Supersports 600

The SuperSports 600cc title chase has come to a premature end with Peerapong Boonlert taking the crown at the Sepang International Circuit. The Yamaha Thailand Racing Team rider had been particularly low profile the entire weekend even as a determined Kasma Daniel Kasmayudin dominated the practice and qualifying sessions. Kasma not only set the pace in the first day of practice, but also lodged a new SuperSports 600cc lap record of 2’09.712s in the qualifying session. Team play from the Hong Leong Yamaha Malaysia camp was very much in evidence during the 30-minute qualifier. Kasma towed team mate Ahmad Afif Amran around the 5.5km Sepang Circuit, resulting in Afif’s first front row start of the season in P2. Imperious Peerapong was content to start the race from P3. While the front runners hogged the limelight, Mohd Ramdan Rosli had quietly inserted himself in to the second row. A quick start shot the ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team rider into the holeshot on Lap 1 but he lost his position to Kasma and Peerapong on Lap 2. Ramdan kept his cool and strategically made his move on the penultimate lap. While Kasma was engrossed with Peerapong, Ramdan slipped past his defenses at the last corner to bag his first win of the season with 21’55.025s. Mohd Ramdan Rosli’s strong desire to win his first SuperSports 600cc race of the season had ended the title chase in the class. Kasma needed to win in order to keep his title hopes alive. When Ramdan relegated his compatriot to second, Peerapong’s third place finish was good enough to seal the deal. “I just wanted to win. I had no interest in helping Kasma nor Peerapong in any way,” said Ramdan after the race. Peerapong now holds 239 points at the top of the ladder, 76 points in front of Kasma. With only three races to go, Peerapong has been declared as the 2019 Asian SuperSports 600cc champion.

Kasma Daniel Kasmayudin looks to be riding high on homeground as the 2019 FIM Asia Road Racing Championship returns to the Sepang International Circuit for Round 6. Over the course of the season, Kasma’s race craft had matured. At the season opener (also in Sepang), Kasma was always one step behind Peerapong Boonlert. But in Round 6, Kasma had not only placed himself at the top of the timing sheets from the first day of practice, but also improved his best lap by a full second. The Hong Leong Yamaha Malaysia rider’s best time went from 2’11.189s in Round 1 to 2’10.113s in Round 6. Kasma was one of three riders to lap below the 2’10s mark. Azroy Hakeem Anuar from Musashi Boon Siew Honda Racing clocked second quickest with 2’10.753s followed by Astra Honda Racing Team’s Andi Farid Izdihar third with 2’10.959s. Championship leader Peerapong Boonlert can take it easy in the final two rounds of the championship. He was fourth fastest after the first day with 2’11.196s. Mohd Ramdan Rosli from the ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team was fifth fastest with 2’11.203s.

SIC Junior ZK Racing Team’s Adam Norrodin, a powerhouse on the team’s home turf, will not be racing in Round 6. The 21-year-old Malaysian has been called up to replace injured Khairul Idham Pawi in team PETRONAS Sprinta Racing’s Moto2 line-up. Adam will be the fourth replacement for Khairul’s ride. Other previous replacement riders included Mattia Pasini, Jonas Folger and Bradley Smith. Adam’s spot on the SuperSports 600cc grid will be filled by the team’s upcoming junior rider, Muhammad Izam Ikmal.

Nothing short of a disaster could prevent Yamaha Thailand Racing Team’s Peerapong Boonlert from lifting the SuperSports 600cc title at the penultimate leg of the 2019 FIM Asia Road Racing Championship in Sepang. An 80-point margin at the front of the pack has given Peerapong an almost unassailable advantage. Even if his closest competitor, Kasma Daniel Kasmayudin were to win both Race 1 and Race 2 on homeground, Peerapong will only need top five finishes in both races to seal the deal.

