Honda HRC completes testing in mixed conditions at Cremona ahead of WorldSBK Round 10
Cremona CircuitThe Honda HRC team completes a test session at Italy’s Cremona Circuit, with dry conditions in the morning giving way to heavy rain around lunchtime.
In preparation for round ten of the 2026 Superbike World Championship, the Honda HRC team and riders Jake Dixon and Somkiat Chantra completed a day of testing at the Cremona Circuit in Northern Italy on Thursday 10 September.
With neither rider having raced at Cremona before, and with heavy rain forecast, Jake and Somkiat were keen to get out on track and adapt aboard their CBR1000RR-R FIREBLADE SP machines, despite heavy clouds looming overhead.
The rain stayed away until around 1pm, allowing Dixon and Chantra to complete 32 and 48 laps respectively. The riders worked with their respective crews on bike setup while also gaining valuable experience of the Cremona layout ahead of the upcoming race weekend.
Rain arrived around lunchtime, bringing the dry-track activity to a premature end. With the weather showing no signs of improving, both Dixon and Chantra took the opportunity to gain some experience in fully wet conditions, heading back out at around 4.00pm and completing 14 and 12 laps respectively before closing the day around 5pm.
With the Cremona test complete, the Honda HRC team will now analyse the data collected and continue its preparations for the tenth WorldSBK championship round, which will take place at the same circuit on 25-27 September.
“It was a good test. In the end, we got more dry laps than expected, considering the forecast, so that was lucky. In the afternoon it really rained hard, but we decided to do some wet laps as well, so yeah, I think it was good. But let’s see for the race. We have one week off now to recover from a busy few days and then we go again, looking to keep improving step by step.”
“It was a good test. In the end, we got more dry laps than expected, considering the forecast, so that was lucky. In the afternoon it really rained hard, but we decided to do some wet laps as well, so yeah, I think it was good. But let’s see for the race. We have one week off now to recover from a busy few days and then we go again, looking to keep improving step by step.”
"The Cremona test comes to an end. First we tried, as always, to adapt the bike and also work on the setup to prepare for the race in ten days’ time. We identified a setup that is not so bad, but we also had to adapt to the mixed conditions of course, and this changed our working schedule. But anyway, it hasn’t gone badly. We also have some good settings in both the rain and the dry. With the dry setup, I think we’re at about 80 percent, and as for the rest we will adapt during the race weekend.”
"The Cremona test comes to an end. First we tried, as always, to adapt the bike and also work on the setup to prepare for the race in ten days’ time. We identified a setup that is not so bad, but we also had to adapt to the mixed conditions of course, and this changed our working schedule. But anyway, it hasn’t gone badly. We also have some good settings in both the rain and the dry. With the dry setup, I think we’re at about 80 percent, and as for the rest we will adapt during the race weekend.”
