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The Alpine A4810 Project by IED

Alpine, a brand within the Renault Group, has many talented designers who regularly come out with new models. The designers have a deep understanding of the DNA and traditional characteristics of the brand that was founded in 1955. Occasionally, Alpine also looks outside the company for new ideas and collaborating with IED (Istituto Europeo di Design), the well known design school in Italy, they have been presented with a supercar concept by 28 Masters students studying Transportation Design. The student-led project came up with a hydrogen-powered, 2-seater supercar, based on a brief from the Alpine design team.

High performance, low environmental impact
Alpine challenged the students to design a ‘super berlinette’ for 2035. The supercar was to be a high-performing vehicle both in terms of performance and environmental impact. After the brief was given last year, students worked individually to come up with their own interpretation and present it to the brand.

Alpine then selected a combination of the two main ideas. Based on the two selected proposals, the young designers created the ‘A4810 Project by IED’. During the design phase, the students sought to combine vision and innovation, without losing sight of the traditional roots of the Alpine brand.

Berlinetta of the future
The A4810 Project by IED explores the experimental combination of the shape of a berlinette with a hydrogen powertrain. While the engine and fuel tanks are built like those on a typical hypercar, the subtraction process is proof of strong innovation. The design alternates between empty and full spaces, giving the vehicle a lightweight look and aerodynamic features inspired by Formula 1 models.

The A4810, which provides a glimpse into the future supercars, embraces next-generation technologies while and is also environmentally friendly. It enables Alpine to broaden its horizons to new generations of designers and drivers, and raise awareness of the innovative project presented by talented students.

The French spirit has been skillfully preserved; while avoiding the pitfalls of unnecessary formal elements, the young designers focussed on the overlapping layers and sculptural aspects of the car’s silhouette. The bi-tone colours, matte black, and carbonfibre highlights create a bold contrast with each part of the car, making them stand out according to their function – aerodynamic, mechanical, or merely formal.

Multinational team of students
The team of students from European countries as well as the USA, India, Taiwan, China, Mali and the Dominican Republic used digital tools for their design work. By incorporating hydrogen power supply, it means that they developed a full-fledged concept that is almost ready to take to the roads of a much more sustainable future – without atmosphere-damaging emissions.

Furthermore, they chose a name that conveyed the brand’s legacy. In fact, ‘4810’ is the height (in metres) of the Mont Blanc – the highest and most emblematic peak in the Alps that sits at the border between Italy and France, like a bridge connecting IED and Alpine. The brand, Alpine, is named after the very same mountains and evokes the joy of driving along their winding roads.

“Collaboration with IED and its students has been a great experience. It was a ‘filter’ for us to see the brand through the eyes of the younger generation, but it was also an opportunity to share our passion and know-how, and give them sound advice for a successful career in automotive design,” said Antony Villain, Alpine Design Director.

F1/Round 1: Highlights and Provisional Results of 2022 Bahrain Grand Prix

The first race of the new Formula 1 season started as the sun disappeared and the lights came on around the Bahrain International Circuit in the Sakhir Desert. Unusually, there was no car with the Mercedes star at the front row, and it was a red Ferrari with Charles Leclerc in it occupying pole position. Alongside Leclerc was Max Verstappen, the World Champion, and his arch-rival was further back in the fifth spot – ironically alongside his former team mater, Valtteri Bottas who is now in Alfa Romeo F1 Team ORLEN.

As the lights went green for the first time in the 2022 season, Leclerc used his position to sprint forward ahead of Verstappen as the rest of the pack followed. While Hamilton managed to move up a couple of positions, his old buddy Bottas lost ground and fell further back before Turn 2.

The two Haas drivers were not having an easy time getting into the ‘groove’ as Kevin Magnussen locked up his tyres and Red Bull driver Sergio Perez, who had fallen down to seventh (due to a poor start), got past him, while Mick Schumacher had an ‘incident’ with BWT Alpine’s Esteban Ocon which got the attention of the Stewards. The latter was given a 5-second penalty but both cars were able to remain in the race.

