Race 1 of Round 2 in the 2025 IDEMITSU FIM Asia Road Racing Championship’s SS600 category delivered a heart-stopping finish, with Mohammad Adenanta Putra of ASTRA HONDA RACING TEAM clinching a stunning victory at the Sepang International Circuit, Malaysia.
Earlier in qualifying, Malaysian ace Kasma Daniel Kasmayudin of HONG LEONG YAMAHA RACING stormed to pole position with a blistering lap of 2’08.709s. Close behind was IDEMITSU HONDA RACING MALAYSIA’s Muhammad Helmi Azman, just 0.011s adrift with 2’08.720s, followed by teammate Khairul Idham Pawi in third with 2’08.918s.
At lights out, Kasma made a perfect start to lead the pack, followed closely by Khairul, Helmi, and Adenanta. However, a mistake at the final turn of the opening lap saw Kasma lose momentum, allowing Helmi and Khairul to surge ahead.
Despite the setback, Kasma regrouped and clocked the fastest lap of the race on Lap 4 with a 2’09.882s, quickly rejoining the battle for the lead. But drama unfolded on Lap 5 when Helmi, who was leading by 0.287s, served a long lap penalty he had received during Qualifying session. Kasma swiftly retook the lead, while Adenanta, Khairul, Wahyu Nugroho of YAMAHA RACING INDONESIA, and Thanat Laoongplio of HONDA RACING THAILAND capitalised on the reshuffle to move up the order.
Helmi rejoined deep in the pack and found himself in a tight battle with Thailand’s Anupab Sarmoon. Anupab eventually got past Helmi and began a brilliant charge through the field, picking off rivals one by one to climb into podium contention.
The final lap set the stage for a breathtaking showdown between Kasma and Adenanta. At the critical last corner,
Adenanta launched a daring move around the outside to overtake Kasma and power across the line, sealing a hard-earned victory with a time of 21’52.467s.
Kasma finished a close second at 21’52.639s, while Anupab’s remarkable recovery was rewarded with third place at 21’52.811s.
Adenanta said, “Race 1 was quite tough for me. Kasma and Helmi had really good pace, but I focused on improving step by step, lap by lap. I tried to stay calm and conserve my energy until I got closer to Kasma. In the last two or three laps, he was still very strong, and it was hard to find a way through. I just waited for the right chance. On the final lap at the final turn, I used the slipstream and went around the outside and it worked. I’m very happy and will give my best again tomorrow.”
TOP 5 FASTEST – RACE 1
- Mohammad Adenanta Putra – ASTRA HONDA RACING TEAM (21’52.467s)
- Kasma Daniel Kasmayudin – HONG LEONG YAMAHA RACING (21’52.639s)
- Anupab Sarmoon – YAMAHA THAILAND RACING TEAM (21’52.811s)
- Thanat Laoongplio – HONDA RACING THAILAND (21’53.107s)
- Khairul Idham Pawi- IDEMITSU HONDA RACING MALAYSIA (21’53.334s)