Honda rider Jake Dixon has quashed the idea that he will be boosted by riding at home ahead of the WorldSBK Donington Park weekend.
Dixon arrives after being declared fit to participate in the weekend’s running, with Honda also bolstered by Somkiat Chantra’s fitness and Jonathan Rea’s wildcard appearance.
It is the first time Dixon will have ridden at Donington Park since he competed in British Superbikes back in 2019
Rea and Chantra also come into the weekend off the back of their success at the Suzuka 8 Hours, where they took victory alongside Takumi Takahashi.
Although Dixon and Rea are competing at their home race, the full-time rider admitted he is unlikely to feel the boost from being at home.
“You do your best, regardless, you know, whether you’re in a good moment or a bad moment,” Dixon told media including Motorsport Week.
“Obviously it helps that these guys have come off a great weekend in Suzuka. But it’s a completely different championship.
“And the bike is completely different in a sense. You’re just gonna give the best that you can give, like, Johnny will and Chantra will. And I will, regardless of whether it’s your home race or if it’s another race that we go to.
“So, we’ve been around long enough to know the peaks and troughs of being at home race, but, I don’t know, for me, I don’t feel no different. It’s not like I’m fighting for anything. It’s just nice to be back.”
Jonathan Rea and Somkiat Chantra ‘trust the process’ after Suzuka victory
Rea also shared similar sentiments to Dixon that the home race boost is unlikely to lead to a better result, but admitted he took a lot of confidence from his win at Suzuka.
The Northern Irishman shared that his personal achievements in mixed conditions and lap time have boosted him mentally and added motivation to improve the Honda package.
“Personally, it’s good. The experience since could help me a lot,” Rea said.
“Mentally as well because I was fast, really fast in the wet and also in the dry. And I set my personal best lap time ever at Suzuka.
“Faster than everybody there, so it was sort of a reminder to myself that, you know, I’m still fast, so whatever’s going on here, just trust the process.
“Don’t start doubting myself or the bike. It’s just not the moment when it, like, my job away from the track is to try and make the package better. So if anything, it just helped keep motivation high.
“If we can carry it into this weekend and find something, and that’s nice.”
Although it’s not a home race for Somkiat Chantra, he also admitted he is looking forward to his debut weekend at the circuit.
The Thai rider also revealed that he is hopeful that sharing data with two riders who know the track well will help the team moving forward.
“For me, it is the first time here, and we have Johnny; he’s come for the test team and they have much experience here also,” Chantra added.
“This is like a home race for Johnny and Jake, and for me it’s nice because we can share a lot of the data.
“We tested here, which was also not so bad, but we try to chat about everything and try to improve this weekend.”
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