Sepang International Circuit (Malaysia) 22 September 2019: Sunday’sfinal race of round 6 at Sepang International Circuit (Malaysia)once again brought cheer for IDEMITSU Honda Racing India – the solo Indian racing team battling for points at the Asia Road Racing Championship 2019 (ARRC).

Despite his back and hand injury from yesterday’s crash, Rajiv earned 1 more point for India with his eight top 15 finish this season in Asia Production 250cc (AP 250) class of ARRC.

Still learning the ropes of international racing in his debut ARRC season, 18-year-old Senthilcontinued his assault on timesheets to record his personal best lap record of 2:28:241 at Sepang. Despite his8th row start from 22ndon the grid, Senthil quickly overtook Taipei’s Liu Junmei and Thailand’s Sawapol in lap 2 itself. Maintaining 20th in lap 3, he jumped to 19th in lap 4 and maintained his stance for the 3 rounds, only to finish 17th in final 8th lap, with 5 positions gain overall.

Today’s Race 2 of Asia Production 250cc class saw Indonesians dominate the top 6 ranks. In-fighting for the win went unabated till the chequered flag and took out two causalities – RafidTopan and MukladaSapapuech who crashed out in their attempt to lead in the last lap. Ultimately, it was Astra Honda Racing team’s AwhinSanjayawho stopped the clock at 19:43:339. Hot on his heels was Andy Fadly trailing by only 0.048 seconds (19:43:387) and 3rd podium claimant Reynaldo Chrisantho (19:43:545).

Quote from Mr. Prabhu Nagaraj, Vice President – Brand and Communications, Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India Pvt. Ltd., “This weekend we couldn’t best our past. However, I’m satisfied that in spite of injury from yesterday’s crash in race 1, Rajiv closed in Top 15 with 1-point gain today. Senthil is now more confident and faster on his CBR 250RR and his was a story of recovery today. Now with Sepang over, we head back to India to analyze our performance, identify gap areas and improve further. Next up is Round 7 at Buriram circuit. Both our boys have a good experience there, and I’m sure that we will bounce back with strong results in December round.”

Quote from IDEMITSU Honda Racing India rider Rajiv Sethu
“Despite back and hand injury, I could get good confidence in morning warm-up after a bad crash yesterday. I started strong and had jumped up to 11th position in turn 2, I was sticking with the top 15 riders for about 4 laps. On 5th lap, I missed my gear and went out of the track, losing two positions. It was very difficult to recover especially as couldn’t push 100% due to my injury. I finished 15th. But frankly, this was not the goal I had set for myself this weekend. I have very good confidence in Buriram. Now I plan to recover fast and focus on my weak-points to fight for the top 15 in Championship. I will have to close in the top 10 in both the Thai races.”

Quote from IDEMITSU Honda Racing India rider Senthil Kumar
“In the morning warm-up, I recorded my fastest lap time of 2:28:241and entered the race with confidence. But when a bad start shoved me to 29th, my first priority was to fast reverse this loss. In the first lap itself, I aggressively rode and overtook 7 riders to return to my starting 22nd position. In next lap, I overtook 2 more riders to climb to top 20. But by then, the gap between Shahrol and me had increased which I couldn’t recover. However, with Thai rider Sawapolhot on my heels, I successfully defended my position to finish 17th. Next up, is the last round at Buriram (Thailand). With its 3 long straights, competition is tight as all riders are riding ina 2 to 3-second gap. I have to learn from my mistakes this weekend, better my corner exits and get more lean to ensure a top 15 finish there.”

IDEMITSU Honda Racing India is now stacked up in Top9 teams of AP 250 class with 33 points. Rajiv is now placed 16th in the points tally with 33 points, while Senthil with no-gain-no-loss this weekend is tied at 26th out of 40 riders. As the Sepang outing draws to a close, the battle for 2019 ARRC Championship will re-commence in Round 7 finale at Buriram, Thailand in December.

Parallelly, Zaqhwan Zaidi of Honda Asia-Dream Racing with SHOWA team in ASB1000cc class finished 4th in today’s race 2, putting him 3rdin the championship.

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Zhuhai International Circuit (China), 8 August 2019: ‘IDEMITSU Honda Racing India’- the only Indian team has now reached Zhuhai in its next bid to make India proud in Round 5 of FIM Asia Road Racing Championship 2019 (ARRC) – Asia’s toughest road racing championship.

