Small gains but more work to do for Chantra and Kunii after Race 1 at Most
Autodrom MostHonda HRC riders Chantra and Kunii gain more experience and valuable insight during a demanding Race 1.
The first of the races making up this fifth WorldSBK round at Autodrom Most in Czechia brought both challenges and small gains for Honda HRC factory rider Somkiat Chantra and replacement rider Yuki Kunii, who finished P17 and P19.
The team worked hard during a brief final practice session early this morning before formulating a plan for the subsequent Superpole qualifying session. With only 15 minutes in which to complete a clean lap and set a fast time, Somkiat and Yuki did well to lower their lap times with respect to practice during this fiercely contested phase. A best of 1’32.028 for Chantra and 1’33.085 for Kunii saw the Honda HRC duo confirm twenty-first and twenty-second position. Despite this, Chantra was forced to start the afternoon’s Race 1 from the back of the grid, just behind teammate Kunii and Van der Mark, having received a penalty for setting his fastest practice time under a yellow flag.
Race 1 ran at 2pm local time (CET) in cool, cloudy conditions. Kunii and Chantra lined up together on row seven and both were able to make a clean start as the race got underway. A lap one incident for another rider brought the race to an immediate halt with a red flag, necessitating a restart.
Reduced to 21 laps, the race was restarted according to the Quick Start procedure. The Honda HRC riders maintained their starting positions in the early stages, before Chantra moved ahead of Kunii on lap three. Lying eighteenth, Chantra maintained a consistent pace that allowed him to stick with the chasing group through the central phase of the race and pass Rato on lap 14. The gap that had opened up in the meantime prevented Somkiat from gaining any more positions, but the Thai rookie held firm aboard his CBR1000RR-R to conclude seventeenth. Still lacking WorldSBK experience and struggling with arm pump, substitute rider Kunii lost a little ground to his teammate as the race went on. The Japanese rider focused on his own performance, taking care to avoid mistakes and bring the race to its conclusion; P19 for Yuki today.
Honda HRC will be back on track on Sunday for the Superpole sprint race and the second 22-lap race, which will round out the Czech WorldSBK round.
“Today’s Race 1 here at Most brought some small gains. With the work carried out on the bike setup during the free practice sessions, we improved in some areas, but at the same time we lost something in other areas, so we need to keep working, trying to make use of today’s insights in tomorrow’s Superpole Race and Race 2. Compared to Balaton, I felt a little bit better because I was able to fight a little bit more on track, but we are still struggling with several aspects and need to keep improving so that I can feel more comfortable on the bike. Let’s see what we can do tomorrow.”
“Today’s Race 1 here at Most brought some small gains. With the work carried out on the bike setup during the free practice sessions, we improved in some areas, but at the same time we lost something in other areas, so we need to keep working, trying to make use of today’s insights in tomorrow’s Superpole Race and Race 2. Compared to Balaton, I felt a little bit better because I was able to fight a little bit more on track, but we are still struggling with several aspects and need to keep improving so that I can feel more comfortable on the bike. Let’s see what we can do tomorrow.”
“Today was challenging, but there were also some positive aspects for me. At the end of the last lap the bike stopped but it was just a small issue, and overall, I was able to maintain consistent pace throughout the race. Yesterday I was really worried about arm pump, and so I was a bit concerned about that heading into today’s rather long race. But in the end, I was able to manage the situation, so from that point of view it was a positive day for me. The race was demanding also because I was still lacking some feeling with the bike in Superpole and couldn’t put together a perfect lap or push as I wanted. There are still many areas where I need to improve and the gap to the group ahead is still there. Physically it was quite tough, but I’m happy that I could avoid mistakes and continue building experience with consistent laps. Tomorrow, we have another opportunity with the Superpole Race and Race 2, so I will try to do more.”
“Today was challenging, but there were also some positive aspects for me. At the end of the last lap the bike stopped but it was just a small issue, and overall, I was able to maintain consistent pace throughout the race. Yesterday I was really worried about arm pump, and so I was a bit concerned about that heading into today’s rather long race. But in the end, I was able to manage the situation, so from that point of view it was a positive day for me. The race was demanding also because I was still lacking some feeling with the bike in Superpole and couldn’t put together a perfect lap or push as I wanted. There are still many areas where I need to improve and the gap to the group ahead is still there. Physically it was quite tough, but I’m happy that I could avoid mistakes and continue building experience with consistent laps. Tomorrow, we have another opportunity with the Superpole Race and Race 2, so I will try to do more.”