By the time the first tenth of the 57-lap race had passed, Leclerc and Verstappen were steadily pulling away from the rest, separated from each other by about 2 seconds. Third place was being contested by three drivers – Carlos Sainz (Ferrari), Hamilton and Perez, while Geroge Russell was pushing hard to get closer to his new team mate in the Mercedes-AMG team.

On lap 8, it appeared than McLaren’s Lando Norris was pushed wide by Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll (which also caused Daniel Ricciardo to have to go wide) and after the Stewards looked into the incident, it was decided that no action or penalty was necessary.

By lap 13, Verstappen and Hamilton were frustrated with quickly diminishing grip from their tyres as degradation was faster than expected. Hamilton chose to come in for a change to Hards. When he rejoined, he was down to 11th and then 12th when the Alfa Romeo of newcomer Zhou sped past him – but he was ahead of the 7-time World Champion only briefly.

Other drivers began to come in after that, with Leclerc – still leading – coming in on lap 16 together with Perez. However, where the Ferrari driver switched to Softs, Perez got Mediums. Leclerc’s departure from the track was short and quick and he kept his lead position but with less than a second’s separation from Verstappen as he rejoined.

Once Hamilton got his tyres warmed up, he began to move up but it was a long way to the leaders who were about 18 seconds away. He made it up to fifth and then there was a 5-second gap to Perez which was going to need a lot of effort to close. Russell was next in line but 7 seconds behind and steadily working his way forward, mindful of Magnussen pursuing.

On lap 19, Verstappen made a strong effort going into Turn 1 but miscalculated and locked up, not making t pass the Ferrari. In the process, he flat-spotted his tyres and had to back off a bit to let the brakes cool down as well. While he was doing that, the other Ferrari driver, Sainz, was moving closer but had to watch out for the other Red Bull as well.

As the race reached the halway point about 50 minutes after the start, Hamilton came into the pits to switch to Mediums. As he rejoined, he slotted between Pierre Gasly and Ocon to take eighth place. The other drivers who had also come in a second time to change tyres were Fernando Alonso and Yuki Tsunoda.

Verstappen came in on lap 31 and Ferrari brought Leclerc in right after that. The pitstops dropped the Dutchman to fourth and Leclerc to third, while Sainz inherited the lead with Perez about 3 seconds behind.

On lap 34, Sainz and Perez departed from the race to get their tyres changed and Leclerc got back his lead, with Verstappen 2 seconds behind and told by his team that he could go all out.

By lap 38, the frontrunners were encountering the slower cars and Sainz had a scare as he passed Alexander Albon and the Williams driver almost collided with him. Actually, the Thai driver was not up to speed as he had just come out from the pit lane. However, no contact occurred and the Ferrari managed to quickly speed away.

The two McLarens were way down the field (almost at the end), unable to move up and Lando Norris tried to do with just one stop but couldn’t, while Ricciardo was having problems with his radio. Tsunoda was trying his best to keep his tenth place as Alonso kept trying to take it from him.

Magnussen was showing that Haas should never have dropped him and given his place to Nikita Mazepin who didn’t do anything positive for the team in 2021. On his first race back with the team, he was able to move into a secure seventh by 15 laps from the end, almost certain to collect points that Haas never saw at all last year.

On lap 46, as Verstappen was reporting steering problems, Gasly’s car suddenly caught fire and he quickly pulled to the side and managed to get out safely. The Safety Car was quickly sent out to lead the racing cars and Leclerc took the opportunity to get into the pits, switch to Softs and have fresh tyres to fight better in the remaining 11 laps. As he sped back to take his place, he almost rammed into the Safety Car! Unhappy that the Mercedes-AMG was not going fast enough, Leclrc complained to his team, hoping they would pass on the message that it must go quicker and not cause him a ‘big disadvantage’.

