for the first time since the Phillip Island pre-season test, where he sustained his injury.
It will be a crucial opportunity for the British rider to assess his condition and determine the next steps ahead of the sixth WorldSBK round, which will take place on 29-31 May at Spain’s Motorland Aragón.
“Today we had both the Superpole Race and Race 2. In the Superpole Race I was trying to follow the group in front, but unfortunately, I crashed while braking and could not continue. In the afternoon we were back out for Race 2 after making some setup changes to the bike. My feeling at the start was not too bad and we tried to keep pace. I then made a mistake at Turn 1 because I didn’t stop the bike properly and ran straight, which meant I had to serve a long lap penalty. At that point I lost around six seconds to the riders ahead, but by the final lap I was able to reduce that gap to less than one second. I think we made some little steps with the bike this weekend, but we still need to make a lot more progress. Next week we’ll have an important test, where we’ll try to take another step forward, in terms of both the bike and my riding.”
“Today we had both the Superpole Race and Race 2. In the Superpole Race I was trying to follow the group in front, but unfortunately, I crashed while braking and could not continue. In the afternoon we were back out for Race 2 after making some setup changes to the bike. My feeling at the start was not too bad and we tried to keep pace. I then made a mistake at Turn 1 because I didn’t stop the bike properly and ran straight, which meant I had to serve a long lap penalty. At that point I lost around six seconds to the riders ahead, but by the final lap I was able to reduce that gap to less than one second. I think we made some little steps with the bike this weekend, but we still need to make a lot more progress. Next week we’ll have an important test, where we’ll try to take another step forward, in terms of both the bike and my riding.”
“Today’s races were challenging but also important for me from a learning standpoint. In the Superpole Race we tried a slightly different bike setup compared to yesterday, and the feeling was better, although there was still a significant gap to the front. Even so, I feel I am continuing to improve my understanding of both the bike and the riding style needed in WorldSBK. The results are still difficult, but I’m happy I was able to complete both races without mistakes and maintain consistent pace, especially in Race 2. Lap by lap I started to better understand how to ride the bike consistently, and the different setup also helped me to improve my feeling during the races. Physically it was a very demanding weekend, especially at this track, but finishing both races was one of the positive aspects for me. This was my first time at Most and I am still adapting to the factory bike but this weekend and this experience helped me to grow further as a rider. I would like to thank the whole team because everybody worked very hard for me throughout the weekend. I really enjoyed my time with Honda HRC, it’s been a great experience for me.”
“Today’s races were challenging but also important for me from a learning standpoint. In the Superpole Race we tried a slightly different bike setup compared to yesterday, and the feeling was better, although there was still a significant gap to the front. Even so, I feel I am continuing to improve my understanding of both the bike and the riding style needed in WorldSBK. The results are still difficult, but I’m happy I was able to complete both races without mistakes and maintain consistent pace, especially in Race 2. Lap by lap I started to better understand how to ride the bike consistently, and the different setup also helped me to improve my feeling during the races. Physically it was a very demanding weekend, especially at this track, but finishing both races was one of the positive aspects for me. This was my first time at Most and I am still adapting to the factory bike but this weekend and this experience helped me to grow further as a rider. I would like to thank the whole team because everybody worked very hard for me throughout the weekend. I really enjoyed my time with Honda HRC, it’s been a great experience for me.”
