2017 Round2

GERRY WINS AND ANUPAB SPOILS THE HONDA PARTY IN RACE 1

2017, 2017 Round2, Asia Production 250, Latest News /

After his convincing qualifying performance, pole man Takehiro Yamamoto bogged down his twin engined Honda on the line, dropping down to eighth position during lap 1 as Gerry Salim, Anuparb Sarmoon, Boonlert, Luiboonpeng and Galang Hendra Pratama rushed past. The 2015 champion recovered by lap 3 to get briefly to the front of the leading pack of six bikes, which had begun to create a gap back to Pratama. Behind them Tomoyoshi Koyama led the second group which, by lap six had engulfed Boonlert and Luiboonpeng as the two Astra Hondas of Salim and Rheza, the Sidrap Honda of Yamamoto and the Yamaha Thailand R25 of Anuparb got away at the front. Despite the lead swapping continuously, it was Salim who looked the most convincing during his stints in the lead.  From Turn 4 on the last lap Salim and Anuparb created a small gap to Rheza and Yamamoto, but, as they got to Chang International’s formidable final corner, they bunched together once again. As the four bikes squirmed under braking it could have been anyone’s victory, but it was Salim who got the power down best to take a narrow win from Anuparb, with Rheza getting half a wheel in front of Yamamoto to take third place. The next group was 8.5 seconds further back and led over the line by the Astra Honda of Awhin Sanjaya, just in front of the RAMA Honda of Koyama who made it five Hondas in the top six.  Despite the exceptional performance of Anuparb, Yamaha will spend the evening pouring over data from today’s race to find more than one an answer to the dominance of Honda’s parallel twin powered CBR250RR.

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CLEAN WIN FOR AZROY IN ROUND 2 RACE 1

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Malaysian rider Azroy Hakeem Anuar clinched a clear win in Race 1 of the Underbone 150cc category. The Yuzy Honda Vietnam rider emerged from a dramatic race as the winner of the day with a time of 16’54.800s. Race 1 of the Underbone 150cc category had been full of drama since the free practice. Defending champion Wahyu Aji Trilaksana and Round 1 winner Mohd Akid Aziz were both excluded from the qualifying results when they were found to be under the minimum weight. Although both riders still went out for the SuperPole, they were relegated to the back of the grid for the race start. Things took a turn for the worse for both these riders. Akid’s bike failed on him on Lap 1 while Wahyu retired on Lap 5. It was also a bad day at the office for Norizman Ismail. the ONEXOX TKKR Racing rider had to leave the starting grid when his bike couldn’t turn over. In exiting from the pitlane to rejoin the group, Norizman was found to have exceeded the track limit and was penalized with a ride-through penalty. Norizman ignored the penalty and was subsequently blackflagged on Lap 6. As the riders dropped out of the top group, Azroy tucked in and stayed out of trouble. In the final corner mad dash to the finish line, Azroy stayed on the racing line while many of the front runners ran wide at the apex. Even though the results were immediately placed under investigation by the jury, Azroy’s win was confirmed. Fellow Malaysians Mohd Izzat Zaidi and Mohd Helmi Azman also made it to the podium in second and third places respectively.

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APRIL KING DOUBLES UP AT THE SUZUKI ASIAN CHALLENGE

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Having gotten a taste of winning in Round 1 of the 2017 FIM Asia Road Racing Championship, April King Mascardo gave an encore performance during the Race 1 of the Suzuki Asian Challenge. April King pipped the 6-rider lead group to the finish line with a margin of 0.387s, chalking up a second win for Team Philippines with a time of 16’03.480s. Behind the Filipino rider, Nur Al Fath Sam Ahmad from Indonesia and local rider Punchana Kulrojchalalai took second and third place with times of 16’03.387s and 16’03.934s respectively. Indian rider KY Ahamed did himself proud when he finished fourth with 16’04.020s, even leading the pack several times during the race. Returning wildcard rider Patis Chooprathet powered his way into the top five.

