Indonesian riders Muhammad Sapril and Rizal Feriyadi climbed onto the top steps of the podium when they out-sprinted nine other contenders in Race 2 of the Suzuki Asian Challenge at the Suzuka Circuit.
Polesitter April King Mascardo gave a strong performance at the start of the race but crashed out after only two laps. The Suzuki Asian Challenge Race 2 took place on a drying circuit as the rain clouds over Suzuka gave way to bright sunshine. The race pace began to increase on Lap 3 as the riders gained better grip and a clearer understanding of the best braking points in the uncertain track conditions.
With nine riders fighting for the same spot on the track, there was plenty of minor contacts when the level of competition intensified at the last lap. The tiny chicane before the last corner was clogged up with all nine trying to navigate the chicane at the same time. Sapril and Rizal managed to sneak ahead into the lead and won the 1-2 position with times of 14’40.065s and 14’40.319s respectively. Japan’s Shinnosuke Sato finished third with 14’40.383s.
A clear championship leader has finally emerged in the Suzuki Asian Challenge – Muhammad Sapril with 102 points. Mohd Rozaliman Zakaria is second overall with 89 points and Jefri Tosema third with 82 points.