2023 FIM Asia Road Racing Championships Asia Superbike 1000cc Race 1 Md Zaqhwan Zaidi kicked off the weekend setting a new record of 1’34:844s in qualifying. His close contender Markus Reiterberger clocking 1’35’008s while Japanese star, Haruki Noguchi was third fastest with a 1’35:045s, to mark the front row on race day. Zaqhwan showed blistering […]
The post Asia Road Racing Championship 2023 kicks off in Thailand appeared first on MCNews.
Source: MCNews.com.au
A provisional version of the 2022 Asia Road Racing Championship calendar has been released, with six rounds visiting Thailand, Malaysia, Japan, China and Thailand again, with one round still yet to be declared.
The season will begin with the official test and season opener at the Chang International Circuit. The Sepang International Circuit will host the second leg.
While the host venue for Round 3 is yet to be confirmed, season 2022 will see the FIM Asia Road Racing Championship making its debut at the Sportsland Sugo International Circuit.
The Zhuhai International Circuit in China will serve as the host for the penultimate round and the season is expected to wrap up again at the Chang International Circuit in Thailand.
Ron Hogg – Director Two Wheels Motor Racing
“After two years of enforced inactivity, we can’t wait to get the Asian grid together. The past two years has been an extremely challenging time for the ARRC paddock and we would like to thank all our stakeholders for their continued patience and understanding. We anticipate that we will return to The Bend Motorsport Park, Australia in 2023 when we hope that international travel requirements will have eased up. More importantly, we are definitely looking forward to the ARRC’s debut race in Sugo! Having raced previously at the Autopolis International Race Course and the Suzuka Circuit, the Sportsland Sugo will be a new playground for the Asian paddock. Look forward to fireworks when we finally get in gear! There will be more announcements to come with exciting changes in the works!”
Stephan Carapiet – President FIM Asia
“The FIM Asia is thrilled to witness the re-start of the FIM Asia Road Racing Championship. No doubt, there will be strict SOPs to follow but we are certain that the Asian series will be able to adapt and make the best of the situation. Rest assured, the FIM Asia officials will lend our full support and assistance to ensure that 2022 will be our best season ever!”
| Round | Date | Circuit | Nation |
| Official Test | 22–23 March, 2022 | Chang International Circuit | Thailand |
| Round 1 | 25–27 March, 2022 | Chang International Circuit | Thailand |
| Round 2 | 27–29 May, 2022 | Sepang International Circuit | Malaysia |
| Round 3 | 1–3 July, 2022 | TBC | TBC |
| Round 4 | 12–14 August, 2022 | Sportsland Sugo International Circuit | Japan |
| Round 5 | 9–11 September, 2022 | Zhuhai International Circuit | China |
| Round 6 | 18–20 November, 2022 | Chang International Circuit | Thailand |
Source: MCNews.com.au
With the challenges of Covid continuing, the 2021 FIM Asia Road Racing Championship has been called off, with racing teams facing many difficulties with travel, alongside the varying local regulations in force.
Differing quarantine procedures, lack of flights, and many other roadblocks have made it impossible for the Asian grid to re-assemble for 2021. As such it’s just been officially confirmed that the FIM Asia Road Racing Championship will not be held in 2021.
The ARRC season had been planned as a six-round competition, kicking off in Malaysia with two rounds in June, before moving to China’s Zhuhai International Circuit in August, The Bend Motorsport Park in Australia in September and finishing off the year with two rounds at the Chang International Circuit in Thailand.
In June both Chinese and Australian rounds were cancelled due to Covid, while the season opener in Sepang had originally been delayed.
Ron Hogg – Two Wheels Motor Racing Director
“I would like to start off by expressing our gratitude to the Thai government and especially to the Chang International Circuit. Working together, we have left no stones unturned in our bid to bring the grid together in 2021. We especially want to thank the Chang International Circuit , the Sports Authority of Thailand and the Federation Motor Sports Club of Thailand. With the help of these agencies, we can confirm that we were trying as hard as possible up to the last moment. We worked hard to make it happen. However, not everything is within our control. Restrictions among the Asian countries are more stringent as compared to the other regions like Europe. Bringing the grid together will be a very costly affair, especially with the required quarantine procedures when teams return home to their respective countries. Therefore, we believe that it would be better to consolidate all our resources to kick start the 2022 season. Rest assured, plans for 2022 will be announced in due time. In the meantime we would also like to say thank you to all our partners, teams, riders and our fans. Stay strong, stay safe, let’s get ready to roar next year!”
Stephan Carapiet – FIM Asia President
“The FIM Asia supports the decision of the FIM Asia Road Racing Championship to call off the 2021 season. Asia is a more populous region as compared to the other parts of the world. Therefore, it is not surprising that the Asian governments are imposing stricter restrictions with regards to international sporting events. Matters were made worse with regulations that seem to be constantly in flux. I am just as disappointed as everyone else about this inevitable decision. However, let’s look forward to a great year in 2022.”
Source: MCNews.com.au
The FIM Asia Road Racing Championship has confirmed that the Round 1 opener, scheduled to be held at Sepang International Circuit from June 4 to 6, will be postponed to a later date due to the rise in Covid-19 cases in Asia over the past month.
This was in accordance with requests from the majority of the participating teams and riders. Even though the season-opener had been given the green-light to proceed from the Malaysian government, the FIM Asia Road Racing Championship stands together with the teams and riders in that the health and well-being of our respective communities is of utmost importance.
A new calendar for 2021 will be released as soon as possible.
Ron Hogg – Two Wheels Motor Racing Director
“I would like to start off by expressing our gratitude to the Malaysian government, especially the officials in the Malaysian Ministry of Youth and Sports (KBS), the National Security Council and the Malaysian Ministry of Health. Working hand-in-hand with these officials, the season opener had actually been given the green light to proceed.”
