ASB1000
Race 1: Parkes Crashes and Remounts for 12th, Ito Top Yamaha in 5th
Race 1 was calamity after calamity. The Yamaha Racing Team ASEAN's Broc Parkes (#23) came into the race with a 19 point lead in the championship and started from the second row of the grid in 4th, while BMW-mounted title rival Azlan Shah Kamaruzaman (#25) started from 2nd. Parkes was 7th after the first lap, while Kamaruzaman was 5th as the pair pushed to go faster and make up positions.
Under pressure, Parkes was aiming to make his way into 6th on lap 5. But it was not to be, as he suffered a crash in the final corner. He knew that taking some points might be a possibility, as there were a relatively few number of entrants in the race, so he re-mounted and got back on track. He was in last place and running by himself, a long distance behind.
Meanwhile, Honda's Zaqhwan Zaidi (#21) was in the lead, with Yamaha rider Apiwat Wongthananon (#24) in 2nd just behind him. Following them were the Yamaha Thailand Racing Team's Ratthapong Wilairot (#56) and Kawasaki's Thitipong Warokorn (#100). Kamaruzaman was fighting for 3rd, but when Wilairot dropped behind him, that narrowed the lead group down to Zaidi, Wongthananon, Warokorn and Kamaruzaman. This group remained the same until the final stages, with around a 1.5 second gap between each rider.
With two laps remaining, 3rd and 4th placed Warokorn and Kamaruzaman upped their pace. They brought the gap down to 1 second, setting up a battle, but that was when Wongthananon unfortunately suffered a lowside and crashed out. This left Kamaruzaman in 2nd and Warokorn in 3rd, where they both stayed until the checkers. Parkes finished on the same lap as the leaders in 12th, picking up 4 championship points in the process. That narrowed his lead to only 3 points with one race left to go for the season.
Fellow Yamaha Racing Team ASEAN rider Yuki Ito came across the line after the first lap in 10th. There were crashes further ahead of him that helped, but he also made several passes to finish out the race as the highest placed Yamaha in 5th. Wilairot finished behind him in 6th while Wongthananon crashed and re-mounted for 8th.
Race 2: Yamaha Racing Team ASEAN Secure First Team Title to be Awarded in ASB1000 Class
The final race of the 2019 ARRC season was a very important one, as the very first ASB1000 class champion was set to be decided based on the results. Yamaha Racing Team ASEAN was going up against a highly experience rival in Azlan Shah Kamaruzaman, who has raced in the ARRC, Moto2 and in the Suzuka 8 Hours previously. At the start of the race, he made a quick dash to take the lead where he stayed until coming across the line after the first lap. Parkes made a solid start as well and was in 6th after the first lap. Kamaruzaman kept up a fast pace in the opening stages, setting the fastest lap on lap 2 and opening a one second gap to the riders behind, which only widened as the race went on.
Parkes continued to move forward, passing Wongthananon on lap 4 for 5th place. After that, Wilairot, Ducati-mounted Federico Sandi (#15), Zaidi, Parkes and Wongthananon made up the second group from the front as they chased down the leader, but Kamaruzaman improved on his fastest lap on lap 5, widening his gap to four seconds. After that Wilaiarot crashed out, and unable to pick up the pace the way that he wanted to, Parkes was passed by Wongthananon and relegated to 5th. On lap 8 he had further troubles, as he ran wide at a corner and dropped back behind Ito into 8th.
Parkes fought back to pass Ito for 7th on lap 10, before improving to 6th on lap 11 and falling back to 7th on lap 12, where he ended up finishing the race. That meant that he finishined out his season in 2nd in the championship, missing out on the title for this year. Ito slotted into 9th on lap 2 and could not drastically up his pace, contesting the remainder at the back of the lead group. Parkes' running wide allowed Ito into 7th, but he was passed again before the end, eventually finishing in 8th to wrap up his season ranked 5th overall.