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DECHA UNASSAILABLE IN ROUND 2 QUALIFYING

2017, 2017 Round2, Latest News, Supersports 600 /

In Supersport 600 Qualifying Azlan Shah showed his class early in the session, running in the early 1:39s, ahead of Yamaha Thailand’s Decha Kraisart and Chalermpol Polamai, Ahmad Yudhistira, Zaqhwan Zaidi and Anthony West, who carried their strong form through from Free Practice. With 12 minutes remaining, Decha pulled out a sensational lap of 1:38.641 to go half a second clear of Azlan. Sensing it was enough, he pulled into the pits, took his helmet off and watched the rest of the session on the TV monitors. Chalermpol edged to within a few thousandths of the Malaysian’s Kawasaki, shadowed by Yuki Ito, who looked like he was trying to work out where the Thai former champion was getting his half second advantage on the 4.5 kilometre circuit. Decha’s best lap did indeed prove to be unassailable and he is joined on the front row by Azlan and Chalermpol. The Manual Tech Kawasaki of Yudhistra ended up fourth ahead of the MUSASHI Boon Siew Honda of Zaqhwan and the ever threatening Akeno Speed Yamaha of Anthony West. Taiga Hada was seventh fastest with a lap of 1:39.640 on his RAMA Honda, just a few hundredths faster than AP Honda’s Ratthapong and Yamaha Racing’s Yuki Ito, who make up Row 3. Decha will be looking to delight his home fans in Race 1 by following up his recent World Supersport second place at Chang International Circuit with a win this afternoon. Despite his qualifying performance, the pace of Azlan Shah throughout the event so far and the sheer speed of Chalermpol, mean that Decha will be facing a stern test. The injured Zaqhwan will also be looking for a podium position, while the quality and experience Anthony West keeps him squarely in the frame. Yudhistira is also capable of making the top three on his day.

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YAMAMOTO KEEPS CLEAR OF TEAM BATTLES TO TAKE POLE POSITION

2017, 2017 Round2, Asia Production 250, Latest News /

Qualifying for Round 2 of Asia Production 250cc was red flagged early in the session when a dog tried to join the action, but at the restart it was the two cylinder Honda CBR of Takehiro Yamamoto that immediately set the pace, banking a time of 1:53.464 on his eighth lap. As his leading rivals got down to business, it was Gerry Salim, Rheza Danica Ahrens and the three Thai Yamahas of Anuparb Sarmoon, Peerapong Boonlert and Peerapong Luiboonpeng who led the chase for the front row positions. Close behind them were Galang Hendra Pratama for Yamaha Indonesia and AP Honda’s Vorapong Malahuan who continued to wring  impressive times out of the single cylinder CBR. Yamamoto’s early lap was good enough for pole position, with the other in-form riders, Salim and Anuparb joining him on the front row. In what could turn out to be a tactical team battle, the Astra Honda of Rheza leads the second row ahead of Yamaha Thailand’s Luiboonpeng and Boonlert. Row three consists of Pratama, Vorapong and the third Astra Honda of Awhin Sanjaya.

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DECHA AND CHALERMPOL GRAB HOME ADVANTAGE IN FREE PRACTICE

2017, 2017 Round2, Latest News, Supersports 600, Uncategorized /

Yamaha Thailand’s dynamic duo, Decha Kraisart and Chalerpol Polamai, banked an early home advantage on day one of the Asia Road Racing Championship (ARRC) Round 2 at Chang International Circuit in Buriram, Thailand. Early in Free Practice 1 AP Honda’s Ratthapong Wilairot joined his compatriots at the top of the timing screens, but was pushed down during the second half of the 40 minute session as the Manual Tech Kawasakis of Azlan Shah and Ahmad Yudhistira got into their groove, along with Anthony West, who looked as likely as ever to stir things up on the Akeno Speed Racing Yamaha. 2016 champion, Zaqhwan Zaidi, riding with a painful foot injury after his crash two weeks earlier in Johor, looked out of sorts and was almost two seconds off the pace of the front runners. At the chequered flag, it was Chalermpol who took the honours with a late charge that clocked up a lap of 1:40.341, 0.099 of a second ahead of Yudhistira. Decha, Azlan and West, all under 1:41. With air and track temperatures rising for Free Practice 2, Azlan set the early pace, chased by Decha and Chalermpol. Behind them, Zaqhwan quickly sliced a second off his FP1 time, stopping after six laps to make further adjustments. When he rejoined he took another full second of with his first flying lap and jumped to the top of the board, a full four tenths clear of Azlan. The response from the Thai Yamahas was fast and decisive, with Chalermpol and Decha making the first breaks into the 1:39s. They remained at the top until the end of the session, ahead of Zaqhwan, Azlan and West, with the Yamaha of Yuki Ito and the RAMA Honda of Taiga Hada being the last riders below 1:41. A more business like atmosphere prevailed in Free Practice 3, as riders fined fine tuned their settings. This time it was Decha who finished top with a lap of 1:39.583, the best of the day and 0.117 seconds faster than Chalermpol. Zaqhwan was next with 1:39.937, ahead of the Kawasakis of Azlan and Yudhistira and the Yamaha of West, who maintained his watch in the top six. While Yamaha Thailand will be aiming to build on their advantage in tomorrow morning’s qualifying session, they are sure to be tested to their limits by the Manual Tech Kawasakis and the veteran Australian on the canary yellow Yamaha.

