KAWASAKI WINS BIG AT OPENING ROUND OF TOP 1 OIL MALAYSIAN SUPERMOTO SERIES

Reining Asian champion Mohd Khairi Zakaria rode a dominant race to win the opening round of the Top 1 Oil Malaysian Supermoto Series at the Speedway PLUS Circuit in USJ Subang Jaya last Sunday (30 June). The CBK Maxima Kawasaki Racing Team rider finished first in Moto 1 of the S1 class and rode a closely challenged race for second place in Moto 2 to secure enough points for the overall victory and to currently place him in the lead of this year’s Series.
In Moto 1, Mohd Khairi led a Kawasaki onslought of the top three placings, finishing ahead of Bikeart Kawasaki Racing’s Hazlanshah Mohd Noor and  CBK Maxima Kawasaki Racing team mate Mohd Suhadi Ali Rahmat. KTM’s Muhammad Habibullah Salleh who is also the defending Malaysian Supermoto Series S1 champion, finished the 12-lap race in fourth position. Muhammad Habibullah however, regained good form to win Moto 2 ahed of Mohd Khairi, with Mohd Suhadi crossing the finish line in third place in front of Hazlanshah. Meanwhile, in the S2 Expert class for supermoto up to 250cc, KTM’s Mohd Al-Amirul Ashshahid won the first of two Motos with Mohd Khairi taking second position ahead of newcomer Wong Chun Voon. Mohd Khairi won Moto 2 with Wong taking a hard fought second and Mohd Al-Amirul settling for third. The Series, sanctioned by the Automobile Association of Malaysia (AAM), is promoted by Bike Nation Motorsports in collaboration with Title Sponsor Top 1 Oil Malaysia.This year’s Series will also see the introduction of Michelin one-make tyres for the the S1, S2 Expert, S2 Novice, S3 Open and SC classes, with tyres made available to participants through Bike Nation Motorsports at incredibly affordable prices.The 2013 Top 1 Oil Malaysian Supermoto Series will be contested over four rounds which includes the Malaysian round of the 2013 Asian Supermoto Championship This year’s competition heats up with nine classes of racing; S1 Open for supermoto unlimited up to 700cc; S2 Expert for supermoto unlimited up to 250cc; S2 novice for supermoto unlimited up to 250cc; S3 Open for supermoto unlimited up to 70cc (veteran); S4 Open for production supermoto up to 200cc;  the Kawasaki D-Tracker 150cc one make race; and the Kawasaki KSR 110cc limited and unlimited one make race. Also newly introduced was an SR class which enabled offroad bikers with an affordable entry to supermoto. The SR class is meant for supermoto unlimited up to 250cc using original size motocross and unlike conventional supermoto racing which requires a special size set of wheels and tyres, the SR class promotes the use of stock standard motorcross rims with special supermoto grade tyres made available by Michelin. The SC class meanwhile, was introduced to provide more level racing field for China manufactured bikes up to 200cc given its immense popularity in the Malaysian motorcycle market.