Underbone 150

Mohd Akid Aziz had been able to sustain his Underbone 150cc competitive edge as Round 6 of the 2019 FIM Asia Road Racing Championship unfolds at the Sepang International Circuit. After setting a new lap record in the practice sessions, the UMA Racing Yamaha Maju Motor Asia Team rider went on to confirm his slot on pole position when he aced the SuperPole with 2’34.505s. Mohd Izzat Zaidi from RCB Accentwire Yamaha YY Pang Racing and Akid’s team mate Mohd Haziq Mohd Fairues joined him on the front row. Izzat Zaidi took early control of the race, but soon lost his advantage when the 14-rider leading pack engulfed him. Akid popped into the lead on Lap 4, dropped to eighth on Lap 5 before emerging out of the group to take the win at the chequered flag with 15’43.137s. Wahyu Aji Trilaksana settled for second spot with 15’43.254s. Cardinals Racing Team celebrated their first ARRC podium when Rozaiman Mohd Said fought his way to third with 15’43.678s. Meanwhile championship leader McKinley Kyle Paz finally received medical clearance to join the race. However, having missed out on the qualifier the previous day, the UMA Racing Yamaha Philippine Team rider had to start the race from the back of the grid. The gritty Filipino rider pushed his way up from 35th to sixth, enough to keep his title hopes alive. Akid Aziz became the new UB150 championship leader with 116 points. McKinley dropped to second overall with 105 points. Ahmad Fazli Sham is still in with a long shot. He is third on the rankings with 81 points followed by Fernando Masato fourth with 77 points. Indonesian riders Wawan Wello and Wahyu Aji Trilaksana tie for fifth overall with 74 points apiece.

UMA Racing Yamaha Maju Motor Asia Team’s Mohd Akid Aziz has set a new Underbone 150cc benchmark at the Sepang International Circuit. On track for the first day of practices for Round 6 of the 2019 FIM Asia Road Racing Championship, Akid threw down the gauntlet when he posted 2’32.165s during the Underbone 150cc qualifier. The Underbone 150cc title chase resumed with McKinley Kyle Paz in the lead. The UMA Racing Yamaha Philippine Team rider was determined to replicate his performance from the season opener but highsided at the last corner during the second practice session. The crash resulted in an injured ankle and the young Filipino rider was not cleared for the UB150 qualifying session in the latter half of the day. In his absence, Mohd Akid Aziz seized the opportunity to steal provisional pole in preparation of the intense Underbone 150cc battle ahead. SND Factory Racing Rapido’s Wawan Wello will be looking for more wins to get himself back in title contention. He clocked second fastest in the qualifying session with 2’33.211s. With McKinley potentially carrying an injury in this round, Wawan will have his best opportunity to take the championship lead ahead of the final round in Thailand. Peerapong Luiboonpeng from Team One For All was third quickest with 2’33.280s. Ahmad Fazli Sham and Mohammad Murobbil Vitoni rounded up the top five.

Tengku Amirul Haffirudin will be filling in for Mohd Adib Rosley in the RCB Accentwire Yamaha YY Pang Racing Team at Round 6 of the 2019 FIM Asia Road Racing Championship in Sepang. Adib broke his leg two weeks prior to the ARRC, during the sixth round of the 2019 PETRONAS Malaysian Cub Prix Championship in Teluk Intan, Perak. The Malaysian rider is recovering rapidly from surgery, but is not yet fit to race.

Just as the Indonesian riders view the Sentul Circuit as their playground, so does the Malaysian riders with the Sepang International Circuit. At the 2019 season opener, the Malaysian camp had been expected to dominate the UB150 podium especially. When Filipino riders McKinley Kyle Paz and Fernando Masato claimed the win in both Race 1 and Race 2, it was a painful blow for the local heroes. Fortunately for the Malaysian riders, they will get a chance for a do-over when the FIM Asia Road Racing Championship returns to Sepang for Round 6 on September 21 and 22. At Sepang, the Malaysians will make up 50% of the 35-rider UB150 grid. UMA Racing Yamaha Maju Motor Asia Team’s Mohd Akid Aziz will be in the thick of the action as he challenges McKinley Kyle Paz for the leadership position in the class. Both riders have picked up two wins apiece in the previous four rounds. Akid trails McKinley by only four points. However, in the case of Underbone racing, numerical advantage can sometimes become a strategical nightmare. With so many bikes out on track, threading one’s way through the charging horde in the final few corners of the race can be challenging. Wily seasoned campaigners like Ahmad Fazli Sham, his younger brother Ahmad Fazrul Sham (wildcard) and championship mainstay Mohd Affendi Rosli can be expected to throw up obstacles of their own in their quest for the top step of the homeground podium. With the Malaysian national day celebrations only a few weeks ago, fans can expect to see their favourite Malaysian riders amp up the level of competition in Sepang.

SND Factory Racing Rapido rider Wawan Wello will face an uphill battle to get back into the UB150 title chase. Wawan led the pack into Round 5 in China, but saw his 12-point lead evaporate following a disastrous weekend at the Zhuhai International Circuit. Coming into the penultimate round in Sepang, the Indonesian rider is now trailing by 24 points in fifth overall. Three DNF results in a row has checked Wawan’s upward trajectory. With only two rounds and four races left on the calendar, he will need a slew of podium finishes to make up for lost ground. The stakes are high for Wawan. He is still the best performing Indonesian rider in the UB150 class, as well as the sole Honda representative among the top-10.