After a number of near-misses all season long, Malaysian rider Kasma Daniel Kasmayuddin has finally claimed his first SuperSports 600cc win in the FIM Asia Road Racing Championship. Following his defeat by the hands of fellow Malaysian Adam Norrodin in Race 1, a very determined Kasma made his way to pole position for a second shot at glory in Race 2. This time, a brilliant start put him in the lead with Adam, Azroy Hakeem, Andi Farid Izdihar, Kritchaporn Kaewsonthi and Peerapong Boonlert hot on his tail. Championship leader Peerapong looked to have missed a gear at the start of the race and was only in P7 at the end of the first lap. However, the Yamaha Thailand Racing Team rider needed only two laps to put himself back in the top three. Meanwhile, Andi Farid Izdihar had low-sided out of the race. Peerapong managed to overtake Adam on Lap 8 and briefly got into the lead on Lap 9 and 10. However, Kasma was not about to sit back and allow his Thai rival to claim his eighth win of the season. On Lap 11, Kasma regained the lead, braced against more attacks from his rivals. Not surprisingly, Adam got the power down in the final lap and succeeded in pushing Peerapong down to P3. Once again, Adam pulled off an overtaking move against Kasma at Turn 13. But this time, Kasma was ready for him. The Hong Leong Yamaha Malaysia rider out-braked Adam into the last corner, clung on to the inside line with no quarters given, and claimed his first SuperSports 600cc win with 19’42.945s SIC Junior ZK Racing’s Adam had to settle for P2 with 19’43.020s For the first time in the 2019 season, Peerapong Boonlert did not pick up a single win from the Zhuhai weekend. His string of podium finishes, however, remain unbroken. Peerapong takes P3 with 19’43.094s. The SuperSports 600cc title hunt may end at the penultimate round at the Sepang International Circuit next month. Peerapong, with 223 points in the bag, has an 80-point margin over Kasma Daniel Kasmayuddin. Adam Norrodin is third overall with 125 points.

When Malaysian rider Adam Norrodin was first confirmed for the SuperSports 600cc class of the 2019 FIM Asia Road Racing Championship, there were a lot of high expectations placed on his shoulders. As a former Moto3 rider, Adam was immediately one of the favourites to win the 600cc title this year. As the season progressed, the quiet and unassuming rider tended to fade into the background, oftentimes overshadowed by Peerapong Boonlert’s unparalleled results and by Kasma Daniel’s showy riding style. At the Zhuhai International Circuit for Round 5 of the 2019 FIM Asia Road Racing Championship, Adam Norrodin finally revealed his true colours. The SIC Junior ZK Racing rider started the 12-lap race from the second row after qualifying P5 with 1’38.028s. Pole position went to Kasma who was clearly more comfortable with the stop-and-go nature of the Zhuhai International Circuit in spite of the searing temperatures. However, even as Kasma got the power down to lead into Lap 1, Adam was able to make sure that he stayed in touch with the leading group. While Kasma was busy engaged with Peerapong Boonlert and Ramdan Rosli, Adam was quietly making his way up the field. By Lap 7, the determined young rider had already overtaken championship leader Peerapong and Ramdan and was in position to challenge Kasma. Just when it looked as if the riders had settled into their race pace, Adam had one last surprise up his sleeve. The SIC Junior ZK Racing rider pulled off a perfectly-executed overtaking move on Kasma at the last corner, and successfully pipped his compatriot to the finish line by 0.087s. Adam logged his first ARRC win with a time of 19’38.917s, relegating Kasma to second with 19’39.004s. For the second time this season, championship leader Peerapong Boonlert had to settle for third.

Malaysian rider Kasma Daniel Kasmayudin has succeeded in out-pacing Peerapong Boonlert as the SuperSports 600cc riders went out for their first day of practice at Round 5 of the 2019 FIM Asia Road Racing Championship in Zhuhai. The Hong Leong Yamaha Malaysia rider set the pace in the SuperSports 600cc class with 1’37.551s, effectively breaking the 8-year-old record of 1’37.644s set by Mohd Zamri Baba in 2011. However, Kasma will not be able to rest on his laurels. Championship leader Peerapong Boonlert (Yamaha Thailand Racing Team) is only half a second slower, with 1’38.126s. Meanwhile ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team’s Ramdan Rosli came home third fastest on the combined timesheets with 1’38.437s.