The Safety Car came in on lap 50 and Leclerc was ready to slingshot away from the Red Bull which was just behind. However, Verstappen could not focus too much on the car ahead as he had another Ferrari in his mirrors as well. Perez and Hamilton were also jostling for fourth and perhaps in desperation, Hamilton almost collided with the other car.

Verstappen’s race ended suddenly as he pulled into the pits on lap 55 and the last conversation heard over the radio was something about the battery, which his engineer said was not the problem. He had been having steering problems but was not informed what exactly was the fault.

The departure of Verstappen left the way open for Sainz to close in on his team mate and give Ferrari not just its first win since September 2019 but also a 1-2 finish. Perez also began having loss of power and before he could get around Turn 1, his car spun and the other cars had to avoid it. For Hamilton, at least the sudden retirement of the Rd Bulls allowed him to get onto the podium, while Russell finished just behind in fourth. That’s racing… it isn’t decided till the finish line is crossed by someone.

Highlights Of The Season 5 Vios Challenge Round 1 | Day 2

It was another hot and sunny day as Day 2 of the first round of the Vios Challenge one-make series started today. Throughout the afternoon, there were close and hard-fought battles around the Sepang International Circuit, an element that has traditionally defined the racing action in the series. Clearly, the drivers in all 4 classes have warmed up with the start of Season 5 of the popular series that is part of the TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Festival (TGR Festival). As in every round in the past, the battles were intense from start to finish, with incidents and body contact that showed the determination of the participants, young and old, experienced and rookie.

“The one-make format of the Vios Challenge, the increasing number of younger drivers, and the emphasis we have placed on the GAZOO Racing Young Driver Development Program has certainly been able to make a significant impact on the track. It levels the competition between the younger and more experienced drivers, rewards skill and racecraft, and promotes an even higher quality of racing on the track,” said UMW Toyota Motor President, Ravindran K.

Super Sporting Class
In the Super Sporting Class for veteran and professional drivers, Eddie Lew got off to an incredible start from 4th position on the grid and kept his lead in the 20-lap race from start to finish. The battle for second and third was super intense with no less than 5 drivers in contention. The duels between the drivers allowed Lew to speed ahead to extend his lead from 3 to as much as much as 10 seconds at one stage in the race.

The Laser Motor Racing driver, who has been racing since the 1990s, eventually took the chequered flag with a comfortable 5.58-second gap ahead of his nearest rival. The battle for second and third positions saw Race 1’s winner and Axle Motorsports driver Hayden Haikal, team mate Boy Wong, M7 Japan Project Team’s Fariqe Hairuman and Amer Harris, as well as 23 Motors’ Ady Rahimy and Distinctive Model’s Clement Yeo trading places lap after lap before contact on the track put all of them out of contention for a podium finish.

Their misfortunes promoted Prima Pearl TD Racing Team’s Mitchell Cheah to second and Telagamas Toyota’s Freddie Ang to third until the finish. It was also Ang’s second podium finish after completing yesterday’s Race 1 in second place.

“I got a very good start and pulled away. I just maintained a good pace at the front but I took notice of Cheah catching up,” said Lew, 48, who rounded off the weekend with a race win in Race 2 and a third place finish in Race 1. “Luck was certainly on my side today. Both Cheah and Ang are, in fact, very fast drivers.”

Rookie Class
In the Rookie Class for the second batch of drivers who have undergone the GR Young Talent Development Program, 18-year-old Sharique Zulqarinain rounded up his racing weekend with a double podium finish, with victory in Race 2 and a second place in Saturday’s Race 1. Finishing second was 20-year-old Muizz Musyaffa. Securing third in both Race 2 and 1 was Muhammad Hamdany Abdul Hamid.

“I had a really bad start in Race 2 and I was honestly not filled with hope but throughout the race, I remembered what my mechanics and Dad had told me which was to just keep a cool head and have fun. I was just trying to set a consistent time on every lap and in the process, I began overtaking the other competitors. From then on, it was just a job of maintaining my pace,” said Sharique.