A week in Italy training at the Yamaha VR46 Master Camp has Underbone 150cc leader McKinley Kyle Paz raring to go for Round 6 of the 2019 FIM Asia Road Racing Championship. McKinley will return to the Sepang International Circuit, the scene of his first ARRC win that put him on course for the title hunt. The young Filipino rider, who currently leads the UB150 with 95 points in the bag, was part of a group of young Asian riders sent to the Rossi camp for further exposure. These include Malaysian Mohd Alif Ashraf Tahiruddin and Yamaha AP250cc riders Sawapol Nillapong and Suttipat Patchareetorn. This has been an on-going initiative by Yamaha. McKinley and co were the eighth group of Asian riders to train at the VR46 Master Camp. Luminaries from the camp include current top riders such as Apiwat Wongthananon, Peerapong Boonlert, and Kasma Daniel Kasmayudin. “I will always treasure this five-day training experience. Being coached by your idols is really an inspiration for a young rider like me. The Master Camp really makes a difference!” said the UMA Racing Yamaha Philippine rider. Armed with fresh determination, McKinley will be looking to pick up his third win of the season in Sepang. He and team mate Fernando Masato will be joined by a third member – wildcard, John Emerson Inguito.

As Muslims the world over celebrate the festival of Aidiladha, Malaysian rider Mohd Akid Aziz was doubly blessed when he picked up his second UB150 win of the season at the Zhuhai International Circuit. The Underbone 150 Race 2 got off to a rocky start when Mohd Izzat Raduan and Richie Taroreh crashed out at Turn 4 during the opening lap. The incident brought out the red flag and the race had to be re-started with 6 laps on the boards. Akid lined up fourth on the grid but as is common in Underbone racing, the UMA Racing Yamaha Maju Motor Asia Team rider quickly put himself at the front of the leading pack. Ably assisted by his UMA Racing team mates Haziq Fairues, McKinley Kyle Paz and Fernando Masato, the four riders successfully deployed their tag-team tactics to control the race pace from the front. Akid successfully threaded his way past the leading pack and managed to put himself squarely in the lead as the group exited the final corner. Akid sprinted to the finish line to claim the win with 12’14.739s 0.051s behind Akid, team mates Ahmad Fazli Sham and Wahyu Aji Trilaksana presented two podium finishes to the ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team. Fazli finished second with 12’14.790s and Wahyu third with 12’14.869s SND Factory Racing Team’s Wawan Wello, who had led the UB150 class into Round 5, endured a disastrous weekend in Zhuhai. Wawan crashed out of Race 1, and his woes were compounded with a mechanical breakdown in Race 2. Zero points from the weekend has dropped Wawan down to P5. Newly reinstated class leader McKinley Kyle Paz finished in P5. He now leads with 95 points at the top of the table. Akid moves up to second overall with 91 points while Fazli goes from fifth to third with 81 points.

After a few rounds with indifferent results, McKinley Kyle Paz is back on top of the UB150 standings following a stunning performance at Race 1 at the Zhuhai International Circuit. The Filipino rider had arrived in China determined to win back the championship lead that he had lost following the Suzuka leg of the season. The young rider displayed his determination when he qualified for the front row with 2’02.302s. He started the race from P2, flanked by polesitter Aldi Satya Mahendra and championship leader Wawan Wello. The 29-rider grid bunched up together as soon as the lights went off. At a track like the Zhuhai International Circuit, breaking away was almost impossible. The close-contact racing continued right up to the final lap until a series of unrelated crashes gave McKinley the opportunity to extend his lead. First, Murobbil Vitoni high sided at the exit of Turn 1. A few corners later, Wahyu Aji Trilaksana tangled with Rozaiman Said. Then, championship leader Wawan Wello high sided out of the race. With the key competitors in the group out of the race, McKinley was able to speed to the finish line with a time of 16’17.478s. His team mate Fernando Masato made it a Filipino 1-2 for the UMA Racing Yamaha Philippine Team. Young Aldi Satya Mahendra finished in third.

UMA Racing Yamaha Maju Motor Asia Team’s Mohd Akid Aziz has consistently been the fastest UB150 rider as Round 5 of the 2019 FIM Asia Road Racing Championship opened at the Zhuhai International Circuit this weekend. The Malaysian rider opened the day by laying down the benchmark for the Underbone 150 class, clocking fastest in P1 with 1’59.825s. Akid maintained his edge throughout the day, ending the day by taking provisional pole in Qualifying with 1’59.158s. Of the 29 riders on the UB150 grid, only four have managed to lap below the 2-minute mark. Second fastest in qualifying was senior rider Ahmad Fazli Sham (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) with 1’59.610s. Championship leader Wawan Wello (SND Factory Racing Rapido) piloted his Honda to third in the qualifier with 1’59.713s. Young Aldi Satya Mahendra, who in the previous round, had just set a record as the youngest winner of the UB150 class, was fourth with 1’59.740s. Elsewhere, Filipino rider McKinley Kyle Paz who his fighting to keep his title hopes alive, managed to make the cut into the SuperPole. The UMA Racing Yamaha Philippine Team rider was 11th fastest in qualifying while his team mate Fernando Masato sneaked in at P15.

The FIM Asia Road Racing Championship Race Direction has recently begun cracking down hard on unruly riding in the four classes of the championship. As the level of competition rises in the second half of the 2019 season, the trend of riders pushing the limits of safety has also increased correspondingly. For example, Mohd Akid Aziz was fined during the qualifying session at Suzuka. His dangerous riding had caused another rider to crash. In the same leg, Gupita Kresna Wardhana was found to have been riding dangerously in Race 1. He was penalized with a ride-through penalty in Race 2. Similarly in Round 3 at Buriram, Mohd Adib Rosley was also penalized with a ride-through penalty for dangerous riding. The Race Direction team is taking this matter seriously and will not hesitate to hand out severe penalties in order to deter future incidents.