Somkiat Chantra: “It was almost a heart attack” / MotoGP

Somkiat Chantra: “It was almost a heart attack” / MotoGP


MotoGP rookie Somkiat Chantra finished his first day of work with the RC213V in 23rd place. Fitness training is on the program during the winter.

Somkiat Chantra was one of three riders who were allowed to sit on a MotoGP bike for the first time at the test in Barcelona. It was Honda RC213V, which was driven this year by Japanese Takaaki Nakagami.

Chantra finished 12th overall in the 2024 Moto2 World Championship. The Thai competed in the intermediate division for six years. Of the 106 races he has driven in the World Motorcycle Championship so far, he has won two. At 25, Chantra is not one of the youngest – by comparison: the other two newcomers, Fermin Aldeguer (Gresini Ducati) and Ai Ogura (Trackhouse Aprilia), are aged 19 and 23. Pedro Acosta had 19 years old when he started his first MotoGP.

HRC offered Chantra the opportunity to move up to the first class and become the first Thai on a MotoGP machine. His first day of work at the LCR Honda team was to familiarize himself with the bike and the Michelin tires. “Today was the first day on the MotoGP bike. I tried to get used to the bike and the tires. My team told me to be careful, especially in the left-hand bends,” said Chantra, who crashed at turn 10 despite a warning from his team.

How nervous was she before her first performance? “Before I got on the bike I was very nervous and almost had a heart attack,” laughed Chantra. “When I was coming out of my first lap, I tried to stay calm on the brakes and the accelerator. After the last corner I wanted to open the throttle fully on the straight and when the bike came forward I just thought ‘woah, the bike is really fast.’ It got better every round.”

Riding a MotoGP bike with around 300 horsepower is a big difference compared to the Moto2 bike he rode for six years. Above all, the forces acting on the body are greater. How did he deal with that? “Now we’re going into winter break and I’ll be working a lot on my fitness,” Chantra says.

Somkiat Chantra finished his first MotoGP test of his career in 23rd place, 2.492 seconds behind the fastest Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati).

Results of the MotoGP test in Barcelona (November 19):

1. Alex Márquez (E), Ducati, 1:38,803 minutes
2. Fabio Quartararo (F), Yamaha, +0.396 sec
3. Francesco Bagnaia (I), Ducati, +0.595
4. Marc Márquez (E), Ducati, +0.651
5. Raúl Fernandez (E), Aprilia, +0,668
6. Brad Binder (ZA), KTM, +0.705
7. Franco Morbidelli (I), Ducati, +0.762
8. Alex Rins (E), Yamaha, +0,765
9. Pedro Acosta (L), KTM, +0.768
10. Johann Zarco (F), Honda, +0.813
11. Jorge Martín (E), Aprilia, +1,056
12. Maverick Viñales (E), KTM, +1.084
13. Marco Bezzecchi (I), Aprilia, +1.192
14. Aleix Espargaró (E), Honda, +1,204
15. Joan Mir (E), Honda, +1,267
16. Enea Bastianini (I), KTM, +1,279
17. Miguel Oliveira (P), Yamaha, +1,335
18. Luca Marini (I), Honda, +1.429
19. Michele Pirro (I), Ducati, +1.683
20. Fermin Aldeguer (E), Ducati, +1,761
21. Ai Ogura (J), Aprilia, +2,143
22. Jack Miller (AUS), Yamaha, +2,222
23. Somkiat Chantra (TH), Honda, +2,492
24. Lorenzo Savadori (I), Aprilia, +8,793

Avatar for geomtimba
geomtimba