“However, in view of the rising number of Covid-19 cases in the region, we as the promoters, concur with the views of our participating teams and riders, in that it would be more prudent to postpone instead of pushing through with the first round. The health and well-being of our teams and participants will always be our top priority. At the same time, international travel within the Asian region is also becoming increasingly difficult. The tightening of national borders in response to the rise in cases have restricted air travel to and from certain countries, making it hard for the teams to plan their travel schedule.
“We would like to apologize to the fans of Asian motorsports who have been waiting eagerly for the action to start. On behalf of the FIM Asia Road Racing Championship, I would like to assure everyone that Season 2021 is merely postponed, and will certainly take off by the latter half of the year. Meanwhile, we hope that everyone will continue to stay safe. Let’s do our part to keep the Covid-19 pandemic under control so that sports can get back into action as soon as possible.”
Stephan Carapiet – FIM Asia President
“The FIM Asia supports the decision of the FIM Asia Road Racing Championship to defer the start of the 2021 season. While it is certainly disappointing, it is always preferable to err on the side of caution. Please look forward to the release of a new 2021 calendar soon.”
Source: MCNews.com.au
We didn’t have to wait long to find out how a decent World Superbike rider would fare ARRC’s competitive cauldron. Markus Reiterberger – who alongside Tom Sykes, rode a BMW S 1000 RR for Shaun Muir Racing in 2019 – followed up a lap record breaking performance in pre-season testing at Sepang with a dominant performance in Friday’s free practice for round one.
Markus Reiterberger
The German, who turns 26 this week, looked at ease aboard the ONEXOX TKKR BMW, topping all three sessions by more than six tenths. His best time was 2’04.950, set midway through FP1.
The chase was led at different times by Kawasaki Thailand’s Thitipong Warakorn, Yamaha Racing ASEAN’s Broc Parkes and Yamaha Thailand’s Apiwat Wongthananon, who ended up second on the day, with a best time of 2’05.764 in FP3, more than eight tenths adrift of Markus. Broc put in a good day’s work to finish third on combined times, with a lap of 2’05.928.
Apiwat Wongthananon
The only other rider to get into the 2’05s and therefore within a second of Markus, was Lorenzo Zanetti, on the Access Plus Racing Okada Ducati Panigale. Standing in for Frederico Sandi, Zanetti, who is an official Ducati test rider, finished just ahead of Thitipong, Yuki Ito and defending champion Azlan Shah Kamaruzaman, who lagged his new team-mate by 1.810s to end up seventh.
Azlan Shah Kamaruzaman
ASB debutant, Anuparb Sarmoon, made a good account of himself to finish the day eighth for Yamaha Thailand, while Kawasaki Thailand’s class rookie, Ryosuke Iwato and Access Plus Okada’s TJ Alberto completed the top ten.
During Saturday morning qualifying, the pattern of pre-season testing and free practice repeated, with nobody able to get within striking distance of the ONEXOX TKKR SAG BMW of Markus Reiterberger, who claimed pole position with a lap of 2’04.762.
Broc Parkes got to within 1.4 seconds of the German to put himself second from Yamaha Thailand’s Apiwat Wongthananon, who always seems to qualify on the front row. Broc’s team-mate, Yuki Ito was fourth, to lead the second row from the Access Plus Ducati of Lorenzo Zanetti.
Yuki Ito
Azlan Shah Kamaruzaman was seventh, ahead of Thitipong Warakorn. The Thai rider had his session disrupted when he crashed on water that had seeped onto the track at Turn 4. The incident brought out the red flag and there was a lengthy delay while marshals mopped and dried the surface.
As it often does, an electric storm hit Sepang later in the afternoon, causing a delay of around 45 minutes to the start of the race.
Azlan Shah
With racing on a wet track being a new experience for the 2020 BMW, the possibility of Markus being beaten began to look realistic. He got away at the front, but, ominously, Yuki Ito tucked in behind him and snatched the lead midway round lap one. Meanwhile, Apiwat was well-placed in third, just ahead of Broc, who went through at turn 15 and then passed Markus for second.
Broc Parkes, Apiwat Wongthananon, Anuparb Sarmoon, Markus Reiterberger
By lap three out of 12, Yuki had found his rhythm and was three seconds clear at the front. Markus ran wide and Yamaha Thailand’s Apiwat and Anuparb Sarmoon went through to third and fourth. Some five seconds further back, Lorenzo was battling with Farid Badrul and Azlan for sixth place, while Thitipong looked unhappy further back in tenth.
By half distance the race was looking settled, with Yuki hitting his marks smoothly and stretching his lead every lap. In contrast Broc was having to fend off the advances of a determined Apiwat, with both machines twitching and threatening to spit off their riders at every turn.
Yuki Ito claims the Race 1 win
These two were well clear of Anuparb, who was making a very respectable debut. Broc succumbed to Apiwat’s pressure on lap 11, going over the highside of his R1 and snapping his handlebars, to register a highly undesirable DNF.
Despite a leisurely trundle from turn 15 to the chequered flag, Yuki crossed the line 7.6 seconds ahead of Apiwat and Anuparb, who was 15 seconds behind his Yamaha Thailand team-mate. Markus came in a safe fourth from Zanetti, Azlan and Badrul.
Yuki Ito celebrates the Race 1 win
Storm clouds that had again looked threatening during the afternoon began to disperse as the Asia Superbike grid formed for race two.
