Asia Production 250

For the first time this season, Indonesian rider Galang Hendra Pratama topped the Asia Production 250cc timesheets. To sweeten the deal, the Yamaha Racing Indonesia rider also created a new lap record at the 3.964km Sentul Circuit where Round 4 of the 2016 FIM Asia Road Racing Championship is taking place. Having been outshone by high profile rivals Takehiro Yamamoto and Apiwat Wongthananon for the first half of the season, Galang rocketed into the lead when he clocked 1’44.229s during the second practice session and effectively erased Yamamoto’s lap record by almost a full second. “We had an engine problem during the first practice. We’re still not sure what the problem is, so the team decided to change the engine entirely rather than waste more time on diagnosis. It proved to be the right decision as the bike performed perfectly in the second session. This has boost my confidence level and I hope to continue this momentum into the qualifying session and the two races,” said Galang. Defending champion Yamamoto ended the day as the second fastest rider with 1’44.822s while the championship leader Apiwat Wongthananon was third fastest with 1’45.204s. Galang’s team mate Rey Ratukore also made it into the top five when he posted the fourth fastest time of 1’45.634s. Thailand’s Anupab Sarmoon was fifth fastest.

Yamaha Thailand Racing’s golden rider, Apiwat Wongthananon, scored his second double-win of the season at the Suzuka Circuit, host to Round 3 of the 2016 FIM Asia Road Racing Championship. Race 2 in the Asia Production 250cc category unfolded according to script for the Thai rider when a good start placed him at the front of the group with Takehiro Yamamoto and Ayumu Tanaka. The remainder of the 8-lap race progressed in a similar pattern to Race 1 with Apiwat cooly dealing with pressure from the two Japanese aces. The race was again won at the last chicane when Apiwat slipped past Yamamoto and sprinted to the finish line with a time of 20’07.079ss. The frustrated team mates Yamamoto and Tanaka were again forced to accept their second and third place positions with times of 20’07.495s and 20’07.692s respectively. “Race 2 was a little easier because Takahashi Yasuda never made it to the front group. In Race 1, I had to deal with a 3-on-1 situation but today, it was just two against one. My race strategy was set very early in the race when I saw that Yamamoto had not learnt his lessons from Race 1. He was still displaying the same weakness at the chicane. I knew then that if I kept up the pressure, he would run wide at the last lap,” said Apiwat. This latest victory is Apiwat’s fifth win in the 2016 season so far. The Thai rider has collected 136 points after three rounds and is sitting pretty at the top with a 46-point margin ahead of Yamamoto.

Thai rider Apiwat Wongthananon has earned a reputation as a highly aggressive competitor in 2016. Over the first two legs of the season, Apiwat’s hard-charging racing style had often seen the 22-year-old skating dangerously close to sanctioning. However, in the Asia Production 250cc Race 1 at the Suzuka leg (Round 3) of the season, Apiwat proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that he was able to take as good as he gives when it comes to absorbing pressure from his rivals. Rival team Trickstar Racing approached their home ground race with full intention of turning the tables on the Thai riders. The Japanese team placed three riders on the Asia Production 250cc grid and throughout the first day of practice, team strategy was visibly in play. Defending champion Takehiro Yamamoto earned the right to park his bike on pole position, alongside team mate Ayumu Tanaka and Indonesia’s Imanuel Putra Pratna on the front row. Apiwat was relegated to the second row with Reynaldo Ratukore and wildcard rider Toshihiro Nakazawa. The Thai rider quickly made up for lost ground at the start of the race and waded into the front pack that was being dominated by the three Kawasaki Trickstar riders. He patiently bided his time until Yamamoto made a critical mistake at the final chicane and barrelled past the defending champion to win the 8-lap race with a time of 20’08.466s. Trickstar team mates Takehiro Yamamoto and Takashi Yasuda had to be content with second and third positions respectively. “This is my first win in Suzuka and needless to say I am really happy about my results today. It was obvious that the Trickstar riders were out to edge me out of the podium but I tried to keep my calm and plan my race accordingly,” said Apiwat. Apiwat’s position at the top of the 250cc rankings is further cemented as he now leads with 111 points. Peerapong Loiboonpeng maintained his second overall position with 85 points while Yamamoto climbed up two notches to third overall with 70 points.

