Just when the ASB1000 title chase seemed all but sewn up by Andi Farid Izdihar of Honda Asia-Dream Racing with Astemo, Yuki brought a twist in the tale with a double win at Round 5 IDEMITSU FIM Asia Road Racing Championship today.
After winning Race 1 on Saturday, the SDG Team HARC-PRO Honda Ph. rider ended a successful outing at the PETRONAS Sepang International Circuit, Malaysia with another commanding victory clocked at 25’26:318s.
Yuki’s dominance in the ASB1000 race began in lap 3 when he edged past Nakarin Atiratphuvapat of Honda Asia-Dream Racing with Astemo and pole sitter, Hafizh Syahrin Abdullah of JDT RACING TEAM. The Japanese rider wasted no time pulling a lead ahead of the chasing duo.
As naakrin finished second, Hafizh’s dream of gifting a Malaysia Day victory to local fans were dashed when he was forced to concede in third place.
Yuki’s so,id performance in PETRONAS Sepang International Circuit has propelled him to the top of the championship standings ahead of Andi Farid Izdihar. PETRONAS Sepang International Circuit had not been kind to Andi. The Indonesian rider, barely defended his leadership of the title chase when he finished fourth in Race 1 and fifth in Race 2.
With one final round to go, Yuki heads to Chang International Circuit, Buriram, Thailand with 142 points in hand.
Yuki said, “Be honest, today I was really happy about this double win. Until today, I was a little bit nervous. In the beginning, Hafizh was really strong at the lead. I was afraid of him because he’s strong on the bike and with braking. But I know I’m good at my pace, so I waited until he started to drop. After that, it was the same as yesterday. I’m really thankful for the team and fans. I will keep focused until the last round in Buriram.”
Top 5 Fastest – Race 2
- Yuki Kunii – SDG Team HARC-PRO Honda Ph. (25’26:318s)
- Nakarin Atiratphuvapat – Honda Asia-Dream Racing with Astemo (25’29:138s)
- Hafizh Syahrin Abdullah – JDT RACING TEAM (25’30:275s)
- Azlan Shah Kamaruzaman – TKKR BMW Racing Team (25’36:660s)
- Andi Farid Izdihar – Honda Asia-Dream Racing with Astemo (25’36:706s)