Sporting Class
The Sporting Class, which also has experienced and skilled drivers, also produced a fair share of drama on the track but at the end of the 20-lap race, it was Crestmax Motorsports Bradley Benedict Anthony who was declared the official winner, with Panglima City Racing Team’s Kenneth Koh and 23 Motors’ Abdul Miqail in second and third places, respectively.

Actually, Race 1’s winner, Naquib Azlan of Axle Motorsports, had been first to cross the finish line but his hopes of a double race victory weekend were shattered when he was later handed a 30-second penalty, effectively dropping him to seventh position overall.

“I started from fourth position and paced myself with the incidents that occurred in front allowing me to take advantage of the situation. My main goal in every race has been to collect as much valuable points as I can with the overall championship in my sights,” said Bradley who had a third place finish in Race 1.

Promotional Class
The battle of the celebrities in the Promotional Class, always a popular race, saw actor Shukri Yahaya clinching victory, which was also his second visit to the podium following Race 1’s second placing. Fellow actor Zizan Razak however, was determined to pass him after having fought his way up from last place to finish second in the 18-lap race. Presenter Nabil Ahmad rounded up the top three podium finishers.

Starting from sixth on the grid, Zizan endured the misfortune of being spun around on the opening lap which dropped him to last place. His pace on the track, however, was visibly quicker as he made quick passes to move forward.

“I take racing very seriously. It’s something that has interested me since I was very young. As my entertainment career progressed, it slowly allowed me to begin venturing into tracks days, taking up karting and even to the extent of competitively racing karts. It came to a point that I realized that one of my weaknesses was the limited time I had driving on the track and that was when I eventually invested in a simulator to practice,” said Zizan.

“This enabled me to improve on my braking and racing lines, and I have been able to effectively apply all that I have learnt in the Vios Challenge. And when we have practice sessions conducted by TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Malaysia to prepare for the series, I do my best to spend an entire day of driving to make sure I can achieve the lap times I am targeting for,” he added.

The next round of the Vios Challenge is scheduled for June and UMW Toyota Motor hopes that, by then, the pandemic will have diminished so that it will once again be possible to safely invite the public to watch from the stands. For the past two seasons, the event has been held without spectators being invited and has been streamed live during the race weekends.

GAZOO Racing parts now available in Malaysia for sporty personalisation

The Father and Daughter racers in the Vios Challenge

When a father has a passion for a sport, it often gets picked up by his children too and as they grow up, they learn the skills from him and can one day also become stars. In many cases, it’s often the boys who get the father’s encouragement and support but in Eddie Lew’s case, it’s his daughter and clearly, he believes that the sport is not restricted to just males.

So at this weekend’s Season 5 opening round of the Vios Challenge one-make race series (part of the TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Festival) at the Sepang International Circuit, we have the presence of a father and daughter in the racing. It is probably the first such pair in Malaysian motorsports and while they are not racing directly against each other (in the same class) or even on the same team, perhaps one day that might happen.

Exposed to racing since 3 years old
Eddie’s daughter is Adele, 20, who’s been tagging along with him and his friends to races since she was 3 years old. “He used to compete a lot at the then Pasir Gudang Circuit (Johor Circuit), and I’ve been following him to all his races ever since, from the Malaysia Championship Series and the MSF Series to the Sepang 1000km Endurance Race,” Adele said, revealing that she started driving fun karts only last year and just managed to do it for a month before the Movement Control Order (MCO) came into force.

She is currently an undergraduate at one of the private institutions of higher learning in Kuala Lumpur and her father resides in Johor. So Adele’s training sessions have since gone online with the two spending hours communicating. “Believe me, our calls can last for hours with super long conversations on racing!” she revealed.

“When we’re together, he makes me drive a manual transmission car and we spend time on the racing simulator where he teaches me to become familiar with the many racing lines and braking points,” added Adele.