Although Yamaha Racing Team ASEAN lost out on winning the rider's championship, Parkes' three wins and seven podiums, and Ito's six podiums were enough to win the ASB1000 class's first ever Team title.
For the Yamaha Thailand Racing Team, after Wilairot crashed in the first half, Wongthananon battled with Sandi and Warokorn for 3rd, but on lap 9 he was overtaken by Warokorn and fell to 4th. Wongthananon tried to hang on and go with him, but he could not match his rival's pace and ended up finishing 4th. That gave him 4th overall for the season with Wilairot 7th overall.
Race 2: Yamaha Racing Team ASEAN Secure Inaugural ASB1000 Team Title
The final race of the 2019 ARRC season was a very important one, as the very first ASB1000 class champion was set to be decided based on the results. Yamaha Racing Team ASEAN was going up against a highly experienced rival in Azlan Shah Kamaruzaman, who has raced in the ARRC, Moto2 and in the Suzuka 8 Hours previously. At the start of the race, he made a quick dash to take the lead where he stayed until coming across the line after the first lap. Parkes made a solid start as well and was in 6th after the first lap. Kamaruzaman kept up a fast pace in the opening stages, setting the fastest lap on lap 2 and opening a one-second gap to the riders behind, which only widened as the race went on.
Parkes continued to move forward, passing Wongthananon on lap 4 for 5th place. After that, Wilairot, Ducati-mounted Federico Sandi (#15), Zaidi, Parkes and Wongthananon made up the second group from the front as they chased down the leader, but Kamaruzaman improved on his fastest lap on lap 5, widening his gap to four seconds. After that Wilaiarot crashed out, and unable to pick up the pace the way that he wanted to, Parkes was passed by Wongthananon and relegated to 5th. On lap 8 he had further troubles, as he ran wide at a corner and dropped back behind Ito into 8th.
Parkes fought back to pass Ito for 7th on lap 10, before improving to 6th on lap 11 and falling back to 7th on lap 12, where he ended up finishing the race. That meant that he finished out his season in 2nd in the championship, missing out on the title for this year. Ito slotted into 9th on lap 2 and could not drastically up his pace, contesting the remainder at the back of the lead group. Parkes running wide allowed Ito into 7th, but he was passed again before the end, eventually finishing in 8th to wrap up his season ranked 5th overall.
Although Yamaha Racing Team ASEAN lost out on winning the Rider title, Parkes' seven podiums--including three wins--and Ito's six podiums were enough to win the ASB1000 class' first-ever Team title.
For the Yamaha Thailand Racing Team, after Wilairot crashed in the first half, Wongthananon battled with Sandi and Warokorn for 3rd, but on lap 9 he was overtaken by Warokorn and fell to 4th. Wongthananon tried to hang on and go with him, but could not match his rival's pace and ended up finishing 4th. That gave him 4th overall for the season with Wilairot 7th overall.
SS600
Race 1: R6 Riders Sweep Podium with Boonlert in 2nd, Kasma Daniel 3rd
Hong Leong Yamaha Malaysia rider Kasma Daniel bin Kasmayudin (#127) and Yamaha Thailand Racing Team rider Peerapong Boonlert (#26) lined up in 1st and 2nd positions on the starting grid. Both got off to strong starts. Boonlert controlled the opening lap while Kasma Daniel followed, and behind the two was Kasmayudin's teammate Ahmad Afif Amran trailing in 3rd.
On lap 2 Boonlert posted his fastest lap to retake the lead, and the three were then joined by fellow YZF-R6 rider Adam Norrodin (#77) which increased the lead group to four, but on lap 4 Amran overshot a corner and lost his spot in the top group, making it a three-way battle for the lead from lap 5 onward.
The middle stages of the race saw the battle simmer down somewhat with Boonlert keeping a steady pace at the front. Kasmayudin and Norrodin made no mistakes as they followed, setting fast, consistent lap times until the final few laps where the finishing order would be decided.
