SBK, Jonathan Rea beats everyone to Jerez: he has already made his debut as a Honda test rider

Rea was already lapping on Tuesday, before all the other riders arrived in Jerez for the first Superbike test of 2026: debut as a Honda test rider.

Great anticipation for the first two days of SBK testing of the new year. Today and tomorrow the teams are in Jerez to prepare for the championship that will kick off at Phillip Island on the weekend of February 20–22. Honda has to do without the injured Somkiat Chantra. In addition to Jake Dixon, test riders Tetsuta Nagashima and Jonathan Rea are also present. There’s a lot of curiosity to see the latter in action above all, as he has already raced for HRC in Superbike between 2008 and 2014.

Honda strongly pushed to sign Rea, a six-time WorldSBK champion with vast experience who can give significant help in developing the CBR1000RR-R Fireblade SP. The Tokyo manufacturer has invested in recent years, but the results have fallen short of expectations. The hope is to see a turning point in 2026. JR65 can be invaluable to the project: he won’t just be a tester, he will also take part in some calendar rounds as a wild card. We’ll see him racing again, and it will be interesting to assess his performances.

Before we see him battling with the other World Superbike riders again, he made his debut as an HRC test rider on Tuesday, January 20. Getting out ahead of everyone, including the rain, he turned laps on the CBR1000RR-R Fireblade SP at the Jerez circuit. It was his debut, and naturally there’s curiosity to hear his impressions of the bike. He’ll likely speak this afternoon or tomorrow, once testing has concluded. The idea to have him ride yesterday proved spot on, since today the track is wet due to rain.

"In Testa": on Amazon you can purchase Jonathan Rea’s autobiography, six-time Superbike world champion