ROUND 1 MSBK1000 REVIEW
BOON SIEW HONDA RACING TEAM
The Boon Siew Honda Racing Team expanded its 2020 Malaysia Superbike Championship presence this year with Mohd Zaqhwan Zaidi in the MSBK1000, Azroy Hakeem Anuar in the MSBK600 and Mohd Idlan Haqimi Raduan in the MSBK250 classes.
Zaqhwan was absent from the team’s MSBK line-up in 2019, as he was away most of the year racing in the All Japan and the Asia Road Racing Championship. Zaqhwan’s racing plans were iced when the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic brought international travel to a grinding halt.
The announcement that the 2020 Malaysia Superbike Championship would be re-started, albeit with a shortened season, was the perfect opportunity for the team and Zaqhwan to keep their superbikes race craft in shape.
Months of slumber had not affected the team’s competitive edge as Zaqhwan topped the timesheets from the free practice sessions, the qualifier, and the three races in the season opener. The 21-year-old walked away from Round 1 with the maximum
However, the team believes that there is still room for improvement.
“We have not been racing for far too long and we think Zaqhwan’s condition is not yet at 100%. It’s not so much about winning the title as opposed to using this extra mileage for Zaqhwan to prepare for the resumption of the 2021 season in the FIM Asia Road Racing Championship,” said Boon Siew Honda Racing Team manager, Zulhelmi Ahmad.
HORIZON RACING TEAM
Sponsorship complications delayed Mohd Farid Badrul Hisam’s confirmation for the 2020 MSBK1000 season. The defending champion’s entry was only announced at the eleventh hour. Consequently, the Horizon Racing Team engineers had their work cut out for them as they raced against the clock to prepare his 2012 BMW S1000 RR in time for the race weekend.
The team’s problems were compounded by the change of tyre from Pirelli to Dunlop in the MSBK this season. The first day of practice was centred primarily around suspension setup to suit the new Dunlop slicks. Farid ended the day as the second quickest rider in the MSBK1000, but was a little more than two seconds off Zaqhwan Zaidi’s pace. 2’11.346s was Farid’s best time during the free practice sessions
Farid clocked below 2’10 during the qualifier to start the weekend’s races from P2. He would then go on to finish second in all three races in Round 1. The 27-year-old’s laptimes improved steadily throughout the weekend, culminating with his best lap of the weekend, 2’08.890s clocked in Race 2.
However, Farid has yet to improve on his personal best time, 2’08.304s, clocked in 2019 when he was fighting against yet another high-profile rider, Zulfahmi Khairuddin.
“I think Farid did really well last weekend, but it was obvious that he will need a more competitive bike in order to race at Zaqhwan’s pace. We have three weeks to the next round and we are hoping to have our second bike prepared for him by then,” said Mohamad Yusaini, team principal of the Horizon Racing Team.
Farid’s second bike is a 2015 model BMW S1000 RR.
MME RACING TEAM MALAYSIA
The best performance of the weekend in the MSBK1000 class was delivered by 18-year-old Ahmad Daniel Haiqal from the MME Racing Team Malaysia.
The young rider came into the MSBK from an unusual route. Daniel began his career as a motocross rider before making the jump straight into the litre class in 2019 when he won the MSBK1000 Superstock B title.
Daniel had obviously been training hard even through the nine months of enforced inactivity. As Round 1 commenced, armed with a 2020 model BMW S1000 RR, the MME Racing Team rider was able to immediately better his personal best time at the Sepang International Circuit.
Daniel’s best in 2019 was clocked at 2’13.486s. In 2020, his new baseline was 2’12.051s. His laptimes improved dramatically from one practice session to another until Race 3 when he finally achieved his personal best so far, 2’09.159s.
“We tried lots of different setups this weekend. I virtually had a different bike from Race 1 to Race 2 and finally to Race 3. The bike felt really good in Race 3, but the front brake seemed to be malfunctioning. However, I was still determined to have a go at overtaking Farid Badrul, which was how I low-sided at Turn 1 on the last lap in the third race,” said Daniel.
Nevertheless, the MME Racing Team Malaysia rider picked up three third place finishes from Round 1, placing him in a solid third overall in the MSBK1000 rankings.
TEAM HIAP AIK SUZUKI RACING
Team Hiap Aik Suzuki Racing’s lead rider CY Khoo also displayed marked improvement over the course of the weekend. The team and riders clearly needed time to get a grip on the new Dunlop tyres.
CY clocked his best time of the weekend, 2’15.942s, in Race 3. However, the determined rider has yet to better his personal best in 2019, a time of 2’14.475s clocked in Round 1.
“Finally we get back to the track after a long break. My goal for Round 1 is to get my race rhythm back, and understand more about this new Dunlop tyre. Overall my team and I are quite happy with our results. We collected a lot of valuable data from the new tyres and we tried some different setup on the bike to suit the tyres,” said CY.
“Thanks to organizers and team for a good event, putting us on a track in these difficult times. Hope everyone stays safe. See you in Round 2.”