Sitting on pole position, ONEXOX TKKR SAG’s Markus Reiterberger looked a lot more relaxed than he had 24 hours earlier for Saturday’s wet race, next to Yamaha Racing ASEAN’s Broc Parkes, who was feeling sore after high-siding out of second position in race one. Despite the setbacks, the Australian was determined to get the start of his ARRC season launched with a degree of success.
Markus Reiterberger
utside him, Yamaha Thailand’s Apiwat Wongthananon, who had hounded Broc the previous day and then benefited from the previous day’s crash, set his sights on another strong result.
Markus checked out at the start, pulling a few lengths clear as he got to the first corner. Broc was the best of the rest for a few corners until he got mugged by Apiwat, who fancied his chances of chasing down the German at the front. More discomfort followed for the Hunter Valley man, as he found himself under pressure from Yamaha Thailand’s Anuparb Sarmoon and Access Plus Okada Ducati’s Lorenzo Zanetti.
Kawasaki Thailand’s Thitipong Warakorn was next, with race one winner, Yuki Ito and Azlan Shah Kamaruzaman completing a group of seven. On lap three, Lorenzo, who had predicted a podium finish, moved past Anuparb and Apiwat into second.
Apiwat Wongthananon, Broc Parkes, Lorenzo Zanetti, Anuparb Sarmoon
With half the 12-lap race done, Markus was 6.8 seconds clear and Lorenzo and Apiwat made up the provisional podium from Anuparb and Broc. Then Azlan seemed to finally gell with the 2020 Beemer and made his way through the group and up into second from Apiwat and Lorenzo. Anuparb crashed out of contention on lap seven.
With two laps left, a mistake by Azlan saw him hit the floor, while Broc and Thitipong, who had also taken a few knocks during the weekend got a lot more serious about their finishing positions. Broc moved onto the back of a twitchy-looking Ducati, but was unable to find a way past until the Italian appeared to miss a gear as he charged out of turn 15 towards the finish line. Broc narrowly avoided rear-ending him and took third place behind Markus and Apiwat. Zanetti came through to fourth in front of Thitipong and Yuki.
ASB Race 2 Podium
Apiwat’s brace of second places means that he leaves Sepang atop the standings with 40 points to Markus’s 38. Yuki lies third on 35 from Zanetti (24) and Thitipong (18). Broc’s DNF and third place finish put him sixth and level on points with Anuparb.
Source: MCNews.com.au
With Barry Russell
The FIM Asia Road Racing Championship (ARRC) starts its 25th season on March 5, with more entries and more international attention than at any time since in its history. A total of 80 riders from 12 different countries will contest the seven-round, 14 race-championship.
The introduction of the Asia Superbike (ASB) class in 2019 replaced Supersport 600 as the series flagship. This move attracted European manufacturers for the first time and added a whole new level of racing to the series.
The Asia Superbike class provided close racing in 2019, with a championship battle that went down to the last race of the season between Broc Parkes and ultimate winner, Azlan Shah Kamaruzaman. The contrast in styles and machinery between the top two protagonists made the seven-round, 14-race battle especially entertaining.
Broc Parkes and Yuki Ito
Broc will again partner Japan’s Yuki Ito in the Yamaha Racing ASEAN squad to face Azlan, as well as a much deeper field of potential champions.
The Malaysian stays with the ONEXOX TKKR SAG BMW with additional motivation on the other side of the garage in the shape of his new team-mate, former European Superstock champion and WSBK rider, Markus Reiterberger.
Azlan Shah Kamaruzaman
Third in the 2019 standings was Zaqhwan Zaidi, who made Honda Asia Dream Racing with Showa’s vintage Fireblade go much faster than it should have. This year Zaqhwan will be on the brand-new Honda and carrying the marque’s expectations for the title.
Thitipong Warakorn
Kawasaki Thailand’s Thitipong Warakorn, who had his 2019 championship chances curtailed by horrific back injuries, starts the new season fit, determined and leading the charge for Team Green. Katsuake Fujiwara continues as team manager, bringing in rookie Ryusuke Iwato, following his impressive showing in the Japan Superbike (JSB) 1000 class last season.
Ryusuke Iwato (pictured) joins Thitipong Warakorn with Kawasaki Thailand
Yamaha Thailand’s Apiwat Wongthananon is another frontrunner from the land of smiles. The 2016 AP250 champion earned himself two seasons in the CEV Junior Moto3 World Championship with the VR46 Academy before returning home to partner Ratthapong Wilairot in ASB’s inaugural season.
He got up to speed quickly, qualifying on the front row at The Bend in round two and bothering the men at the front during the early laps. Mastering the YZF R1’s electronics over race distance took a little longer, but he scored a brace of thirds at Buriram in round three and at Sepang in round six.
Anuparb Sarmoon, Apiwat Wongthananon & Ratthapong Wilairot who will compete in Supersport
Former Thai superstock champion, the highly rated Anuparb Sarmoon, joins Apiwat in the premier class for 2020, after some impressive CEV Moto2 outings. Ratthapong, meanwhile returns to Supersport 600 as a former champion, having won the title in 2018.
Anuparb could quickly establish himself at the front. Although he is known in ARRC circles as a top AP 250 rider, he is supremely confident on a superbike and fans are in for a treat as they watch him wringing the neck of the YZF R1.
Anuparb Sarmoon
Meanwhile, another AP 250 champion, Indonesia’s Gerry Salim, returns from his CEV Moto2 adventures to partner Zaqhwan in the Honda Asia Dream Racing with Showa squad. Team manager, Makoto Tamada, made no secret of his desire to run two ASB riders and is rewarded accordingly for last season’s results.
Zaqhwan Zaidi and Gerry Salim
It will be Gerry’s first campaign on a one-litre machine, so Honda’s management and his legions of Indonesian fans will be watching to see how quickly he can get to grips with the marque’s new flagship superbike.
