Honda HRC prepares for the penultimate SBK round in Portugal
Honda HRC returns to full ranks with Lecuona rejoining Vierge for WorldSBK round 11.
The Estoril Circuit in Portugal is the stage for the eleventh WorldSBK round – the penultimate event of the 2025 season – and it promises to be an important weekend for the Honda HRC team. Honda HRC test rider Tetsuta Nagashima will also take part in the upcoming round as a wildcard entry.
Iker Lecuona has now been cleared by his medical team which means that, as long as he is passed fit to compete by circuit doctors on Thursday, he will be back in the garage with teammate Xavi Vierge after missing the last two rounds. An incident during the Balaton Park race weekend resulted in arm surgery and a necessary period of recovery, which is why the Spaniard has been out of action in recent weeks.
In what is their final season with the Honda HRC Team, both Vierge and Lecuona are determined to finish on a high note. Lecuona, a podium finisher in last year’s opening race at the Portuguese venue, will necessarily need to take things step by step, gradually regaining his feeling with the CBR1000RR-R from Friday’s opening sessions. Vierge, who secured a solid sixth place in Race 2 in 2024, will give his all to further improve his points tally. Wildcard Tetsuta Nagashima, meanwhile, will concentrate on gathering key data to support Honda HRC’s ongoing development work.
Situated close to the coastal town of Estoril and only about 30 km from capital city, Lisbon, the Circuito do Estoril makes its seventh appearance on the WorldSBK calendar. The circuit measures 4182 metres in length and incorporates a straightway of almost 1km, as well as four left-hand turns and nine right-handers. Weather conditions may play a part in the weekend’s action, considering the autumn scheduling of this round.
Weekend schedule (CET-1):
Friday
10.35 – 11.20 – SBK Free Practice 1
15.00 – 15.45 – SBK Free Practice 2
Saturday
9.00 – 9.20 – SBK Free Practice 3
11.00 – 11.15 – Superpole
14.00 – SBK Race 1
Sunday
9.00 – 9.10 – SBK Warm-up
11.00 – Superpole race
14.00 – SBK Race 2
Xavi Vierge 97
“Estoril is back-to-back with Jerez for the final rush of the season. We have very good memories of this track from last year, so we are very much looking forward to showing our real potential. I hope we can find something more in terms of acceleration to be able to battle closer to the top, because in that case we have the pace for that. So yeah, I’m very happy to be heading into this round, and back-to-back events, to finish the season in the best possible way. The target is to close the championship with the best result for Honda since the start of this project.”
Iker Lecuona 7
“Following surgery at the end of July (29th), everything has gone as expected with my recovery. Particularly over the last three weeks, I’ve made good progress in terms of my strength and arm rotation and have been working every day to improve. All the medical checks throughout this period have confirmed that everything is progressing well. This past Monday I travelled from Andorra to Valencia for a final check, and the doctors gave me the OK to try returning at Estoril. That said, I’ll take things very easy, treating it like a test and without any particular expectations, and then we’ll see how it goes over the weekend. Obviously, I know I can’t fight for the podium as I did last year, but I really want to finish the season in the best possible way for Honda and for my team.”
Location Information
Circuito Estoril – Portugal Located just outside Lisbon, Circuito Estoril is one of Portugal’s most historic racing venues. It first featured on the WorldSBK calendar in 1988 — the inaugural season — and hosted several editions, with the last one before a long hiatus taking place in 1993. After a… read more.
| POLE POSITION | Left |
| LENGHT | 4.182 Km |
| CORNERS | 13 |
| RIGHT CORNERS | 9 |
| LEFT CORNERS | 4 |
Records
| Pole Record | 1'35.346 (157,901 Km/h) J. Rea (Kawasaki ZX-10RR - 2022) |
| Race Record | 1'36.178 (156,535 Km/h) N. Bulega - SPRC (Ducati Panigale V4R- 2024) |
| All Time Record | 1'35.346 (157,901 Km/h) J. Rea (Kawasaki ZX-10RR - 2022) |
| 2024 Race 1 Winner | T. Razgatlioglu (BMW M 1000 RR) |
| 2024 Superpole Race Winner | N. Bulega (Ducati Panigale V4R) |
| 2024 Race 2 Winner | T. Razgatlioglu (BMW M 1000 RR) |
