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Friday May 15, 2009

Shahrol happy with the riders on trials

PETALING JAYA: The search has begun to pick the two local riders to compete in the Malaysian Motorcycle Grand Prix in Sepang in October.

The first batch of eight riders from the Petronas AAM Malaysian Cub Prix championships began their quest yesterday in the preliminary stages of the trials held under the watchful eye of former 250cc world championship rider Shahrol Yuzy at the Sepang circuit’s south track yesterday.

The riders from the expert category were Mohd Iskandar Raduan (Petronas Sprinta Yamaha Raceline), Elly Idzlianizar Ilias and Mohd Zamri Baba (Petronas Sprinta Yamaha Ah Hong), Ahmad Fazli Sham and Ahmad Fazrul Sham (Shell Advance Yamaha Maju), Mohd Edzuan Ab Gani and Mohd Emir Firdaus Hassan (Motul Yamaha YY Pang), Mohd Affendi Rosli (Suzuki Harian Metro SCK) and Shahril Izzuwan Mohd Nor (Idemitsu Honda Racing).

Under the “Malaysian Wildcard Programme 2009”, a total of 15 riders from the current national Cub Prix championships and another two from the Malaysian Super Series Bikerz Mag 150cc Cup will undergo a series of selection trials.

The riders were given a 30-minute slot in the morning and another 30 minutes in the afternoon for testing and to show off their riding skills.

Shahrol, who is the mentor and trainer for the programme, said: “This is the only chance for them to prove that they deserve to be given wildcard entries in the 125cc class in the Malaysian GP.

“I am pleased with the performance of all the riders today. Their lap times were competitive and it’s not easy to make a decision. We also need to take into account all the aspects from the rider’s fastest lap time, the consistency of each rider in each lap, the riding techniques, discipline, punctuality and other factors.

“Overall, I am happy with their performance as this group of riders are more experienced and they have no problems in handling the Yamaha TZ125cc machine.

“Tomorrow, we will test the younger group of riders and on Saturday, seven or eight riders will be selected for another round of testing.”

Shahrol is the only Malaysian to have ridden in the FIM World Motorcycle Championships — from 2000 to 2002.

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