Relieved to be back on homeground after two tough races in Malaysia and Thailand, Trickstar Racing duo Takehiro Yamamoto and Ayumu Tanaka dominated the first day of Asia Production 250cc practices at the Suzuka leg of the 2016 FIM Asia Road Racing Championship. The two Kawasaki riders consistently snared the 1-2 positions in all three free practice sessions. Defending champion Yamamoto was the fastest rider of the day with 2’30.451s followed by Tanaka second fastest with 2’31.034s. The mercurial Apiwat Wongthananon was third fastest with 2’31.130s and will provisionally join his Japanese rivals on the front row. Apiwat’s team mate Anupab Sarmoon logged 2’32.217s as the fourth fastest rider in the 29-rider grid followed by local wildcards Takashi Yasuda fifth fastest with 2’32.558s and Toshihiro Nakazawa sixth fastest with 2’32.593s. Indonesia’s Rey Ratukore, Thailand’s Peerapong Loiboonpeng and Vorapong Malahuan, as well as Galang Hendra Pratama completed the top-10 in the combined practice results.

Official Statement FIM Asia Road Racing Championship On Sunday May 8, 2016 during Race 2 of the Asia Production 250cc, the Race Direction received an official protest from Yamaha Finson Racing team manager that Rider #24 Apiwat Wongthananon produced unsporting behavior towards Rider #127 Kasma Daniel Kasmayudin. A Race Direction hearing was convened with the rider #24 and the team manager in attendance. The Race Direction, after deliberation, sanctioned Rider number #24 of the Asia Production 250cc with the deduction of 5 Championship points and the race position will remain. Within 30 minutes rider #24 and his team manager made an official appeal to the Jury panel. The Jury panel consisting of Mr. Onny Padmo (Jury President), Mr. Amit Arora (Jury member) and Mr. Barry Russell (FMNR Jury member) then held a hearing with the attendance of rider #24 and team manager. After the hearing, the Jury panel’s decision was to cancel Race Direction’s decision and reinstate the 5 championship points to rider #24 as a race incident with no intention. The Race Direction has 5 days from 8th of May to appeal to FIM Asia Disciplinary Board on the decision of the Jury Panel.

Apiwat Wongthananon’s winning streak in the Asia Production 250cc class finally came to an end. Unfortunately, the defeat came at the worst possible moment – in front of his home crowd at Round 2 of the FIM Asia Road Racing Championship in Buriram, Thailand. Buoyed by three straight wins, Apiwat and his team mate enjoyed a dream start to Race 2 of the Asia Production 250cc. However, it was hardly a nightmare for the rest of the grid. While the Yamaha Thailand Racing trio tried to put up an impenetrable wall at the front of the group, their defences were slowly but surely chipped away by Kawasaki duo Takehiro Yamamoto and Ayumu Tanaka as well as Indonesia’s Galang Hendra Pratama. While the Yamaha riders were clearly more prominent in the race, there was no denying that they were under a lot of pressure with a lead group comprising of 11 riders, all racing within one second of each other. The Kawasaki riders’ bid for 1-2 position was almost destroyed on Lap 8 when Ayumu Tanaka crashed out heavily. Left alone on a hostile grid, Yamamoto relied heavily on Galang’s presence to force the Thai riders’ attention away from him. The Japanese defending champion managed to tuck into a slipstream at the last corner and slingshot into his first victory of the season with a time of 19’30.632s. Galang Hendra Pratama netted Indonesia’s first AP250 podium in second place with 19’31.018s followed by Peerapong Loiboonpeng in third with 19’31.319s “Ayumu and I constantly discussed how to break through the Yamaha riders’ defenses. While I am sorry he crashed out, I am pleased to find that the strategy had worked. Galang’s presence also helped tremendously,” said the TRICKSTAR Racing winner.