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PRESS RELEASE: ASTRA HONDA RACING TEAM AIM TO CONTINUE GOOD DYNAMIC IN THAILAND

2017, 2017 Round2, Asia Production 250, Latest News, Supersports 600 /

Gerry Salim arrives at the Chang International Circuit as the leader of the Asia Production 250cc class, after making history in Johor. In the SuperSports 600cc category, Irfan Ardiansyah will look to continue his progress after achieving his first podium in the inaugural race. After a fantastic start to the campaign in Malaysia, the Astra Honda Racing Team (AHRT) travels to Thailand this weekend for the second round of the Asia Road Racing Championship (ARRC). In an historic inaugural event of the season, Gerry claimed the first victories for an Indonesian rider in the AP250 class, whilst Irfan made his podium debut in SS600. Now the team faces a new challenge at the Chang International Circuit, with the ambition of maintaining the positive momentum and fighting for the top positions in both classes. Gerry and Irfan have previous experience in Thailand thanks to their time in both the Asia Talent Cup (ATC) and the ARRC itself. Gerry took two podium finishes -2nd in 2016 and 3rd in 2015- in the ATC, and last season he finished 6th in both races at Chang in the ARRC. Irfan’s best placing is 8th in the ATC (in both 2016 and 2017), although this round will be his debut there in the SS600 class. Rheza Danica and Awhin Sanjaya will start from scratch at the Thai track, focusing on adapting as quickly as possible to a new circuit onboard their Honda CBR250RR bikes. Last year, the team’s best result in Thailand was that of Dimas Ekky, who placed fifth in the sixth round of the season. This year’s visit to the Chang International Circuit will be held on April 14-15th, with two races held on Friday and Saturday.     QUOTES “I’m very excited about this second round of the ARRC in Thailand. Having two victories in the opening round and also good experience from the ATC’s round in Thailand gives me confidence to fight against the local riders. They are tough and have further experience riding in the Chang Circuit. In addition, the support from the Indonesian people will give me additional energy to achieve the best result.” Gerry Salim | AHRT ASIA PRODUCTION 250CC RIDER     “I couldn’t finish on the podium in the opening round in Johor, but I want to make it up in this second round. It won’t be easy, because the circuit is new for me and local riders will perform strongly. But I believe that with the CBR250RR bike I will be able to fight again in the front group. I won’t disappoint the people who have supported me.” Rheza Danica | AHRT ASIA PRODUCTION 250CC RIDER     “I couldn’t finish on the podium in the opening round in Johor, but I want to make it up in this second round. It won’t be easy, because the circuit is new for me and local riders will perform strongly. But I believe that with the CBR250RR bike I will be able to fight again in the front group. I won’t disappoint the people who have supported me.” Awhin Sanjaya | AHRT ASIA PRODUCTION 250CC RIDER     “The experience in Johor was so memorable for me. Fighting in the front group and being able to finish on the podium was nice. I want to repeat it in this second round. The team have given his maximum contribution to improve my bike, and now it’s my turn to put the Honda CBR600RR among the front riders. I hope I could make history for AHRT. Thank you all for your support.” Irfan Ardiansyah | AHRT SUPERSPORTS 600CC RIDER        

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PAIN IS NOTHING FOR GRITTY ZAQHWAN

