Kyle Smith will be looking to play a far biigger part in Sunday’s World Supersport race in Chang.
The 24-year-old’s debut ride for the CIA Landlord Insurance Honda team came to an early and abrupt end in the opening round at Australia’s Philip Island.
Smith had qualified tenth in Superpole and headeds the fourth row on the grid, but technical problems with the Honda CBR600RR finished his race before the start of the second lap
CIA Landlord Insurance Honda Team Manager Simon Buckmaster said: “It was a very difficult day for us.
“We will examine the data to diagnose the problem with the clutch on Kyle’s bike and to better understand why the lap times didn’t come.”
Four-time and defending WorldSSP Champion Kenan Sofuoglu should be the man to beat yet again.
The Turkish rider suffered a tyre problem when out in front in Australia, leaving him with no points to show for a weekend of searing pace.
After setting pole in the first ever Tissot-Superpole sessions for WorldSSP, the Puccetti rider was out in the lead after fighting off wildcard Anthony West when rain started to fall and a tyre problem saw him lowside out of the race.
The win was taken by his teammate and World Supersport rookie Randy Krummenacher.
After riding brilliantly in difficult conditions at Phillip Island, the Swiss rider inherited a well-deserved lead and crossed the line more than two and a half seconds clear to take his first win at the first attempt.
Being a rookie, ex-Moto2 rider Krummenacher has never ridden at Chang before, and will be hoping to get up to speed quickly to retain his advantage over his WorldSSP veteran teammate.
