Azroy Hakeem Anuar of IDEMITSU HONDA RACING MALAYSIA gave the home crowd plenty to cheer about, proudly waving the Malaysian flag from the top step of the ASB1000 podium after securing a sensational double win in Round 2 of the 2025 IDEMITSU FIM Asia Road Racing Championship at the Sepang International Circuit.
Following his Race 1 victory on Saturday, Azroy capped off a stellar weekend with another commanding performance in Race 2, clocking a winning time of 25’23.640s.
Azroy’s intent was clear from the very first lap, as he edged past Hafizh Syahrin Abdullah of JDT RACING TEAM, who had made a strong start. However, the road to victory wasn’t smooth. He faced constant pressure from a determined group of challengers, including Thailand’s Apiwath Wongthananon of A1 ENERGY BMW RACING TEAM and Hafizh, who both took turns overtaking him. At one point, Azroy dropped to fifth position.
But the Malaysian rider quickly regained momentum, setting the fastest lap of the race at 2’06.134s to reclaim the lead on Lap 4. With Hafizh close behind, the battle for the top spot intensified, leaving no room for error.
Andi Farid Izdihar of ASTRA HONDA RACING TEAM also put in a brilliant performance, surging from P6 to P3 and joining the front-running duo. Unfortunately, his charge ended in disappointment after a crash on Lap 9, allowing Keito Abe of SDG HARC-PRO. HONDA PHILIPPINES and Azlan Shah Kamaruzaman A1 ENERGY BMW RACING TEAM to move up the order.
The closing laps saw Azroy and Hafizh push their machines to the limit, exceeding 300 km/h as they pulled a five-second gap over the chasing pack. Both riders were determined to secure national glory on home soil, but Azroy held firm under pressure to seal his second win of the weekend and climb to the top of the championship standings with 71 points.
Hafizh Syahrin secured second place with a time of 25’24.408s, while Keito Abe completed the podium in third at 25’28.751s.
Azroy, “This is my first time getting a double podium and double win, so I’m really happy. All of this is thanks to my team for their hard work. Without them, I wouldn’t be here. In the race, I tried to follow the same pace as yesterday, but today the weather was hotter, so I had to manage the tyres more carefully. Early on I dropped to 5th or 6th, but I pushed to make a comeback. I noticed something was off with the tyre, so I just maintained my pace. Hafizh was close, sometimes near, sometimes far, and that’s when I knew my pace was strong. I just controlled the race until the final lap. I’m really happy with this result, and we’ll aim to do it again in the next round.”
TOP 5 FASTEST – RACE 2
- Azroy Hakeem Anuar – IDEMITSU HONDA RACING MALAYSIA (25’23.640s)
- Hafizh Syahrin Abdullah – JDT RACING TEAM (25’24.408s)
- Keito Abe – SDG HARC-PRO. HONDA PHILIPPINES (25’28.751s)
- Nakarin Atiratphuvapat – HONDA RACING THAILAND (25’30.856s)
- Azlan Shah Kamaruzaman – A1 ENERGY BMW RACING TEAM (25’31.436s)