That happened with three laps left to go. Kasmayudin and Norrodin made a push to catch Boonlert, as they swapped positions back and forth themselves. Their order was the same coming into the final lap however, with Boonlert, Kasmayudin and Norrodin locked in close contention. First Norrodin passed Kasmayudin, then with only a few corners left he passed Boonlert as well before going on to take the win. Boonlert and Kasmayudin had a fierce battle for the remaining two podium spots, but Peerapong came out on top to finish 2nd while Kasmayudin took 3rd for an all-R6 podium. Amran meanwhile recovered to 4th after his overshoot and finished there at the flag.
Race 2: Kasmayudin Wins Fierce Battle for the Win while Boonlert Completes Perfect Podium Record
There was a major battle for supremacy among three riders in Race 1 and they put on an exciting display for the crowd. Norrodin made a rocket start and behind him, Boonlert, Kasmayudin and Amran followed. After two high-pace laps, the group had opened a three-second gap to those further down the order.
From this point on the battle for the win was on. Boonlert set the fastest lap of the race on lap 3 and got into the lead, slowly opening a gap to the three behind him. But on lap 6, it was Kasmayudin who set an even faster lap and passed Norrodin for 2nd and set his sights on Boonlert. Norrodin set another fastest lap to shrink the gap and got closer and closer to the tail of Boonlert. Amran could not match the fast pace of the three in front and began to gradually drop back before being left on his own in 4th.
The positions changed as the race drew nearer to its conclusion on lap 9. Kasmayudin took the lead but was re-passed by Boonlert on lap 10. Kasmayudin then made another successful overtake on lap 11 before Norrodin, who had been holding back during this time, passed Boonlert at the final corner to take 2nd, then held him off coming into the final lap before catching and passing Kasmayudin for the lead.
But Kasmayudin had not given up yet as he mounted a counterattack and re-passed Norrodin, the two swapping positions several times. Then, in the entry to the final corner, Kasmayudin approached in the lead but Norrodin passed him on the inside, before Kasmayudin altered his line to get back in front before taking the checkers in 1st for his second win of the season. Norrodin finished 2nd while Boonlert rounded out the podium in 3rd. That meant he stood on the podium in all 14 races of the season while recording 8 wins in a remarkable show of domination that led to him winning the championship this season. Amran finished 4th in the race and 8th overall for the season.
AP250
Race 1: Wild card Malahuan Finishes 13th
10th place qualifier Muhammad Faerozi (#36) of the Yamaha Racing Indonesia team crashed and retired from the race on the first lap, leaving wild card rider Vorapong Malahuan of the Yamaha Hispeed Racing Team in 12th, and regular contenders Sawapol Nillapong (#56) and Suttipat Patchaeetron (#86), both of Yamaha Thailand Racing, and Yamaha Racing Indonesia's Anggi Setiawan (#96) forced to contend as part of a trailing group behind the leaders.
In this challenging situation, R25 rider Reynaldo Chrisantho Ratukore (#222) worked to get in touch with the lead group, and once he did he was able to maintain his position. He could not quite break into the lead, but stayed in the 6th to 9th group as he reeled off laps. When the race was in its closing stages with three left to go, he lost major ground and dropped three seconds behind the leaders to 9th. He tried as hard as he could in the final few laps but was unable to close the gap and finished in 8th.
The aforementioned group of Malahuan, Nillapong, Setiawan and Patchaeetron swapped and changed positions within the group constantly, and in the end Malahuan finished 13th, Nillapong 15th, Patchaeetron in 16th and Setiawan 18th.
Race 2: Malahuan on Podium in 2nd
Vorapong Malahuan is the reigning Thai national over-400cc champion and put the skills that led him to that title on display in Race 2. He made a strong start and reached 6th on the first lap to be included in the leading group from that point on. Honda's Muklada Sarpuech (#44) broke away in the lead on the opening laps and left 2nd place and lower behind. But she then had an issue with her machine and had to slow down, which brought the trailing group--including Malahuan--forward and made that the group battling for the lead. Malahuan was then in contention for a podium spot for the rest of the race.