Staying with Honda, Musashi, a well-known name in ARRC, comes in with a brand new team, Musashi HARC-PRO.HPI.ASIA and one of Japan’s most exciting riders, Ikuhiro Enokido. The 21-year-old finished second in the J-GP2 class of the All Japan Road Race Championship in 2019. The Japanese series is known for producing fast, tough riders and Musashi is no stranger to winning in ARRC, with a fair few fistfuls of Supersport titles already on the shelf.
Ducati Philippines added a great deal more than a touch of glamour to the grid in 2019. The team worked hard to find the right direction for the development of the Panigale and improved results steadily through the season with TJ Alberto finishing 11th in the standings.
The most conspicuous highlight was the sight of Italian wildcard, Frederico Sandi, leading race one at Sepang in round six before dropping back with tyre wear. Good news for the 2020 grid is that Sandi has signed to do the full season in 2020, so his participation is eagerly anticipated.
Mazspeedingrods Chieton China Racing Team
The much-anticipated entry of Mazspeedingrods Chieton China Racing Team is likely to be curtailed by travel restrictions following the spread of the nova coronavirus. With a pair of gleaming red BMW S 1000s ready for Ma Sai and Huang Zhi Zhao we can only wait and hope for a fast end to the prevailing global health crisis. The appearance of another Chinese superbike star, Li Zheng Peng, who has signed for Victor Racing Team, also looks likely to be delayed.
The official pre-season test, now less than two weeks away, will provide clues to how the season will pan out. Australian fans can note that a strong showing by Broc in the 2019 test, was followed by third and fifth place finishes, so the Hunter Valley man will be looking to get his 2020 title campaign off to a stronger start and to add to his tally of three ASB race wins. Round two will be at Tailem Bend, May 7-10, and will again be a double bill with ASBK. Last year Broc scored second and first place finishes at his first visit to the track.
Azlan, meanwhile, will be out to continue the winning run that earned him the 2019 championship and to get ahead of his new team-mate. Then there’s Zaqhwan, Thitipong, Apiwat and Anuparb, all with their own markers to put down.
The 2020 ARRC Superbike Calendar 
2020 Asia Superbike 1000 Entry List
Here’s a look at the final standings in the 2019 Asia Superbike 1000 championship, for reference.
| Pos. | Rider | Nat. | Points |
| 1 | Azlan Shah Kamaruzaman | MAS | 238 |
| 2 | Broc Parkes | AUS | 225 |
| 3 | Md Zaqhwan Zaidi | MAS | 211 |
| 4 | Apiwat Wongthananon | THA | 161 |
| 5 | Yuki Ito | JPN | 160 |
| 6 | Thitipong Warokorn | THA | 139 |
| 7 | Ratthapong Wilairot | THA | 116 |
| 8 | Ahmad Yudhistira | INA | 83 |
| 9 | Bryan Staring | AUS | 79 |
| 10 | Chaiwichit Nisakul | THA | 79 |
| 11 | Timothy Joseph Cua Alberto | PHI | 69 |
| 12 | Federico Sandi | ITA | 40 |
| 13 | Farid Badrul Hisham | MAS | 35 |
| 14 | Kazuma Tsuda | JPN | 35 |
| 15 | Shinichi Nakatomi | JPN | 32 |
| 16 | Ali Andriansyah Rusmiputro | INA | 30 |
| 17 | Jonathan Serrapica | SUI | 27 |
| 18 | Li Zheng Peng | CHN | 15 |
| 19 | Bastien Mackels | BEL | 12 |
| 20 | Huang Zi Zhao | CHN | 12 |
| 21 | Mark Aitchison | AUS | 10 |
| 22 | Shahrulnizam Ramli | MAS | 10 |
| 23 | Masahiro Shinjo | JPN | 9 |
| 24 | Yannis Shaw | AUS | 8 |
| 25 | K. Rajini Krishnan | IND | 8 |
| 26 | Lachlan Epis | AUS | 6 |
| 27 | Stephanie Redman | AUS | 4 |
| 28 | Robert Daniel Kruger | CAN | 4 |
| 29 | Koji Teramoto | JPN | 2 |
| 30 | Chen Peng Yuan | CHN | 1 |
Source: MCNews.com.au
With Barry Russell
Having been ARRC’s premier class for 18 years, Supersport was repositioned in 2019 as a stepping stone for riders on their way up to ASB. In the process, an upper age limit of 25 was introduced.
The development category experiment was successful to the extent that stars like runaway champion, Peerapong Boonlert, Kasma Daniel Kasmayudin, and Andi Farid Izdihar found themselves drawn into CEV and Moto2 championships.
Zaqhwan Zaidi
The downside was that it thinned out the field. To ensure the ongoing health of the class promoter, TWMR has lifted the age cap to make it a true intermediate category. So, looking back at 2019 won’t tell you a thing about what could happen in 2020.
Teams have welcomed the move by springing surprises that promise a year of unpredictable, hard-fought battles. The result is also that out of 19 entries, 12 are riders who were not on the 600 grid in 2019. Of those, just three are above the erstwhile age limit.
Soichiro Minamimoto
Starting at what, for now, is the top, Yamaha Thailand are replacing 2019 champion Peerapong with their 2018 champion, Ratthapong Wilairot, who moves back to 600s after an indifferent year in ASB.
Next on the list comes Soichiro Minamimoto, the rider who, as a wildcard, broke Peerapong’s 2019 six race winning streak in round four at Suzuka. The 20-year-old will again be aboard the Akeno Speed Yamaha and starts the season as a top contender. Joining him is Yusuke Nakamura.
