Round 5 of the IDEMITSU FIM Asia Road Racing Championship 2025 delivered an electrifying Race 1 of the TVS ASIA One Make Championship at the Sepang International Circuit, with Japan’s Hiroki Ono snatching a dramatic last-corner victory from Malaysia’s Md Ramdan Rosli.
As the lights went out, Spain’s Luis Miguel launched strongly off the line, but his lead was short-lived as Hiroki Ono capitalised on a wide first turn to surge to the front. Malaysia’s Md Ramdan Rosli immediately gave chase in second, followed by India’s Sarthak Chavan in third, Luis dropping to fourth, and Chiranth Vishwanath of India in fifth.
By Lap 2, the leading quintet of Hiroki, Luis, Chiranth, Ramdan, and Sarthak had carved out a two-second advantage from the chasing group. Hiroki looked comfortable in command, but the battle behind remained intense.
On Lap 3, Hiroki stamped his authority by clocking a fastest lap of 2’21.312s, while Ramdan muscled his way into second, demoting Sarthak to third. Luis and Chiranth continued their fight for fourth as the front-runners began to pull clear.
The home crowd roared to life on Lap 4 when Ramdan responded with a blistering 2’21.166s, closing the gap to just 0.233s behind Hiroki. The duo began to break away from the chasing group, which trailed at 2.602s adrift, while the fight for the final podium spot intensified among Sarthak, Luis, and Chiranth.
Lap 5 delivered heart-stopping drama as Hiroki and Ramdan traded overtakes for the lead, neither willing to give an inch.
The final lap saw Ramdan edging into the lead, with Hiroki shadowing him at every corner. The Malaysian looked set to claim a famous home victory, but Hiroki launched a bold inside move at the final corner, seizing the win in 14’20.277s. Ramdan crossed just 0.047s behind at 14’20.324s, leaving the crowd in disbelief. Sarthak Chavan secured third at 14’22.419s, with Luis Miguel and Chiranth Vishwanath completing the top five.
Hiroki reflected, “Race was very tough until the last lap fighting with Ramdan. But every lap I felt not too bad because I was relaxed. At the beginning, there was some battling with a few riders to get to the top, but in the last few laps it was just me and Ramdan. On the final corner, I decided to go from the inside and managed to take the win. This victory is very important for the championship. Tomorrow, my target is also to get another victory.”
TOP 5 FASTEST – RACE
- HIROKI ONO – JAPAN (14’20.277s)
- MD RAMDAN ROSLI – MALAYSIA (14’20.324s)
- SARTHAK CHAVAN – INDIA (14’22.419s)
- LUIS MIGUEL – SPAIN (14’26.009s)
- CHIRANTH VISHWANATH – INDIA (14’26.046s)