Chantra temporarily leaves WorldSBK to replace Mir at Motegi

Honda has found Joan Mir’s replacement for the Japanese Grand Prix: Somkiat Chantra will return to MotoGP with the factory team. The Thai rider contested the 2025 season with LCR Honda before joining HRC’s WorldSBK programme this year.

Motegi is familiar territory: Chantra won there in Moto2 in 2023 and finished 15th there during his 2025 MotoGP season. Takaaki Nakagami could not replace Mir this time because he is already entered as a wildcard with the HRC Test Team.

For now, Chantra is confirmed only for Japan. Mandalika falls on the same weekend as the Estoril WorldSBK round, which will force Honda to find another solution if Mir is still unavailable.