2017, 2017 Round2, Latest News, Supersports 600 /

Three cracked toes on his right foot is hardly a deterrent for Mohd Zaqhwan Zaidi as he revs up his title defense in the SuperSports 600cc category of the FIM Asia Road Racing Championship. The gritty Malaysian rider is determined to press on with his gruelling race schedule in spite of the injury he sustained during Round 1 of the Asian series held at the Johor Circuit in Malaysia. “Riders have won races with all kinds of injury. The pain is nothing. I’m already at a disadvantage because I did not pick up any points from Race 2 in Round 1,” said Zaqhwan who crashed out on Lap 2 while fighting for the race lead and is currently third overall on the standings with 25 points. “I must overcome the points deficit in Round 2 at Buriram this weekend.” There will be no rest for the intrepid Malaysian rider in April. Immediately after Round 2 of the FIM Asia Road Racing Championship wraps up on April 15 in Thailand, Zaqhwan will be heading east to take part in the Suzuka 2&4 Race in Japan onApril 22 and 23. “The Suzuka 2&4 Race is part of our training regime for the Suzuka 8-hour Endurance in July. If I miss the coming event, I will lose out on valuable track time,” Zaqhwan explained.

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WAHYU LOOKING FORWARD TO BURIRAM

2017, 2017 Round2, Latest News, Underbone 150 /

Reigning Underbone champion, Wahyu Aji Trilaksana is looking forward to Round 2 at the Chang International Circuit in Thailand this weekend after an opening round that did not quite go according to script. Wahyu had hoped for a strong start to the 2017 season even though his pre-season test had been beset by problems. Team Yamaha Racing Indonesia had clearly made tremendous steps towards resolving the technical issues as Round 1 progressed in early April. “Full credits to my team and especially our engineers. They turned the bike around in a remarkably short period of time,” said Wahyu. Unfortunately, Wahyu’s charge to the first podium of the season was derailed when he and team mate Anggi Setiawan crashed out on Lap 6. Undeterred, Wahyu finished second in Race 2 to get his title run back on track. The loss of points from Race 1 has dropped Wahyu down to sixth overall in the rankings. Round 2 in Thailand will be crucial for Wahyu to redeem his position. “The switch up to the Underbone 150 category has been hard for all the riders. The lack of data makes it harder to prepare our bikes. But I am really optimistic ahead of Buriram. Our bike showed good improvement in Race 2 and we’re well on our way to a solid result in Thailand. Buriram is also one of my favourite tracks, so I’m really looking forward to racing there.”

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A-KID TO LOOK OUT FOR

2017, 2017 Round2, Latest News, Underbone 150 /

Mohd Akid Aziz of team UMA Racing Yamaha Maju Motor has cemented his status as the next exciting name in Malaysian motorsports. The 19-year-old had been nothing but impressive, leading not only the CP115 class of the national championship, but also the Underbone 150cc ladder in the regional FIM Asia Road Racing Championship. Prior to the start of the Asian series, team principal Yong Ying Hoe raised eyebrows with his decision to put two junior riders on to the competitive Underbone 150cc grid of the ARRC. “Due to the high level of competition in the regional series, teams usually hedge their bets by fielding one seasoned campaigner with a rookie. But Akid rewarded my belief in him many times over with a double podium performance at the Johor Circuit two weeks ago. He rode with a coolness and maturity that eclipsed the fact that it was his first time racing against strong riders from Indonesia,” said Yong. The local racing industry is already abuzz with news that Akid could be the next to follow in the footsteps of Kasma Daniel Kasmayuddin. He would most likely be the Malaysian candidate for the Yamaha VR46 MasterCamp this season. However, the news is yet to be officially confirmed by Hong Leong Yamaha. While training stints with racing idols in Europe may beckon in the mid-term, for now, Yong would prefer if his dazzling young protege focuses on the task at hand. “I just want both Akid and Haziq to prepare for Round 2 of the FIM Asia Road Racing Championship that will take place at the Chang International Circuit in Buriram, Thailand this weekend. Now that the rest of the field have taken the measure of their abilities, we no longer have the element of surprise working to our favour. But if they continue to perform as they have done, the rewards will come their way.” Round 2 of the FIM Asia Road Racing Championship will be held at the Chang International Circuit in Buriram, Thailand fromApril 13 to 15, 2017.

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