MotorLand Aragón
Chantra delivers a strong performance at Aragón as Dixon makes a gritty WorldSBK debut
Honda HRC riders Jake Dixon and Somkiat Chantra are competing together for the first time this weekend at MotorLand Aragón. Despite a post-Race 1 penalty, Chantra delivered his strongest performance of the season so far, fighting his way through the group to achieve his best result to date, while Dixon completed his first WorldSBK race after a lengthy injury layoff, demonstrating grit, determination and promising pace despite not yet being back to full fitness.
Following on from Friday’s FP1 and FP2 sessions, which ran in very hot conditions, a final practice session this morning allowed both Dixon and Chantra to improve on their best times from Friday by well over a second each. The duo set best laps of 1'49.077 and 1'49.212 respectively on a cooler track as they prepared for the subsequent qualifying session.
Temperatures were already beginning to rise by the time Superpole got underway at 11:15am local time. A best of 1'48.322 for Dixon and 1'48.979 for Chantra placed the Honda HRC riders fourteenth and nineteenth on the provisional grid for Saturday afternoon’s Race 1. Dixon was unfortunately handed a grid penalty for slow riding during Superpole and therefore lined up on the sixth row alongside teammate Chantra for the first race of the weekend.
Race 1 ran in hot, dry conditions in the early afternoon. Focused on the task ahead when the lights went out, Dixon and Chantra were running seventeenth and nineteenth respectively through the opening turns.
Chantra had the edge in the second half of the race, gradually working his way up to thirteenth position. Crossing the line in that place, he initially secured what would have been his best race result of the season. Unfortunately, a post-race two-position penalty for causing an adverse effect to another rider during the race relegated him to fifteenth in the final classification.
Dixon approached the 18-lap contest with a clear objective: to complete the race distance while continuing his physical recovery. Demonstrating a consistent pace throughout much of the race, the British rider managed his condition intelligently before increasing pain in his recovering wrist began to take its toll in the closing stages. Remaining focused, Dixon crossed the line in sixteenth position, gaining valuable race mileage and confidence ahead of tomorrow.
Somkiat Chantra 35 Honda HRC
“Race 1 was good fun. I was able to stay with the group and fight with the riders around me, and I really enjoyed that. I'd like to thank the team because everyone is working very hard and we are continuing to improve step by step. It's a shame about the penalty because we lost a couple of positions after the race, but these things can happen. The important thing is that we showed better pace today and were able to fight with the group. Tomorrow we have two more races, so we'll keep working hard and try to make another step forward."
Jake Dixon 96 Honda HRC
"Overall, I have to be happy. Obviously it's not where I want to be finishing, but considering where I was even a couple of weeks ago, when I wasn't sure I'd be able to race at all, it's acceptable for now. We were in a decent little group for most of the race, fighting around eleventh, twelfth and thirteenth positions, so there are definitely some positives to take away. We're almost using this weekend as another test because we're still trying to understand the bike a little better. We've had very little track time compared to everyone else and we're still trying to catch up, including in terms of setup, so I felt pretty rusty, I'm not going to lie. But I was pleased with my Superpole lap and I think there were some encouraging signs. Of course, completing the race distance today is also a positive step. Physically, it was tough. At the start of the race I was riding well within myself because I didn't know how my wrist would hold up over the full distance. I spent the first part of the race just focusing on hitting my marks and managing the situation, and I'm glad I did because the pain gradually increased as the race went on. Now let's see how I feel tomorrow, but we'll keep working, try to improve the bike and keep moving forward."