The Asia Production 250cc Race 1 for Round 2 of the 2016 FIM Asia Road Racing Championship was a battle between two countries as the Japanese and Thai riders set aside their brand identities to fight for honours at the Chang International Circuit. After topping the timesheets throughout the first day of free practice, Yamaha Thailand Racing Team’s Apiwat Wongthananon lost the pole position to team mate Peerapong Loiboonpeng. At the same time, Trickstar Racing’s Ayumu Tanaka managed to snare a spot on the front row and effectively set the stage for the 10-lap showdown that was to come. As the lights went off for the start of the race, Apiwat leapt into the front but was unable to break free of the chasing group. A nine-bike front group leant plenty of racing excitement as compatriots Tanaka, Takehiro Yamamoto and Yusuke Nakamura banded together to challenge the might of the Yamaha Thailand trio. The Kawasaki bikes had the better top speed, but the Yamahas were superior at the corners. The lead swapping continued right up to the last lap with neither group willing to back down. Yamamoto managed to sneak into the lead at the final lap but crashed out with Anupab Sarmoon right at the critical moment. The crash resulted in the expected all-Thai podium. Apiwat and Peerapong secured a 1-2 finish for team Yamaha Thailand Racing with 19’33.867s and 19’34.484s respectively. AP Honda Racing Thailand’s Somkiat Chantra broke up the Yamaha domination and climbed onto the third step of the podium with 19’34.732s. Apiwat’s hattrick secured his position at the top of the rider standings with the maximum 75 points. Peerapong Loiboonpeng, who also netted three consecutive second-place finishes, holds 60 points in second overall.

The anticipated all-Thai lockout at the front grid of the Asia Production 250cc category is shaping up with Apiwat Wongthananon leading the charge. The trio from Yamaha Thailand Racing dominated the first day of practice with the top three best times in the class. Apiwat was clearly in a league of his own as the only rider to lap below the 1’56s mark. The Thai rider set the bar high for the rest of the field when he logged a blistering 1’55.089s. Anupab Sarmoon and Peerapong Loiboonpeng were second and third fastest with times of 1’56.381s and 1’56.734s. Another set of team mates rounded up the top five – TRICKSTAR Racing’s Ayumu Tanaka and defending champion Takehiro Yamamoto posted 1’56.805s and 1’56.950s to stand fourth and fifth fastest in the day’s efforts.

Picking up zero championship points is an unusual occurrence for 2-time Underbone 130cc champion Gupita Kresna Wardhana. A podium regular during his Underbone racing days, the 27-year-old Indonesian ace is feeling the pressure in his Asia Production 250cc debut season of the FIM Asia Road Racing Championship. “The Asia Production 250cc is a huge challenge. It is a tough competition with a large number of entrants. Even getting into the points was really difficult at Round 1,” said Gupita who finished 18th in Race 1 and 16th in Race 2 at Pasir Gudang. Gupita’s problems are compounded by the fact that he has not been able to ride on the 250cc bike since the opening round. “I have only been able to do physical training in between Round 1 and Round 2. I have not ridden the bike since.” Achieving better results will be Gupita’s goal for Round 2 in Thailand on May 7 and 8. “I have spent many years dominating the Underbone categories and I felt ready for bigger challenges. As this is my debut season, I will have to patiently sort out the problems that come my way. Podium finishes are not going to happen overnight, that’s for sure.” However, the Indonesian ace is optimistic that he will make it to the top ranks of the class. “The Hondas and Yamahas are really fast in this class. But our team has plans to improve on our bike. This gives me confidence that I will at least be able to follow the leading groups better in Round 2.”