Malaysia’s First MotoGP Rider in 2019

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Malaysia’s First MotoGP Rider in 2019

Hafizh Syahrin is slated to be Malaysia’s first MotoGP rider in 2019.
He will join the Petronas Sprinta Racing team next year, managed by the Sepang International Circuit (SIC).
SIC CEO, Datuk Razlan, is confident Hafizh will do better next year.

The Sepang International Circuit (SIC) is determined to groom Hafizh Syahrin for the big time: MotoGP.

As was reported earlier, Hafizh Syahrin’s long-time team Moto2, Petronas Raceline Malaysia had split ways for the 2018 Moto2 season (click here for our report). Hafizh will join the Petronas Sprinta Racing Moto2 team next year. The team is managed by SIC.

SIC’s Chief Executive Officer, Datuk Razlan Razali has expressed the intention of having Hafizh in MotoGP with Dorna and MotoGP teams. “We have expressed our interest with Dorna and also discussed the matter with a number of MotoGP teams this past week,” he said.

Datuk Razlan Ramli, courtesy of gpmalaysia

But the 2018 slots have all been taken. “There are still slots available for new satellite teams in 2019,” added Datuk Razlan.

Datuk Razlan is confident that Hafizh will do better with Petronas Sprinta Racing, before making the leap to the top class.

The fact that Malaysian racers, including Hafizh, have traditionally done well in wet weather is not lost upon Datuk Razlan, “We also need them to do well in dry races. Hafizh has done well (in mixed weather races) here at and this is what we want.”

Datuk Razlan believes Hafizh will do better in 2018 as Petronas Sprinta Racing (read: SIC) will provide him a better bike and mechanics.

The target for Hafizh Syahrin is to finish in the overall top five in the Moto2 class next year. Syahrin is currently in 11^th this season, with one race to go. He had finished 9^th overall in 2016.

Difficulties saw Hafizh finishing last Sunday’s Shell Malaysia Moto2 race in sixth, after qualifying in tenth.

This report is adapted from Sepang Circuits Facebook post. You could visit their Facebook page by clicking here.

And have you heard that Petronas wants to give some lucky people a year’s worth of engine lubricants? You can be one of those lucky people too by taking part in a simple contest. For more information on the contest, you can visit www.mymesra.com.my/pengejarimpian

Editor Info

Wahid Ooi

Wahid's lust for motorcycles was spurred on by his late-Dad's love for his Lambretta on which he courted, married his mother, and took baby Wahid riding on it. He has since worked in the motorcycle and automotive industry for many years, before taking up riding courses and testing many, many motorcycles since becoming a motojournalist. Wahid likes to see things differently. What can you say about a guy who sees a road safety message in AC/DC's "Highway to Hell."