GR Young Talent Development Program
While her father, an accomplished racing veteran with a history that dates back to the early 90s, inspires her, Adele has also been given an opportunity to develop her racing skills through the TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Malaysia/GR Young Talent Development Program. She is among the six young Malaysians who make up the second batch of the program. Candidates selected are between the ages of 16 and 20 who are keen to transition from karting and simulator racing to real-world saloon car racing. It is part of UMW Toyota Motor’s initiative to provide young drivers with a platform to climb the motorsports ladder, and to bring new blood into the sport.

The GR Young Talent Development Program provides intensive training just like what professional racing drivers go through. Simulator time is an important activity and top Malaysian drivers provide valuable guidance.

Adele and the other 5 rookies have undergone systematic training which covers core aspects of becoming a professional driver. From top drivers like Alex Yoong, Tengku Djan Ley and Mark Darwin, they learn racecraft and how to prepare themselves in fitness, nutrition and even psychologically. It is quite an intensive program and when they have graduated, they are given opportunities to race in the Vios Challenge and other events, as Adele will be doing this year.

“Compared to the others, I am a real beginner with limited experience and that means I have to put in twice the effort. We’ll see how things go as the season progresses, but I’d really like to get on to the podium and make my Dad proud. From several sessions on the track with the Vios racing car and being guided by several different coaches – some of whom were last year’s Rookie Class racers – I’ve learnt a lot especially in mentally preparing myself. And the car is also very easy to drive,” she said.

Not racing directly against Dad – yet
Technically, Adele will be competing in the Rookie Class (for the graduates of the program) while her father is in the Super Sporting Class for veteran and professional drivers. However, father and daughter will be in the same race as the two classes run together. So who knows – Dad might just see his daughter’s car appearing in his mirrors one day!

“This is a very special moment for the both of us. In order for me to be able to race my father shows just how long he has been in motorsport. This is going to be a whole new experience for the two of us and my dad is equally very excited. He is definitely the best mentor I could have ever hoped for to prepare for my first ever race weekend,” said Adele.

Racing fans and enthusiasts have been able to catch the weekend’s action and stage performances by local celebrities streamed live on the UMW Toyota Motor website at www.toyota.com.my and on the Toyota Malaysia and TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Malaysia Facebook pages

UMW Toyota Motor starts GAZOO Racing Young Talent Development Program

F1/Round 1: Preview and Starting Grid for 2022 Bahrain Grand Prix

Race starts at 6 pm in Bahrain/11 pm in Malaysia

The 2022 Formula 1 World Championship starts a new season this weekend in Bahrain which, as in 2021, was the venue for the season-opener and replaced Australia (which had complications due to its pandemic restrictions and requirements). This is the 18^th time Bahrain has hosted a round of F1 and has done so every year since 2004, except in 2011.

Although the last race at the Bahrain International Circuit was at the end of March last year, the drivers have fresher memories of the track as they had test sessions there just last month. The circuit at Sakhir is located in the middle of the desert (on what was formerly a camel farm) and has no less than 1,120 palm trees around the site. But while it may be located in a desert, sand doesn’t present much of an issue for the teams and cars, and the track surface cleans up quickly.

The majority of the F1 races held in Bahrain have used the 5.412-km Grand Prix layout, but on one occasion in 2010, the 6.299-km Endurance layout was used. It was not a popular switch as drivers found that the additional corners did not offer passing opportunities, so the GP circuit was used thereafter up till today.

The Bahrain Grand Prix is a twilight race, starting at sunset and finishing after dark when 495 lighting posts are switched on to bring daylight onto the track. Despite the new F1 weekend format, FP1 and FP3 still take place in daylight, while FP2.and qualifying take place in the evening. FP2 is therefore a crucial session for all the teams as it is the one chance to run the car in similar conditions to those experienced in qualifying and the 57-lap race.

