With 14 individual classes, a total of 160 race cars and more than 200 drivers, Round 2 of the MSF Superturismo produced an electrifying Saturday night of racing at the Petronas Sepang International Circuit last weekend (1 June 2024).
With only the South Track (2.609km) instead of the entire 5.543km circuit being utilised, the action on track in practically all classes was close, fast and intense as the first race got underway under flood lights at 7.25pm. The weekend of racing also signaled the revival of the Saturday Night Fever racing phenomenon which was last held in 2015 and attracted close to 2,000 spectators and motorsports enthusiasts.
The who’s who in Malaysian circuit racing were present in full force, with the highlight of the night being on the 5 premier classes: Super Series Unlimited; Vision-HKS Super Touring; Vision-HKS GT86 x BRZ Racing Cup; Super Production; and Rennplatz Standard Production. All races required drivers to make a mandatory 2-minute pit stop for a driver change.
“The vibe both on and off the track was extraordinary and we’re glad to have been able to bring back Saturday Night Fever racing after 10 years. Weather conditions also made it a little bit more interesting for the drivers who had to deal with dry, wet and damp conditions throughout the day due to late afternoon rain,” said MSF Superturismo Principal Adian Yein Khalid.
The highlight of the night was the MSF Super Series race that brought together the top seeded drivers and cars onto the grid.
Faidzil Alang and Tung Kah Soon in an extensively-modified Honda Civic EG6 again proved themselves untouchables as they literally ran away with the 22-lap race finishing almost a minute clear of their nearest rival in the Super Series Unlimited class. Finishing second was the Mitsubishi Evolution III of Putera Mohd Faiz, followed by Lim Tze Chien in a Honda Integra DC5.
“The conditions were extremely tricky because it was dry during practice, it rained during qualifying and the track was back to being during the race. It was an all-out attack from the start and the challenge was to better my personal best lap time. After the mandatory pit stop, it was all about focus and trying to get to the finish safely due to a lot of traffic on track,” said Faidzil.
In the Vision-HKS Super Touring division Mohamed Hafez Kamarudin in a Toyota GR Yaris drove to his second successive victory ahead of Indonesian driver Umar Abdullah in a Honda Civic FD2R, while in third place was Jonathan Lee Jiahui piloting a Honda Integra DC5. Mohamed Hafez completed the 22-lap race with a 6.7-second lead.
“We had a slight issue with coolant pressure but thankfully this did not impact the coolant temperature. All in all we prepared the car well and a month in advance therefore I am pleased with the result,” said Mohamed Hafez.
The Vision HKS GT86 x BRZ Racing Cup saw Rennplatz Racing’s Ng Teck Ming also cruising to a comfortable victory finishing a staggering 50 seconds ahead of the pair of Syed Rizal and Fahrizal Hasan from Fawster SMRT. In third place was Muhd Khairul Nizam Yaacob who was a lap behind. The victory was also Ng’s second consecutive race win in two rounds.
The biggest surprise of the night however, was one by Boy Soh who powered his previous generation Perodua Myvi across the chequered flag in the Super Production class, just 2 seconds ahead of Roni Risman in a Proton Satria Neo while in third place was another Proton Satria Neo driven by Thang Jiun Sheng a further 31 seconds adrift.
Dominance on track was also demonstrated by the pair of Hayden Haikal and Aiman Asyraaf who stormed from pole position in their Honda Fit GK5 RS to finish the Rennplatz Standard Production class race 16 seconds ahead of Ng Chong Chin. Stewart Hine crossed the line third a further 13 seconds behind. The results of Round 2 means both Ng and the pair of Hayden and Aiman have one race victory and a second place finish to the credit after 2 rounds of the series.
Amer Harris in a Proton Satria meanwhile, crushed the competition in the Super 1800 class win a 1 minute: 06-second lead over his nearest competitor. The pair of Foo Yung Chieh and Ng Teck Ming in a Honda Civic EG6 and Loke Chee Fah in a Honda Civic EJ claimed second and third places respectively.
Round 3 of the MSF Superturismo will continue on 21 July, this time taking on the North track at the Petronas Sepang International Circuit.
