SBK: MIE Honda team not on the 2026 entry list, but Midori Moriwaki promises a return

The MIE team of Midori Moriwaki was not present in the 2026 Superbike World Championship entry list: here’s the situation.

The MIE Racing Honda Team has not achieved particularly positive results since arriving in WorldSBK. In 2019 it began a collaboration with Althea Racing, which ended during 2020, and then continued on its own. From 2023 a partnership began with the Malaysian oil giant Petronas, which became title sponsor of Midori Moriwaki’s team in both Superbike and Supersport, but the on-track performance continued to disappoint.

The only real day of glory was July 30, 2023, when Tarran Mackenzie won SSP Race 2 at Most (Czech Republic) with his CBR600RR. The particular conditions gave the British rider a big hand, and he made the most of them. In SBK, however, there were no standout results. People wondered why this team kept lining up on the grid, considering the poor results.

The Petronas MIE Racing Honda Team does not appear in the 2026 WorldSBK entry list. No surprise. Our colleagues at Speedweek explained that the team is aiming to take part in 4–5 rounds as a wildcard and return full-time to the grid in 2027. Besides some financial issues (the partnership with Petronas ended at the end of 2025), Midori Moriwaki’s own health problems must also be considered.

She herself spoke to Speedweek about the situation of her outfit: "Running a world-level team is never easy. I’ve been in this world for over 30 years and life in racing is always tough. I keep trying and fighting against numerous difficulties, as you can see from recent years. My attitude is to never give up. I’m working hard to sort things out, even when I’m not in the paddock. I have no intention of closing my team; it’s important that MIE continues to exist in motorsport."

Midori Moriwaki was upfront with her staff in 2025 and gave them the green light to accept any other offers, as she could not provide guarantees. From her words it’s clear we will see the MIE Racing team on track again; we’ll just have to see when and where.