Soichiro Minamimoto and Yusuke Nakamura
Another promising young Japanese rider, Rei Toshima, emerges from the Japanese Superbike (JSB) paddock to join the grid for the evocatively monikered Speed Heart DOGFIGHT Racing Yamaha team. He has previously had outings in AP 250 and ran as a wildcard at Suzuka in 2019.
Perhaps one of the biggest surprises is Victor Racing’s Ahmad Yudhistira, who was the stand-out ASB privateer in 2019. As with other international and top-level domestic series, factory involvement in ASB makes it difficult for those without it to compete at the front. It is less of a factor in Supersport, which gives a rider of Yudhistira’s quality a real shot at the title.
Adam Norrodin and Ibrahim Norrodin
Zulfahmi Kairuddin’s Sepang-based team takes on a slightly new name, IUSB ZK Racing, and doubles in size, signing both Adam and Ibrahim Norrodin for 2020. Adam was the team’s regular rider in 2019, causing all kinds of discomfort to Peerapong, scoring seven podiums from 12 starts, including wins in China and Thailand. Ibrahim stepped in for his big brother in Australia and surprised everyone with brilliant fourth and third place finishes. Sibling rivalry should keep both riders well and truly focused.
Yamaha Indonesia has promoted former AP 250 rider, Faerozi Toreqotullah to the intermediate class for 2020. Although always fast on a 250, Faerozi didn’t quite get into title contention and could well be one of those riders who goes better on bigger capacity bikes.
Kyle Paz and Afif Amran
Cross border collaboration between Hong Leong Yamaha and Yamaha Motor Philippines brings together Filipino prodigy, McKinley Kyle Paz and 2019’s highest scoring class rookie, Afif Amran. Under the Yamaha GENBLU Racing Team banner, the hugely popular UB 150 champion is expected to harness the extra horses quickly, as well as drawing thousands of extra eyeballs to the championship, while Afif should continue build on his impressive debut season.
He is sure to enjoy the additional 450cc and should work his way quickly into contention. At the time of writing there is speculation that another Filipino could join the class. If that indeed proves to be true, then expect to see McKinley’s erstwhile UB150 partner, Fernando Masato included in an announcement about the team they’ll be riding for.
ONEXOX TKKR SAG have just announced their full line-up for 2020. Ramdan Rosli is the only top rider from 2019 to reappear and he’ll be joined by Nazirul Izzat, whom the team promotes from AP 250. He’s a rider who showed good speed and was marked out as one to watch by some of us, despite a lack of consistency.
Muklada Sarapuech
With all the riders mentioned so far being Yamaha-mounted, the question has to be asked whether Honda can be competitive with its ageing CBR600RR. During 2019 there was an almost perfect split in qualifying and finishing positions, with Yamaha’s continually upgraded YZF-R1 occupying the top half, so it’s to be hoped that Honda will be helping their teams to find more speed.
There are some hugely talented riders aiming to break Yamaha’s stranglehold on the class, led, at least in terms of media attention, by AP Honda Racing Thailand’s Muklada Sarapuech. The 2015 Asia Dream Cup champion, having spent the last few seasons showing her male counterparts how to ride a 250, steps into the 600 class. The 26-year-old already has glittering supersport credentials, having won the Suzuka 4 Hours in 2019 and will immediately be on the pace.
Muklada is joined by Passawit Thitiwararak, who returns for a third season in the class. He established himself as one of the quickest Honda riders in 2019, finishing sixth overall in the standings.
Irfan Ardiansyah & Rheza Danica Ahrens
One of the most exciting riders to move up is Irfan Ardiansyah, who is rewarded by Astra Honda for his third place finish in the 2019 AP 250 championship. The young Indonesian has the maturity and confidence of a champion as well as the physical size to dominate a bigger machine, so expect him to get up to pace quickly. Rheza Danica Ahrens, the 2018 AP 250 champion, starts his second year in the class looking for strong results after a lacklustre inaugural season.
Musashi Boon Siew Honda are again fielding Malaysian underbone graduates, Azroy Hakeem Anuar and Helmi Azman, who won the UB150 title in 2018. Azroy, who starts his third supersport season, was the best of the Honda contingent in 2019, finishing fourth in the standings and will again be looking to get amongst the Yamahas and onto the podium. Helmi had a difficult first season after sustaining a nasty leg injury in round two. He should start 2020 with his fitness and confidence restored and will be aiming to mix it up with the leaders.
Azroy Hakeem Anuar and Helmi Azman
Another new team, Honda Philippines Okada Manila Access Plus Racing, will be in the next garage to the Ducati team of almost the same name. On board will be Troy Jacob Cua Alberto, younger brother of Timothy Joseph ‘TJ’ Cua Alberto. Troy, 18, has had some decent outings in the Asia Talent Cup and the Thailand Talent Cup and entered SS600 rounds last year at Sepang and Zhuhai for Yuzy Honda.