After that the race developed into a closely-fought contest. The chaos that ensued led several riders to crash, but no matter how many times he swapped positions, Malahuan was able to maintain his place in the leading group. He was in 5th on the final lap before losing some ground in the now even more intense battle for the lead, and it looked like a podium finish was out of the question as he approached the final corner. But then two of his rivals crashed, allowing him to slot into 3rd and take the YZF-R25's third podium of the year. Faerozi and Suttipat made slower starts but did make it into the extra-long group at the front and recovered positions as their rivals crashed out, before Faerozi finished 7th and Suttipat 12th.
After the race however, it was determined that several riders had exceeded track limits on the final corner of the final lap and would receive penalties, changing the result order. This gave Malahuan 2nd and Suttipat a personal-best finish of 9th. Faerozi's penalty dropped him back to 12th, however. Nillapong finished 15th while Setiawan retired from the race.
UB150
Race 1: Filipino Rider Masato Fernando Finishes 3rd
The Uma Racing Yamaha Philippines Team's McKinley Kyle Paz (#123) was in 2nd overall in the title hunt with an eight point gap to the championship leader. He started the race from 8th and hoped to close the gap and take the title over the weekend, but in the race he made a slow start and had to contend from 17th position.
On lap 2 there was a major accident, and championship leader Md Akid Aziz (#13) was forced to retire from the race due to an issue with his machine. That gave Paz a chance at taking the title, so he rode as hard as he could to try to finish in the lead positions to get the points he needed. On lap 3 he had recovered to 9th, and by the mid-point of the race had made it to 6th with the podium positions in sight.
The race unfolded as most UB150 races do however, with a frantic pace that lasted until the end. The Uma Racing Yamaha Philippines team's Masato Fernando (#17), Yamaha Racing Indonesia's Aldi Satya Mahendra (#570) and Wahyu Negroho were all in the leading group, and as often happens the race was decided in the final corner of the final lap. Amidst the chaos Fernando managed to stay near the front and take his first podium since Round 3. Mahendra finished 5th and Negroho 10th. Paz crossed the finish line in 6th while his title rival crashed out, putting him in 1st overall with a 2 point gap to 2nd heading into Race 2.
Race 2: McKinley Kyle Paz Wins His First Championship
McKinley Kyle Paz began the final race of the season leading the championship title hunt by two points and it was an eventful race to say the least. Md Akid Aziz (#13), who was also in contention for the title, came across the line in 1st after the opening lap while Paz made a very slow start to come across at the opposite end of the field in 23rd. In UB150 races, it's almost always possible to aim for a win no matter your position however, which is exactly what Paz tried to do. He was in 6th by lap 2 while Aziz had dropped to 13th and then to 15th by lap 3. He then had a machine issue on lap 4 and had to retire from the race, bringing Paz ever closer to the championship trophy.
But in racing you never know what is going to happen until the checkered flag. Paz suffered his own accident on lap 7, when there was a multiple-rider crash in the leading group. He managed to avoid going down, but it was enough to cause his engine to stop. When the race was subsequently restarted, Paz found himself down in 18th.
At that point the challenges to Paz's potential title win came from the riders ranked 3rd and 4th. There was a 14-point gap to 3rd and a 15-point gap to 4th. If either of these riders were to finish near the front, Paz's championship hopes would be ruined.
On the final lap, the 4th-ranked rider was holding steady near the front, but in the final corner made contact with another machine and crashed out. The 3rd-ranked rider dropped back to 10th and eventually finished 16th, allowing Paz to come out on top of the points standings and win his first-ever championship title. Negroho came across the line in 13th while Satya came in 18th after suffering a crash, and Fernando also suffered a crash before finishing 20th.
