Somkiat Chantra has failed to convince since stepping up to MotoGP with LCR. Ahead of the resumption of the season, he sits 26th out of 27 riders in the world championship.
Chantra would be last had Honda test rider Aleix Espargaro not slowed in Assen to hand him a first world championship point. Teammate Johann Zarco, who leads the overall head-to-head 20-1, has scored 109 points, while the factory duo have combined for 84.
The 25-year-old spent five seasons in Moto2 but only finished 12th in the intermediate class last year. The first Thai rider in the series’ history, he’s partly on the grid to satisfy Honda partners Idemitsu.
RACESPRRThailand1918Argentina1718Americas1916Qatar2018Spain20DNFFranceDNSDNSGreat Britain2119Aragon1916Italy1918Netherlands1915GermanyDNSDNSCzech RepublicDNSDNSSomkiat Chantra’s MotoGP career so far
Observers say that Chantra looks ‘terrified’ on the Honda motorcycle, while engineers are reportedly disregarding his data when making development and tuning choices. Still out of action with a knee injury, there is a strong possibility that he’s let go when his contract expires at the end of the year.
Carlo Pernat warns Honda that Diogo Moreira needs another year in Moto2
Diogo Moreira is the favourite to replace Chantra, should Honda commit to making a change. Moreira currently ranks fourth in Moto2, having won his first race in the championship in the Netherlands.
As veteran MotoGP manager Carlo Pernat pointed out in an interview with MOW, there are also ‘strategic’ incentives attached to Moreira, particularly with MotoGP returning to Brazil next year.
However, Pernat fears that the 21-year-old could struggle like Chantra if he’s rushed into the premier class. He’s advised Honda to draw up a contract that includes a final Moto2 season, even if that may frustrate him.
Moreira would then arrive for the 2027 regulation changes, a more natural start point.
Photo by Mirco Lazzari gp/Getty Images
“What worries me, though, is whether they’re really in danger of turning Diogo Moreira into a Somkiat Chantra two,” said Pernat.
“What’s the point of throwing him into the MotoGP mix in 2026 when everything will change in 2027? Better to let him do another year of Moto2.
“Honda has so much money that if they want to be chosen, they’ll be chosen without having to promise early debuts. No one has Honda’s firepower financially, so as a manager, I’d try to convince Moreira with a three-year contract offering a lot of money up front, but with a waiting season in Moto2.
“Now they’d risk making him feel bad, and that’s it, with a bike that won’t even help him learn the ropes, not to mention not being fast. However, I fully believe and understand that Honda strongly wants Moreira. When I was Alex Barros’s manager, I remember that the Brazilian market was already strategic for Honda at that time, with several hundred thousand bikes sold there.”
Does Somkiat Chantra have an attitude problem at LCR?
Analyst Peter Bom has questioned whether Chantra really wants to be in MotoGP. When the offer arrived, he couldn’t turn it down.
According to The Race, there are rumours that Chantra’s ‘application’ is lacking. He may lack the determination to prove he’s premier-class standard.
If that’s the case, and Moreira brings commercial benefits himself, then Honda have little reason to persist with him next year. Despite their aforementioned financial clout, the question is whether they can lure the Brazilian in.
Somewhat surprisingly, Moreira’s advisors are urging him to reject Honda. They’re worried he’d be entering a ‘sporting tomb’, with the Japanese giants still a long way from challenging the dominant Ducati.