Lucky Hendriansyah has proven that his top performance throughout the first round of the 2019 FIM Asia Road Racing Championship is more than just luck.
The Astra Honda Racing Team rider started the Asia Production 250cc Race 1 from fifth on the grid, lining up on second row behind pole sitter Muklada Sarapuech, Irfan Ardiansyah, Andy Muhammad Fadly and Awhin Sanjaya. Lucky was the only rookie among the top five and within the space of a lap, began challenging Andy Muhammad Fadly for the lead.
Lucky succeeded in taking control of the race on Lap 2 but found it hard to get away from Kawasaki’s Andy. The one-on-one battle went all the way to the chequered flag. The more experienced Andy almost lost control when he pushed beyond the limits to overtake Lucky at the final corner. While Andy struggled to tame his fidgety Kawasaki Ninja 250, Lucky raced to the finish line to stop the clock with 19’34.655s.
A disappointed Andy had to settle for second place with 19’34.839s followed by Irfan Ardiansyah in third with 19’38.376s.
Earlier in the race, pole sitter Muklada Sarapuech developed engine problems on Lap 3 and had to retire in tears.
While the spotlight remained on the battle at the front, the most impressive performance of the day went to Manual Tech KYT Kawasaki Racing’s Aiki Iyoshi who went from last on the 25-rider grid to fifth in the race.