HAYKHAL’S EPIC WIN
Muhd Irfan Haykhal Amidi of HRM MOTUL RACING TEAM produced a sensational ride to claim victory in Race 2 of the MSBK250 A category after edging out Danial Syahmi Ahmad Shahril from Malaysia by a mere 0.001s in a breathtaking photo finish during Round 3 of the MAM Malaysia Superbike Championship 2026 at PETRONAS Sepang International Circuit.
Starting fourth on the grid, Haykhal wasted no time making his intentions clear. The Malaysian rider charged through the opening lap to overtake pole sitter Danial immediately joined the leading group alongside Nguyen Huu Tri of HONDA RACING VIETNAM TEAM and Indonesia’s Irfan Ardiansyah of NWN CZ1 SCK RACING TEAM, with the front four quickly breaking away from the chasing pack.
The race took an unexpected turn on Lap 2 when Danial was handed a long-lap penalty for a jump start. Despite the setback, the pole sitter refused to surrender, continuing to push at the front before serving his penalty on Lap 4. The penalty dropped him more than 3.400s behind the leaders, leaving him with a mountain to climb in the closing stages.
As Haykhal, Nguyen and Irfan battled fiercely for the lead, Danial began an extraordinary recovery. Setting a blistering 2’23.08s lap before producing an even quicker 2’24.471s on the final lap, faster than his own pole-winning qualifying time of 2’24.874s, he rapidly erased the deficit and rejoined the fight for victory.
The final lap delivered one of the most dramatic finishes of the season. Danial launched an aggressive move on the inside to seize the lead before the front three exchanged positions repeatedly through the final corners. Exiting the last turn, Haykhal and Danial raced side by side towards the chequered flag, with the winner impossible to determine by eye.
Although Danial initially appeared to have taken the victory as the pair crossed the finish line, the official result confirmed Haykhal as the winner by the narrowest of margins by just 0.001 seconds following a photo finish. Huu Tri completed the podium in third, while Irfan finished fourth after spending much of the race inside the leading battle. Malaysia’s Nazirul Izzat Muhd Bahauddin rounded out the top five after another consistent performance.
Haykhal said, “Alhamdulillah, first of all I’d like to thank my family and everyone at HRM MOTUL RACING TEAM for preparing such a competitive machine for this race. The bike performed brilliantly throughout the weekend, and all the hard work from the team really paid off.”
“From the very first lap, my strategy was to push as hard as possible and maintain the pace until the finish. On the final lap, Irfan Ardiansyah managed to overtake me at the last corner, so I knew I had to react immediately. I gave everything I had on the run to the finish line, and Alhamdulillah it was enough to secure the victory. This result is very important for my championship campaign, and I’ll continue pushing to fight for the overall MSBK250 title.”
TOP 5 FASTEST – RACE 2
1. MUHD IRFAN HAYKHAL AMIDI – HRM MOTUL RACING TEAM (19’36.070)
2. DANIAL SYAHMI AHMAD SHAHRIL (19’36.071)
3. NGUYEN HUU TRI – HONDA RACING VIETNAM TEAM (19’36.579)
4. IRFAN ARDIANSYAH – NWN CZ1 SCK RACING TEAM (19’43.944)
5. NAZIRUL IZZAT MUHD BAHAUDDIN (19’50.622)