2020 ARRC Supersport 600 Entry List
With the age cap lifted, it could be anyone’s game, however here’s a look at the final standings in the 2019 Supersport 600 category.
| Pos. | Rider | Nat. | Points |
| 1 | Peerapong Boonlert | THA | 300 |
| 2 | Kasma Daniel Kasmayudin | MAS | 224 |
| 3 | Muhamad Adam Mohd Norrodin | MAS | 170 |
| 4 | Azroy Hakeem Anuar | MAS | 125 |
| 5 | Andi Farid Izdihar | INA | 115 |
| 6 | Passawit Thitivararak | THA | 108 |
| 7 | Md Helmi Azman | MAS | 105 |
| 8 | Ahmad Afif Amran | MAS | 105 |
| 9 | Md Ramdan Rosli | MAS | 90 |
| 10 | Javier Orellana Malloy | ESP | 78 |
| 11 | Rheza Danica Ahrens | INA | 78 |
| 12 | Kritchaporn Kaewsonthi | THA | 68 |
| 13 | Fakhrusy Syakirin Rostam | MAS | 52 |
| 14 | Soichiro Minamimoto | JPN | 41 |
| 15 | Ma Sai | CHN | 36 |
| 16 | Liam Taylor MacDonald | NZL | 34 |
| 17 | Kyusuke Okude | JPN | 30 |
| 18 | Md Ibrahim Md Norrodin | MAS | 29 |
| 19 | Yuto Sano | JPN | 23 |
| 20 | Muhammad Izam Ikmal | MAS | 20 |
| 21 | Katsuto Sano | JPN | 12 |
| 22 | Nazirul Izzat Md Bahaudin | MAS | 11 |
| 23 | Md Akid Aziz | MAS | 11 |
| 24 | Sha Juntong | CHN | 9 |
| 25 | Ao Leong Fu | MAC | 8 |
| 26 | Chen Hpng Yan | CHN | 8 |
| 27 | Kota Arakawa | JPN | 7 |
| 28 | Chen Yuan Hang | CHN | 5 |
| 29 | Md Khairul Ikhwan Ajis | MAS | 4 |
| 30 | Rei Toshima | JPN | 1 |
Source: MCNews.com.au
With Barry Russell
Predictions for the AP250 are practically impossible, with big gaps in team announcements and some top riders moving up to Supersport.
Andy Fadly
After much off-season uncertainty, it was confirmed last week that Manual Tech Kawasaki will return with their 2019 pairing of reigning champion Andy Fadly and Aiki Aiyoshi. That makes Fadly only the second AP 250 champion to defend his title.
Indonesia’s Astra Honda have announced three riders again, with Lucky Hendriansyah now leading the line, chased by class rookies, Herjun Atna Firdaus and Adenanta Putra.
Lucky Hendriansyah, Herjun Atna Firdaus and Adenanta Putra
With Muklada Sarapuech moving to the 600s, AP Honda Racing Thailand keep the promising Piyawat Patoomyos and bring in rookie, Kantapat Yakantai. Piyawat scored his first class win in the very last race of 2019 and has been tasked with breaking Indonesia’s stranglehold on the championship.
ONEXOX TKKR SAG are fielding three entries, keeping frontrunners, Muzakkir Mohamed and Rey Ratukore and bringing in Syafieq Aiman.
Rafid Topan Sucipto is a potential title winner who has yet to make an announcement. His fans will be hoping to see him on the Bike Corner Honda once again, which transformed his 2019 season following his switch from Yamaha.
Rafid Topan Sucipto is another rider yet to announce a ride
Anggi Setiawan is in again for Yamaha Indonesia, joined this year by Wahyu Nugroho, one of the most exciting Underbone riders we saw in 2019. Although he managed only one podium appearance, Nugroho’s speed is beyond doubt and he should grow as an all-round racer in AP250.
Yamaha Thailand will not have any AP250 entries this year. For now, the team is delegating young rider development to satellite outfit, Yamaha HiSpeed, which is expected to run wildcards at selected races. The team made their mark in the last race of the season, when Vorapong Malahuan brought his banana-yellow R25 through to second place behind AP Honda’s Piyawat.
Cao Viet Nam
Turning to some of the sport’s emerging countries in the region, the highly rated Cao Viet Nam joins the class for another year. The 2019 Thailand Talent Cup champion clearly has the ability to run at the front, so will be hoping for the full support of Honda Vietnam.
Meanwhile, Honda India are going for continuity with Sethu Rajiv and Senthil Chandrasekaran and Victor Racing bring in Chinese rider, Leong Nang Tse.
Asia Production 250
Finally, and as widely expected, Indian motorcycle giant TVS is in for 2020. The company’s racing division put a large toe in the water at Buriram last December, when they contracted World Supersport star Hikari Okubo to take the Apache 310RR for a spin in the final round. What they learned there will be taken forward by Vorapong Malahuan.
The popular Thai has a bagful of AP 250 trophies from several seasons with AP Honda and it’s hard to think of a more capable development rider. There are plenty of challenges for the mono-powered machine, such as rear wheel locking and chassis and suspension development, but there is no doubting the commitment and resources of TVS, so we should see their results on an upward curve during the season.
| Pos. | Rider | Nat. | Points |
| 1 | Andy Muhammad Fadly | INA | 214 |
| 2 | Awhin Sanjaya | INA | 198 |
| 3 | Irfan Ardiansyah | INA | 187 |
| 4 | Muklada Sarapuech | THA | 143 |
| 5 | Lucky Hendriansya | INA | 133 |
| 6 | Reynaldo Christiano Ratukore | INA | 126 |
| 7 | Tatchakorn Buasri | THA | 118 |
| 8 | Rafid Topan | INA | 112 |
| 9 | Piyawat Patoomyos | THA | 108 |
| 10 | Aiki Iyoshi | JPN | 104 |
| 11 | Muhammad Faerozy Toreqqotullah | INA | 86 |
| 12 | Md Muzakkir Mohamed | MAS | 75 |
| 13 | Nazirul Izzat Mohd Bahauddin | MAS | 52 |
| 14 | Cao Viet Nam | VIE | 50 |
| 15 | Anggi Setiawan | INA | 44 |
Underbone racing fans know that this is a class apart. While many racers from Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand go on to international fame and fortune from Underbones, for many more, racing these hopped-up family bikes is what they end up doing for a living.
