Former MotoGP rider had a bad start to the Superbike stage

The only Thai rider to feature on the star grid of the MotoGP World Championship. somkiat chantraAccording to the team, he will make his debut as a rider for Honda’s official superbike team in 2026, but his start on the production motorcycle did not go well as he was injured while driving a production Honda CBR1000RR-R during a private training session at the Sepang International Circuit.

The Thai pilot was taken to a hospital in Kuala Lumpur, where X-rays revealed a fracture in his right forearm. “Chantra will return to Thailand to undergo further medical tests. Honda HRC will provide further information in the coming days,” they said in a statement.

Somkiat Chantra was a regular in the paddock from 2019 to 2025, winning two Moto2 first stages and scoring six podiums, and last year rode for LCR Honda in MotoGP. It was very difficult for him to adapt to MotoGP and he ended up losing his seat. Diogo Moreira In the second year of his contract, he ended up on the operating table last July with a torn lateral collateral ligament in his right knee, suffered during motocross training, and missed several races.

They loaned him to Honda HRC Superbikes and partnered him with fellow former Moto2 rider Jake Dixon. They conducted their first official test with the Honda CBR1000RR-R in Jerez in November, but the Thai will miss the tests scheduled for January 21st and 22nd. The 2026 World Superbike Championship will begin at Phillip Island from February 20th to 22nd.