Malaysian and Japanese drivers dominate Rotax Max Challenge Invitational Race 2011
Over the weekend, the Sepang Karting Circuit, situated adjacent to the more illustrious Sepang International Circuit, played host to the 2011 Rotax Max Challenge Invitational Race which brought together 130 go-karters from 11 nations, namely Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, India, Japan, Macau, China, the Philippines, Belgium and New Caledonia.
Host country Malaysia had plenty of reasons to cheer for thanks to strong performances from local drivers. During the qualifying session held on Saturday, six Malaysian drivers, together with six Japanese drivers, dominated the top 12 positions of the Junior category. Malaysians Akash Neil Nandy and Gilbert Ang Ding Feng took the top two qualifying spots and were seperated by 0.019 seconds from each other, with Akash being faster at 50.119 seconds.
The other Malaysian drivers Brandon Lee, Timothy Yeo, Syazwan Mohd Noor and Danial Woodroof finished the day 5th, 8th, 9th and 10th fastest. A total of 24 Malaysian karters competed in the Junior class. Fastest of the Japanese karters was Ukyo Sasahara who was third with a time of 50.174 seconds. Compatriots Teruhisa Tanaka, Matthew Solomon, Wataru Satake, Yuto Tsuji and Marino Sato were 4th, 6th, 7th, 11th and 12th fastest.
Sasahara was able to get past Gilbert Ang on the fifth lap, but ultimately finished second best behind Akash, who won the 20-lap race with a time of 16 minutes 45.898 seconds. With a full grid of 36 karters, four Malaysians finished in the top 10 including Daim Hishamuddin who took 7th position and Shayzwan Mohd Noor in 9th.
The Senior category proved less fruitful for Malaysian drivers, with Mohamad Afiq Ikwan Mohamad Yazid being the highest placed Malaysian in 5th. Dominating this category were the Japanese drivers, with Ryuichi Nara, Yoshimoto Matsumo and Akito Saito ensuring a clean sweep of podium places for the Land of the Rising Sun.
Finally, there was the Micromax category, won by Singaporean Max Fewtrall, who completed an incident-packed 15 laps in 14 minutes 11.077 seconds. Japanese karter Ryuta Ueda crossed the finish line just behind Fewtrall, but a penalty saw him drop to 7th position, with Jehan Daruvala of India and Muhammad Luqman Hakim of Malaysia taking 2nd and 3rd placings respectively.
Promoted by KRS Motorsports, the Rotax Max Challenge Invitational Race is organized by Kelab Kart Selangor (KKS) and sanctioned by the Automobile Association of Malaysia (AAM). The event is sponsored by Maxima Oil of Thailand.
Pictures: Official organizer’s release.
