Round 1 of the 2013 PETRONAS Asia Road Racing Championship got off to an amazing start with intense battles up and down the grid in all race classes. In the SuperSports 600cc class, MUSASHi Boon Siew Honda's Azlan Shah Kamaruzaman squared off against BEET Kawasaki's Katsuaki Fujiwara in both races, but both ended the day back on square one.
Fujiwara got off to a great start in Race 1 but could not prevent Azlan from diving in on the inside to steal the hole shot and Ryuta Kobayashi's unexpected outside line attack that put him on P2. Stuck in P3 temporarily, Fujiwara lost no time in putting Kobayashi in his place but Azlan continued to lead for the next four laps. On Lap 5, Fujiwara successfully took over P1, followed by Azlan and Zamri while Kobayashi and Makoto Tamada formed a two-man second group. All five riders were consistently lapping within the low 1:06s band, none were able to break away.
More dicing ensued before Azlan blows past Fujiwara to take the lead on Lap 17. As always, the Kawasaki had the front straight advantage but the Honda was smoother at the corners. Fujiwara was not about to back down but Azlan cooly continues to control the race pace, ignoring a persistent Fujiwara at his back. At Turn 1 in the final lap, the aggressive Azlan and Fujiwara came close to contact point before Fujiwara finally backed down.
The 25 lap-race ended with Azlan becoming the first Malaysian to win a SuperSports 600cc race in Sepang with a time of 27:41.697s. Fujiwara had to be contented in second place, lagging by 1.009s. PETRONAS Hong Leong Yamaha's Mohd Zamri Baba completed a solo race in third place with 27:44.006s.
Race 2 took place in 'cooler' conditions, with track temperature only reaching 35 degrees Celcius. But the competition hotted up as soon as the 600cc riders got out on grid. This time, Fujiwara stole the hole shot, but lost the lead immediately to a charging Azlan. On Lap 5, Zamri managed to slot himself between Fujiwara and Azlan but lost the position almost immediately when Fujiwara responded in kind.
Throughout the nine proceeding laps, it was Azlan vs Fujiwara and Zamri vs Makoto Tamada every step of the way until Zamri started indicating that he was facing an attack by the mechanical gremlins. The Malaysian rider was forced to retire on Lap 17, and from that point onwards, Makoto Tamada just had to pace steadily in third place. Up front, the Fujiwara/Azlan battle intensified. Already racing on worn tyres and sliding all over the track, Azlan still took the battle to Fujiwara, with both riders brushing up against each other at every turn.
At the chequered flag, it was Fujiwara who sped ahead with a 0.065s gap, winning the second race with a total time of 27:40.417s. Azlan finished second with 27:40.482s. Third-placed Tamada stopped the clock at 27:46.399s.
"Both races were equally tough and we seemed to have a tough time getting the right settings for this round. It was only in Race 2 that the bike really felt comfortable to me. Indonesia will be an important round for everyone and I guess we will just have to do this all over again in three weeks time," shrugged Fujiwara.
Both riders are now tied in the lead with 45 points apiece. Tamada who finished fifth in Race 1 and third in Race 2 is third overall with 27 points followed by Ryuta Kobayashi ranked fourth with 26 points and Tomoyoshi Koyama fifth with 20 points.
Round 2 will take place at the Sentul International Circuit from May 17 to 19, 2013.
More dicing ensued before Azlan blows past Fujiwara to take the lead on Lap 17. As always, the Kawasaki had the front straight advantage but the Honda was smoother at the corners. Fujiwara was not about to back down but Azlan cooly continues to control the race pace, ignoring a persistent Fujiwara at his back. At Turn 1 in the final lap, the aggressive Azlan and Fujiwara came close to contact point before Fujiwara finally backed down.
The 25 lap-race ended with Azlan becoming the first Malaysian to win a SuperSports 600cc race in Sepang with a time of 27:41.697s. Fujiwara had to be contented in second place, lagging by 1.009s. PETRONAS Hong Leong Yamaha's Mohd Zamri Baba completed a solo race in third place with 27:44.006s.
Race 2 took place in 'cooler' conditions, with track temperature only reaching 35 degrees Celcius. But the competition hotted up as soon as the 600cc riders got out on grid. This time, Fujiwara stole the hole shot, but lost the lead immediately to a charging Azlan. On Lap 5, Zamri managed to slot himself between Fujiwara and Azlan but lost the position almost immediately when Fujiwara responded in kind.
Throughout the nine proceeding laps, it was Azlan vs Fujiwara and Zamri vs Makoto Tamada every step of the way until Zamri started indicating that he was facing an attack by the mechanical gremlins. The Malaysian rider was forced to retire on Lap 17, and from that point onwards, Makoto Tamada just had to pace steadily in third place. Up front, the Fujiwara/Azlan battle intensified. Already racing on worn tyres and sliding all over the track, Azlan still took the battle to Fujiwara, with both riders brushing up against each other at every turn.
At the chequered flag, it was Fujiwara who sped ahead with a 0.065s gap, winning the second race with a total time of 27:40.417s. Azlan finished second with 27:40.482s. Third-placed Tamada stopped the clock at 27:46.399s.
"Both races were equally tough and we seemed to have a tough time getting the right settings for this round. It was only in Race 2 that the bike really felt comfortable to me. Indonesia will be an important round for everyone and I guess we will just have to do this all over again in three weeks time," shrugged Fujiwara.
Both riders are now tied in the lead with 45 points apiece. Tamada who finished fifth in Race 1 and third in Race 2 is third overall with 27 points followed by Ryuta Kobayashi ranked fourth with 26 points and Tomoyoshi Koyama fifth with 20 points.
Round 2 will take place at the Sentul International Circuit from May 17 to 19, 2013.
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