Because of the various changes to the weekend format, there is less time for mechanics to work on the cars and less engineering time, due to the earlier curfew. So, more emphasis is put on hitting the ground running with good preparation and simulation work, hence more emphasis being on the pre-weekend preparations.

By now, racing fans will know that this year sees major changes in technical regulations to the extent that even wheel sizes have been increased. So this first round will be very interesting, and everyone will be watching to see how the changes affect performance. Toto Wolff, the Mercedes-AMG team boss, expects the performance of the cars through the corners will change. “For example, we expect the cars to take Turn 4 in Bahrain at 115 km/h in 2022, compared to 135 km/h last year. Similarly, a high-speed corner like Turn 12 will now be taken at 240 km/h, compared to 265 km/h,” he said.

“The teams had the chance get familiar with the 2022 18-inch tyre range, having spent a total of 6 days of testing with all the compounds, although not always in representative conditions. We know from the past that track temperatures can play an important role in Bahrain, affecting tyre degradation, and that’s something we noticed at the recent test as well. During the race temperatures should be milder compared to FP1 and FP3, so the teams will have to focus on their data from FP2 and qualifying. It’s still hard to predict the race strategy as, in the past, Bahrain has been a multi-stop race, but it will be interesting to see if anyone will try something different this year,” said Mario Isola, Pirelli’s Motorsport Director.

The official tyre-supplier has chosen the hardest compounds in the new low-profile range. Removing the requirement for the top ten to start the race on their Q2 rubber will, however, alter the established pattern in which the teams choose their tyres during the weekend.

The No. 5 Aston Martin won’t be in the race and instead, you’ll see No. 27 which is the number for Nico Hulkenberg. He takes over Sebastian Vettel’s place as the German driver tested positive for COVID-19.

*Zhou GuanYu, the first F1 driver from China, will be racing for Alfa Romeo F1 Team ORLEN, alongside Valtteri Bottas.*

2022 sees former driver Kevin Magnussen returning to take Nikita Mazepin’s place in the Haas F1 team, while Thai-British Alexander Albon gets another go at F1 with Williams Racing, along Nicholas Latifi. Joining Alfa Romeo F1 Team ORLEN is Zhou GuanYu who is the first F1 driver from China, and he will partner Valtteri Bottas who has moved over from the Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS Team. You’ll notice Nico Hulkenberg listed with the Aston Martin Aramco COGNIZANT Team and that’s because Sebastian Vettel cannot take part due to being tested positive for COVID-19.

F1 tyres to go from 13 inches to 18 inches in 2022 (w/VIDEO)

Vios Challenge: Season 5 starts with youngsters dominating two classes

Season 5 of the Vios Challenge, the one-make series that is part of the TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Festival (TGR Festival), got off to a hot and exciting start with the younger drivers firing an early warning salvo by dominating the top two classes – the Super Sporting Class and Sporting Class.

In the Super Sporting Class for veteran and professional drivers, 17-year old Hayden Haikal catapulted himself from being fastest in qualifying to winning the race while, in the Sporting Class for amateurs, 22-year old Naquib Azlan shot to victory in only his second year of competitive racing after making a transition from simulator racing.

Incidentally, Naquib’s younger brother, 20-year old Nabil, who is also making his debut in the Rookie Class (competing in a real saloon car race for the very first time) also won his class for new drivers under GAZOO Racing’s Young Driver Development Program.

Super Sporting Class
In the Super Sporting Class, Hayden won a closely-fought race, finishing just half a second ahead of Telagamas Toyota’s Freddie Ang with Laser Motor Racing’s Eddie Liew coming in third. The teenager had led an Axle Motorsports 1-2 in the opening lap of the race with team mate and senior driver Boy Wong in tow before being passed in the second lap by both Wong and Prima Pearl Auto’s Mitchell Cheah to drop into third place.

