Fadillah Arbi Aditama of ASTRA HONDA RACING TEAM astounded the paddock at Mandalika circuit when he scored a double-win and although he was later penalised to third spot in Race 2, his charm has not gone unnoticed as he continued to top the chart steadily and confidently throughout the season. With a 37-point difference to Krittapat Keankum of YAMAHA THAILANG RACING TEAM, can the Indonesian boy draw an unbeatable gap at Sepang International Circuit in Round 5?
First, a hat-trick in the beginning of the season, then a steep decline on the point front due to regulation requirements and after that, an upward trend in performance on home-soil – Fadillah is definitely not on a pathway of recovery but of stardom. With four more races to go, it’s all about managing the strategies and keeping it calm but will Fadillah aim higher? Would he settle for enough points or would he go for the sought after 25-pointer? The crossroads simply mean either succumbing to his contenders or potentially ending in complete loss of points, depending on how the cards are laid and played.
At Sepang during round 2, Fadillah concluded Race 1 with a striking performance when he scored the top spot on the chart. But of course, there are the likes of Krittapat, Izam Ikmal of VICTOR RACING TEAM, Irfan Ardiansyah of MAEZTRO NWN SCK HONDA RACING TEAM and Galang Hendra Pratama of YAMAHA BAF YAMALUBE AKAI JAYA MBKW2 RACING who have all earned a spot on the Malaysian podium. With the strong contention waiting to strike at multiple angles, Fadillah has to make calculated moves and avoid risks where possible.
Fadillah commented, “Despite the point difference between myself and the next in line, I will go all out at Sepang. There is nothing more colourful that hitting the bullseye with a double-win. Also, it will give me a better standing at Chang circuit. There is not much risk on my hand considered the margins. But most importantly, for us, it is about creating the rivalry impact that stimulates the experience of riding. That’s the way we move forward – to be stronger. Sepang circuit itself gives us an added advantage especially on the fast corners. But again, we also need to keep our focus on slow speed corners – which is a little bit of a disadvantage for us.”
“Throughout the season, I have definitely gained a lot of experience – from the riders, the different riding techniques and managing the machine on different circuit grounds. The competition is also becoming stiff on a round-to-round basis which makes it even more interesting. We have to create an impact as a team and the rising contention fuels us to do better. Despite the regulations and RPM cut, we are positive in our approaches. The FP sessions usually give us time to re-look into the setup of the machine and usually it ends with a good outcome. The goal for any team is to make the most out of the experience but for us, its nothing less than a championship title. That’s where we are headed!”