Underbone 150cc
The ARRC Underbone 150 class is the pinnacle of Underbone racing and a place where we get to see a mixture of young, ambitious teenagers fight it out with fast, clever riders, who are in some cases, older than their parents. It provides heart-stopping on-track competition that thrills and fascinates fans from far beyond the geographical limits of South East Asia.
While much of the interest comes straight from the intensity of the racing, Underbones also evoke a gone and golden age of racing, when you would buy a street machine, strip it, add the lightest, trickest parts you can find and tune the engine to breaking point.
Underbone 150cc
UMA Racing Yamaha (Philippines), which took the 2019 championship with McKInley Kyle Paz, return with Fernando Masato, who won race two in the first round, and the highly-rated Kerwin Chang.
Meanwhile, UMA Racing Yamaha (Malaysia) are back in with former champion Akid Aziz and Haziq Fairues, who gave notice of his potential last season by taking his first victory in round six at Sepang. Akid finished just two points behind McKinley in 2019, after two DNFs from mechanical failures in the final round.
Wawan Wello, who was in title contention until a foul run of luck at the end of 2019, has re-signed for SND Factory Racing. The team, which has parted company with former double champion, Gupita Kresna, also announced the signing of rookie, Hildan Kusuma.
Gupita Kresna
Gupita himself, who was has been dogged by a mix of bad luck and inconsistency in the past two seasons, joins Philippines outfit 41SM, where he will run together with John Emerson Inguito. It should be a good match – 41SM has strong domestic underbone credentials and the Indonesian’s experience and quality should help the team step up to international competition and enable him to set his sights on a third title.
Team One for All keeps its rider line-up for 2020, with another former champion, Malaysia’s Affendi Rosley and Thailand’s Peerapong Luiboonpeng. The pair will once again be making their presence felt under the watchful eye of 125 GP legend and team owner, Youichi Ui.
ONEXOX TKKR SAG is fielding a mix of established and emerging talent. Indonesian double champion, Wahyu Aji Trilaksana and the evergreen, ever-threatening Ahmad Fazli Sham are joined by Hafiza Rofa, who proved himself as a front-runner in 2019 and newcomer, Faiz Zekri.
Fazli Sham and Wahyu Aji
Aldi Satya Mahendra, the youngest rider in the class at 13, and who sensationally won a wet race two at Suzuka in 2019, will be flying the flag for Yamaha Indonesia. He is sure to cause plenty more upsets for senior riders this season.
Cardinals Racing Malaysia brings in two new riders, Fazrul Sham and Iqbal Amri from the Petronas Cub Prix talent pool for 2020.
RCB Yamaha YY Pang Racing are fielding three riders with Vietnam’s To Ha Dong Nghi joining regular frontrunners, Izzat Zaidi and Adib Rosley.
Proliner RCB 549 Kaboci Racing Team also have a three rider team, with Richard Taroreh, Iswandi Muis and Aldy Taufil.
Conspicuous by their absence are UMA Racing Yamaha’s 2018 champion, Akid Aziz and team mate Haziq Fairues. The duo just missed out to McKInley Kyle Paz in 2019, finishing second and third in the standings and it is hoped they will squeeze themselves onto the entry list within the next few days.
| Pos. | Rider | Nat. | Points |
| 1 | McKinley Kyle Paz | PHI | 121 |
| 2 | Md Akid Aziz | MAS | 119 |
| 3 | Md Haziq Md Fairues | MAS | 113 |
| 4 | Wahyu Aji Trilaksana | INA | 110 |
| 5 | Ahmad Fazli Sham | MAS | 106 |
| 6 | Aldi Satya Mahendra | INA | 96 |
| 7 | Wawan Wello | INA | 94 |
| 8 | Fernando Masato | PHI | 93 |
| 9 | Richard Richie Taroreh | INA | 78 |
| 10 | Md Affendi Rosli | MAS | 72 |
| 11 | Peerapong Luiboonpeng | THA | 71 |
| 12 | Wahyu Nugroho | INA | 69 |
| 13 | Md Amirul Ariff Musa | MAS | 65 |
| 14 | Md Faiz Zekri Sabri | MAS | 60 |
| 15 | Rozaiman Md Said | MAS | 54 |
| – | |||
| …31 | Travis Hall | AUS | 5 |
Source: MCNews.com.au
BMW have announced that Markus Reiterberger will be back in the saddle of a S 1000 RR again in 2020, with the 25-year-old to race for the Onexox BMW TKKR Racing Team in next season’s Asia Road Racing Championship (ARRC) in Superstock.
Markus Reiterberger
“I am already excited about the Asia Road Racing Championship and am looking forward to riding with the Onexox BMW TKKR Racing Team in the coming season. This championship is getting stronger all the time and is attracting more and more international interest, including from manufacturers. The squad has shown this season that it is one of the best teams in the series. I think we can achieve a lot together in 2020. I have shown that I do well on the Superstock versions of the RR, not least as Superstock European champion. All the ingredients for a strong season are in place and I am looking forward to getting started.”
The Asia Road Racing Championship is growing in popularity around the world, attracts big names from the international motorcycle racing scene, and is growing in importance in Asia. This season, it is holding race events in both Asia and Australia.
The team is also one of the most successful in ARRC, celebrating the win of the Rider title with Azlan Shah Kamaruzaman in 2019. The Onexox BMW TKKR Racing Team is a private customer team and BMW Motorrad Motorsport will provide extensive support for Reiterberger’s involvement in the 2020 ARRC season.
“We are delighted that Markus will still be part of the BMW Motorrad Motorsport family. We are confident that he will be one of the top riders in the Asia Road Racing Championship from the very first race. He is very familiar with the BMW S 1000 RR and, in the Onexox BMW TKKR Racing Team, he will be racing for one of the strongest teams in the series. We at BMW Motorrad Motorsport will do our bit to make it a successful season by offering technical support, among other things.”