The battle that ensued at the front between Wong and Cheah, however, got the better of the two drivers who took one another out of contention in Lap 6 after a miscalculated overtaking manoeuvre. That allowed Hayden to regain the lead, with Ang and Liew also becoming the beneficiaries of the misfortunes up front. The race was tight between Hayden and Ang right to the chequered flag, with both drivers trying their best to get to it first.

Sporting Class
In the Sporting Class, Naquib won his class with a comfortable 15-second margin ahead of S&D Tama Motorsports’ Tom Goh, while another youngster 19–year old Bradley Benedict Anthony of Crestmax Motorsport followed them home in third place. Moving up to the Sporting Class after winning last year’s Rookie Class, Naquib had clocked the fastest time in qualifying but both he and Bradley were penalized for a technical infringement which dropped them to fifth and sixth on the starting grid. That however, proved not to be a big enough setback as they were able to make their way up the leaderboard.

“I was certainly looking forward to come back to race this season. I really enjoyed racing last year in the Rookie Class and I am now looking forward to competing against much more experienced drivers. Thankfully, Axle Motorsports decided to field a team this season and to move from virtual racing into the real world. Therefore I am very thankful to them for this opportunity and I want to make the most of it,” said Naquib.

On why he feels younger drivers in the series are beginning to propel themselves to the front of the field, he said: “We, the younger generation of drivers, are very lucky and fortunate that we have facilities that the senior or veteran drivers did not have back in their days. In my view, they had to work much harder to get to where they are now. We have the benefit of things like simulator racing because it helps us to prepare better and to accelerate our learning curve. We also have the benefit of having guidance from these more experienced drivers in the sport because they have spent many more years on track.

“To be honest, I never expected anything making the transition from simulator to real world racing. I do have a lot of self-belief and self-confidence, but I never knew I could do it until I got onto the track last season,” he added.

That sentiment is shared by Bradley adding that investing in training has been one of the important elements of his growth. “Being young, I am very passionate about racing and I would like to believe that we young drivers put in the extra time and effort into practice and training. For instance, my preparation for Season 5 involved a lot of training to prepare myself physically and mentally before coming to the track’” he said.

“My goal when I first joined the series was to finish the race or to get into the top 10. I did not set high expectations because it was my first time racing a saloon car, but the learning curve has just been phenomenal and really valuable,” added Bradley.Rookie Class

Rookie Class
In the Rookie Class, Nabil drove to his first ever saloon car race victory after making a transition from simulator racing. Finishing second and third were karters Sharique Zulqarinain and Muhammad Hamdany Abdul Hamid, respectively. Finishing fourth was 20-year old and the only female in the group, Adele Liew, while in fifth was another karter Muizz Musyaffa.

“I’m surprised how a lot of the things I’ve done in simulator racing can be applied to real world racing and I was very happy with my racecraft in this first race. I wanted to pace myself and try to get as close as I could to the other drivers in the Super Sporting Class (both the Super Sporting and Rookie Classes start together) but just enough to steer clear of any incidents,” said Nabil. “The most difficult part with real racing is dealing with the high temperature in car and this is something I will need to focus more on moving forward.”

Promotional Class
In the popular Promotional Class for celebrities, actor Zizan Razak did not leave anything to chance this year as he shot off from pole position to finish more than 15 seconds clear of defending Promotional Class champion and fellow actor, Shukri Yahaya. In third place was presenter Ahirine Ahirudin who is also an accomplished motorcycle rider.

Singer Nabila Razali had been in contention for fourth place until a mistake sent her into the gravel at the very last lap. That promoted presenter/comedian Nabil Ahmad into fourth, with singer Wany Hasrita, actress Janna Nick, presenter Ain Edruce in fifth, sixth and seventh positions, respectively.

Today’s racing is just half of the first round of Season 5 and the second series of races will run tomorrow (Sunday, March 20) at the Sepang International Circuit. Racing fans and enthusiasts can catch all the action and stage performances by local celebrities streamed live on the UMW Toyota Motor website at www.toyota.com.my and on the Toyota Malaysia and TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Malaysia Facebook pages..