Round 1 of the IDEMITSU FIM Asia Road Racing Championship 2026 kicked off today at the Sepang International Circuit, Malaysia, with the TVS Racing International Championship riders taking to the track for their first official outing of the season. Setting the benchmark in the combined practice results was Luis Miguel of Spain, who delivered an exceptional performance to close the day as the fastest rider overall.
The opening practice session immediately showcased Miguel’s intent. The Spaniard topped the timesheets with a strong lap of 2’22.519s, edging out Malaysia’s Mohd Ramdan Rosli, who clocked 2’22.764s, 0.245 seconds behind. Portugal’s Pedrinho Matos followed closely in third with 2’22.951s, while Chiranth Vishwanath from India and Malaysia’s Md Naqib Rifqi rounded off the top five in a tightly contested session.
Practice 2 saw a shift in momentum as Malaysian rider Md Haziq Md Fairues stormed to the top with a 2’22.911s lap. Ramdan maintained strong consistency to place second at 2’23.066s, while Naqib improved his pace significantly with 2’23.150s to secure third. India’s Sarthak Chavan and Pedrinho continued to keep pressure on the front runners, finishing fourth and fifth respectively.
As the combined results were tallied, Luis Miguel emerged as the rider to beat. His fastest overall time of 2’22.068s, positioned him comfortably atop the day’s standings. Malaysia’s Ramdan secured second, while Haziq’s strong Practice 2 run promoted him to third. Pedrinho and Chiranth completed the top five, signalling a highly competitive field heading into race day.
Luis Miguel shared, Today was quite challenging. With the new bike geometry, I’m still adapting, and I faced some suspension issues that caused a lot of chatter. But it’s all part of the learning process. I’m confident I can improve tomorrow, and I’ll give it everything I have.”
TOP 5 FASTEST – COMBINED PRACTICE
1. LUIS MIGUEL – SPAIN (2’22.068s)
2. MOHD RAMDAN ROSLI – MALAYSIA (2’22.519s)
3. MD HAZIQ MD FAIRUES – MALAYSIA (2’22.764s)
4. PEDRINHO MATOS – PORTUGAL (2’22.911s)
5. CHIRANTH VISHWANATH – INDIA (2’22.951s)