“It is splendid to have Markus Reiterberger in the Onexox BMW TKKR Racing Team for the 2020 season. He brings with him a wealth of motor racing experience, and that can only push the Onexox BMW TKKR Racing Team forward. It will be a marvellous learning curve for the team to become more competitive and set a new standard of performance in the Asian Road Racing Championship. The Onexox BMW TKKR Racing Team is keen to build on our strong performance with Azlan Shah in 2019, and we obviously would like to continue winning races and scoring podium finishes consistently. We will be working hard with our partners to be competitive, and it will be about building a winning mentality across all aspects of the Onexox BMW TKKR Racing Team as well. We expect the on-track rivalry between the teams to be relentless, but we believe the team will be at the sharper end of the grid in the 2020 season.”
Source: MCNews.com.au
As the 31 riders assembled on the congested grid for the start of Race 1, a clean start brought polesitter Haziq into the lead at Turn 1 with the rest of the grid in hot pursuit. The intensity of the title chase had ramped up the action in the Underbone 150cc Race 1. At the end of the first lap, the top 11 riders came across the finish line within the same second.
Unfortunately for championship leader Mohd Akid Aziz, mechanical failure forced him out of the race on Lap 2. More carnage ensued on the same lap when Mohammad Murobbil Vitoni, Syahrul Amin, Richard Taroreh and Muhamad Iqbal Abdul Malek got involved in a big pile-up at Turn 4. Thankfully, all the riders were able to walk away from the crash.
Seasoned campaigner Ahmad Fazli Sham used every bit of skill in his arsenal to lead the group across the finish line for most of the eight-lap race. Three laps to go, Fazli continued to mix things up at the front, championship hopeful McKinley Kyle Paz was meanwhile tucked into the front group on P6.
McKinley’s team mate Fernando Masato sprung a surprise on the last lap when he stormed past Fazli and into the lead. The Filipino rider held on to his advantage for two more corners but lost the lead to Fazli as they exited Turn 3. Team tactics came into play at this point when the ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team riders bunched up together to squeeze Masato out of the front. Fazli got onto the lead with the aid of their slipstream.
Another crash at the same corner gave Fazli the space he needed to pull ahead of the group. The Malaysian rider kept his momentum for the rest of the final lap and notched his second win of the season. Wahyu Aji Trilaksana made it a ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team 1-2 when he crossed the line in second place. Fernando Masato settled for third place.
McKinley Kyle Paz took control of the title chase when he finished tenth in Race 1. McKinley leading Akid by only two-points. The Underbone 150 title chase now down to five riders including Haziq Fairues, Ahmad Fazli Sham and Aldi Satya Mahendra ahead of the final race on Sunday.
McKinley Kyle Paz was disappointed not to qualify on the front row but in the Underbone class, the UMA Racing Yamaha Philippine Team rider knew that grid position is not everything. The 18-year-old, who was one of five riders still in the running for the 2019 title, knew that all he had to do was hunker down within the front group and bide his time for a last lap, last corner attack.
However, in the sheer unpredictability that is so characteristic of Underbone racing, pre-drawn plans and strategy went flying out the window the moment the 8-lap race was flagged off. Haziq Fairues and Akid Aziz were among the early leaders at the start of Race 2. At the end of Lap 1, 28 out of 31 were still bunched up in one big group, attacking the corners six abreast.
The first title contender to drop out of the race was Aldi Satya Mahendra. Aldi crashed out of the last turn along with Mohd Rozaiman Said. Haziq Fairues was very nearly swept along by the incident and lost eight positions to drop down to the back of the group.
On Lap 4, championship leader Akid Aziz retired from the race, his title hunt derailed again by mechanical failure. This left 20 riders in the leading charge, among them, McKinley Kyle Paz, Ahmad Fazli Sham, and Haziq Fairues.
McKinley’s bid for the title faltered when he crashed in the mid-section of the 4.554km circuit. Refusing to give up, the young Filipino rider was back on his bike in a flash even though he had lost touch with the front pack.
The leading group had not shrunk noticeably by the final lap. With the notorious Buriram Turn 12 looming, Ahmad Fazli Sham began to slipstream his way past Richie Taroreh, Mohd Izzat Zaidi and Wawan Wello. The seasoned campaigner was all set to take control of the final corner until he got skittled by Syahrul Amin.
Mohd Izzat Zaidi led the group across the finish line but was later penalised for exceeding the track limit at the last corner. Izzat’s penalty handed the win to Richie Taroreh who claimed his first win of the season with 16’23.670s. Wawan Wello and Wahyu Aji Trilaksana made it an all-Indonesian clean sweep in the Underbone 150 Race 2.
15 seconds behind, McKinley Kyle Paz finished just outside of the points in 16th place. Clueless about what had happened in front of him, the disappointed young rider had no idea that his title contenders had been taken out one by one in the intensity of the race. It was only when he returned, dejected, to the pits that he found out he had officially entered the history books as the first Filipino rider to become the FIM Asian Underbone 150cc champion with 121 points to his name.
Akid Aziz, despite two DNF finishes in the final round, stayed in second overall with 119 points while his team mate Haziq Fairues closed the season in third with 113 points.
While the UMA Racing Yamaha riders were busy celebrating their personal achievements, the ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team had quietly triumphed over UMA Racing Yamaha Maju Motor Asia Team in the UB150 Team Awards.
Thanks to Wahyu’s steady performance, the Malaysian-based team won the team award by 190 points. UMA Racing Yamaha Maju Motor Asia Team dropped to second with 178 points while UMA Racing Yamaha Philippine Team was ranked third with 139 points.
Source: MCNews.com.au