Yamaha Thailand Racing Team’s Peerapong Boonlert continues to reign supreme in the SuperSports 600cc class. Peerapong’s unfettered rampage this season has netted an unbroken string of podium finishes with 7 wins out of 8 races and one third-placed finish. However, even with 191 points in the bag and a 93-point lead over second placed Kasma Daniel Kasmayudin, the title chase is not likely to end at the upcoming round. For the first time this season, Peerapong and the Yamaha Thailand Racing Team are being presented with an unknown variable – the 4.3km Zhuhai International Circuit. With no existing data available to the team, the engineers will be racing against the clock to prepare Peerapong as he chases after his eighth and ninth wins this season. The tough racing conditions in the previous Suzuka round had prevented Peerapong from breaking Toshiyuki Hamaguchi’s record of seven wins in a row. But Peerapong is still in good form to score a new record of his own – the highest number of 600cc wins in a single season. The burden of checking Peerapong’s ambitions will mainly fall on Malaysian rider Kasma Daniel Kasmayudin, still viewed as Peerapong’s biggest rival this season. The young Malaysian, currently second overall on the standings with 98 points, has picked up four podium finishes to date, but has yet to claim a race win. Meanwhile, Indonesian rider Andi Farid Izdihar will be bracing for a tough weekend. Currently third on the standings with 83 points, Andi recently dislocated his finger in a crash during the previous Suzuka 8 Hours a few weeks ago. The Astra Honda Racing Team rider is in danger of losing his top three position against former Moto3 rider, Adam Norrodin from Malaysia. The return of the ARRC to the Zhuhai International Circuit has sparked a strong interest among Chinese riders and teams, eager to prove themselves against their Asian peers. Six wildcards have been confirmed for the upcoming race. Ma Sai from the China Yamaha Maxpeedingrods Racing Team will lead the Chinese contingent. Ma will know exactly what they are up against, having raced as a wildcard in Round 3 and Round 4.  Ma was able to finish 13th and 11th in his 600cc debut at the Chang International Circuit, but the strong competition at Suzuka saw him finishing out of the points in both races. Other wildcards confirmed for the weekend include Ou Jin Bin from FS.D Racing, Chen Hong Yan from JIM777Y Racing Team, Chan Yan Hang from the Wuyang-Honda Racing Team, Sha Juntong from the TS Kawasaki Racing Team and Macau’s Au Leong Fu also from the TS Kawasaki Racing Team.

Peerapong Boonlert put the disappointment of having his unbroken run of wins interrupted in race one by Soichiro Minamimoto with a convincing performance in a wet race at Suzuka. The contest was shortened to five laps after a long delay while race control waited for a severe weather system to pass. Peerapong led from the re-start, chased by Kasma Daniel Kasmayudin, Minamimoto, Yuto Sano and Kyusuke Okuda. Kasma lost touch with the leader on lap two as Minamimoto and Okuda disputed second place. That allowed Peerapong to extend his lead, but Okuda managed to get away from Minamimoto and the leader’s advantage quickly disappeared as the Kawasaki closed on the Supersport championship leader. Peerapong and Okuda, lapping two seconds quicker than the rest of the field engaged in a nail-biting fight for the front, which the Thai refused to relinquish, crossing the line one tenth ahead of the wildcard and five seconds clear of Minamimoto, who sealed his second podium finish of the weekend. Kasma held on to take fourth in front of Andi Farid Izdihar, Yuto Sano, Passawit Thitivararak, Katsuto Sano, Kota Arakawa and Helmi Azman, who finished tenth. Peerapong’s points tally now stands at 191, 93 points clear of second placed Kasma, who is 15 points ahead of Andi Farid.

AKENOSPEED Yamaha’s Soichiro Minamimoto carried an excellent free practice and qualifying performance through to a convincing win in Supersport 600 race one. In doing so, he denied Yamaha Thailand’s Peerapong Boonlert the chance to equal the all time class record for seven consecutive wins. The Japanese wildcard, who had squeezed Peerapong Boonlert out to the middle of row one in morning qualifying, had a poor start and watched from behind as the championship leader got away with Hong Leong Yamaha’s Kasma Daniel Kasmayuddin at the front. Musashi Boon Siew Honda’s Azroy Hakeem Anuar clashed and crashed with MOTOBUM Honda’s Arakawa first time around at turn one; both riders were unhurt. By lap five of ten Peerapong was having trouble holding his lines on Suzuka’s long turns. As Kasma sensed the opportunity and turned up the heat, Minamimoto closed in to join the battle for the win. Kasma was first past the Thai Yamaha R6, closely followed by the Japanese. Minamimoto took the lead on the penultimate lap and immediately put some clean air between himself and Kasma, while Peerapong settled for third on his unusually unruly Yamaha. Five seconds behind Peerapong, Yuto Sano just beat Adam Norrodin to the line to finish fourth, while Kyosuke Okude was sixth ahead of Afif Amran, Rheza Danica Ahrens and AP Honda duo Kritchaporn Kaewsonthi and Passawit Thitiwararak.