The IDEMITSU Honda Racing India Team enters Zhuhai among the Top 9 of the total 20 teams in Asia Production 250 (AP250) class. Fresh from his resounding victory in the national championship last weekend Rajiv Sethu eyes to better his record within the Top 10. Meanwhile, for his rookie teammateSenthil Kumar, this will be a great opportunity to make the most of this new track.

Elaborating on the team’s performance and expectations from China round, Mr. Prabhu Nagaraj, Vice President – Brand and Communication, Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India Pvt. Ltd. said, “Asia’s toughest racing championship returns to China after 7 years. Not only will our Indian rider duo but nearly all the 26 riders will be new to this 4.3km track located in the southern tip of China.We see this as a great opportunity. Rajiv is in top form and he has finished in top 10 in this season before. Senthil is also showing improvement. This weekend in Zhuhai, Honda’s solo Indian team is ready to take on new challenges ourselves and better our result in top 10 even more.”

In his 3^rd year at ARRC, Rajiv is now a serious competitor. 2019’s season-opener at Malaysia saw him become the first Indian to score 10 points. In Australia, he finished a race in Top 10 for the first time ever. Next up in Thailand,Rajiv recorded his best ever Qualifier finish in Top 7. Round 4 at Japan’s Suzuka circuit proved his growth as he finished 14^th in a race which saw as many as 9 riders crashing out in the wet tarmac. The 21-year-old Chennai rider now enters China round in Top 10 of AP250 class – abig jump over his previous championship standing of 27^th in 2018 and 46^th in 2017. Meanwhile, teammate Senthil Kumar stands in Top 25 with 2 points under his belt in his debut season at ARRC.

ARRC’s return to Zhuhai International Circuit after 7 years is potentially the biggest mid-season twist in Asia’s toughest championship. With the exception of one Chinese wildcard entry Zhou Sheng Jun Jie in Asia Production 250 (AP250) class, Zhuhai circuit will be a level playing field for most of the 26 riders from Indonesia, Thailand, Japan, Malaysia, Vietnam, Taipei and India.

Sharing his thoughts, Rajiv Sethu, the experienced IDEMITSU Honda Racing India rider said, “Practicing my craft in PS-165cc class of national championship and winning both races was a boost for me. As a track new to most of us, Zhuhai will pose a new challenge. Together with the team and guidance of Mr. Koyama our Ex-MotoGP rider as our coach, my aim will be to understand, the intricacies of riding here fast and gain an edge over others. I have finished in top 10 earlier and in China I want to better my record even more.”

Senthil Kumartherookie IDEMITSU Honda Racing India rider also added, “Barring Thailand, all the tracks were new to me. But after riding for the first time in Australia, Japan and Malaysia, I am now more comfortable on the machine and adapting much faster to new tracks. I will give my 100% to earning points for India in the Zhuhai round.”

Zhuhai will see if current leader Andy Muhammad Fadly (127 points)continues to defy the odds of equalizer rule or finally finds his match in the trio of Honda riders. While Indonesian rider duo Irfan Ardiansyahand Awhin Sanjaya (tied at 104 points) are yet to face an rpm cut, Thailand’s Muklada Sarapuech can be a tough rival as she returns fired up as the first female rider to win Suzuka 4 Hours.

Parallelly, the marquee Asia SuperBike 1000cc (ASB) class of ARRC 2019 will see Malaysian rider Zaqhwan Zaidi of Honda Asia-Dream Racing with SHOWA team return in full form. The team has top personnel from Honda subsidiaries across Asia & Oceania, including a race technician from India.

About 2019 FIM Asia Road Racing Championship: FIM Asia Road Racing Championship (ARRC) is Asia’s most competitive motorcycle road racing championship, now in its 24th year. The 2019 season has 7 rounds across 5 countries (Malaysia* 2, Australia, Thailand * 2, Japan &China). In 2019, ARRC features four classes – the newly introduced premier class of Asia Superbike 1000 (ASB1000), SuperSports 600 (SS600), Asia Production 250 (AP250) and Underbone class (UB150). Representing the solo Indian team at the event – IDEMITSU Honda Racing India, are two riders – Rajiv Sethu and rookie Senthil Kumar on the CBR250RR.

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