Motul Asia Pacific recently excited the motorsports world with its exhilarating showcase of speed, skill, and endurance at the Motul 12 Hours of Sepang endurance race, held at the Sepang International Circuit from March 15th to 16th, 2023. Stepping up from being the official Lubricant Partner to Title Sponsor for the second consecutive year, Motul solidified its commitment to Malaysia’s dynamic automotive community while demonstrating its deep-rooted dedication to motorsports.
The event brought together 17 teams comprising Asia’s finest drivers across three categories, pushing their limits in the challenging Asian climate. Motul’s sponsorship not only underscored its passion for motorsports but also highlighted its support for Malaysia’s automotive enthusiasts and professionals.
Motul curated exclusive engagement activities for over 170 key customers, offering pit tours with the Malaysia-based Viper Niza Racing team and technical training sessions comparing track and road products. A highlight was the presentation on Motul’s innovative CACE (Chemical, Additive, Care, and Essential) product range, showcasing the brand’s cutting-edge capabilities. Additionally, a presentation by Scantrust highlighted Motul’s commitment to product traceability and anti-counterfeit measures.
Ravi Shankar, Motul Malaysia’s Country Manager, emphasised the event’s theme “Accelerate as One” and Motul’s dedication to fostering a sense of community among customers. He reiterated Motul’s focus on growth and becoming the preferred choice for synthetic lubricant oil in Malaysia.
As the title sponsor, Motul’s logo adorned all 17 cars, reinforcing the brand’s strong presence and support. Mazryianto Bin Mahadzir from Yano Auto Parts and Bryan Chan from Promote Auto Care expressed gratitude for Motul’s commitment to knowledge sharing and customer value creation.
Carlo Savoca, Motul Asia Pacific’s Chief Marketing Officer, shared Motul’s optimism towards supporting more motorsports events in Southeast Asia, highlighting motorsports as a crucial platform for innovative product development.
As the Motul 12 Hours of Sepang concluded, Motul looks forward to continuing its journey of innovation, excellence, and collaboration within Malaysia’s automotive landscape, cementing its position as a driving force in the industry.
R&B Racing has once again asserted their dominance in endurance racing, emerging victorious in the 2024 Motul 12 Hours of Sepang. The Chinese team, known for their previous triumph in the inaugural Shanghai 8 Hours in 2023, showcased unparalleled skill and determination on the track.
Despite facing initial setbacks that saw them drop down the order, the #44 R&B Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R crew, comprising Yuan Bo, Lu Wei, and Ye Honghi, staged an impressive comeback in the GT3 Am class. Holding onto the lead for the remainder of the race, they not only secured the class victory but also clinched the overall win, solidifying their status as formidable contenders.
In the GT3 Am category, the #71 Prime Speed Sport Aston Martin Vantage GT3 EVO II and the #777 Climax Racing Audi R8 LMS GT3 EVO II secured second and third place, respectively, showcasing intense competition throughout the field.
Toyota Motor Corporation has revealed its participation in the Idemitsu Super Endurance Southeast Asia Trophy 2023, a 10-hour endurance race scheduled for December 22 and 23 at Thailand’s Chang International Circuit.
Toyota will field a three-vehicle lineup for Rookie Racing featuring innovative concepts, including the ORC Rookie GR86 CNF, a GR86 powered by carbon-neutral fuel; the ORC Rookie GR Corolla H2, a hydrogen-powered Corolla; and the CP Rookie Prius CNF-HEV GR, a Prius HEV running on carbon-neutral fuel. Notably, this marks the first time Toyota will compete with a production Prius HEV (hybrid electric vehicle).
Toyota Prius 24h Le Mans Centennial GR Edition
Additionally, three vehicles from Toyota Gazoo Racing team Thailand—the Corolla, 86, and Yaris—will run on carbon-neutral fuel. Toyota is committed to expanding motorsports-related options for achieving carbon neutrality in collaboration with its Asian partners.
In its pursuit of a carbon-neutral society, Toyota is actively participating in the Super Taikyu series with hydrogen-powered and carbon-neutral fuel-driven vehicles. The GR86 and hydrogen-powered Corolla previously competed in the 2022 Thailand 25H Endurance Race, and in the upcoming Idemitsu Super Endurance Southeast Asia Trophy, Toyota introduces an HEV, recognising its effectiveness in achieving carbon neutrality in the Asian context, especially in Thailand.
After coming so close to winning in 2021, the TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Malaysia Team returned this year to take a historic 1-2 victory in the 9-hour race at the Sepang International Circuit. Three Toyotas finished in the top 5 overall positions, and in the Malaysian Touring Car (MTC) Class in only Toyota’s second year participating in the annual event.
A record total of 77 cars lined up on the grid for the 14th edition of the Sepang 1000KM event (S1K) this year. The race had the MTC and SP2 Classes for cars below 1600 cc and incorporated the GAZOO Racing Vios Enduro Cup (exclusively for the Toyota Vios cars competing in the Vios Challenge race series).
Crewed by GAZOO Racing Malaysia ambassador Tengku Djan Ley and reigning Vios Challenge Sporting Class champion Naquib Azlan, the team’s #37 Vios took the chequered flag after 181 laps. The car had started from pole position and crossed the finish line 6.2 seconds ahead of the nearest rival – the #39 Yaris of Hayden Haikal and Jwan Hii for Wing Hin Motorsports (a UMW Toyota Motor dealer).
After a successful debut in the 2021 edition of the Sepang 1000KM (S1K), UMW Toyota Motor and GAZOO Racing Malaysia are now aiming for success in Malaysia’s popular endurance race with the Toyota Vios. This weekend will see it entering two cars in the MTC Class to fight for the overall victory in the S1K – an achievement it so nearly came close to achieving last year.
The 2022 S1K, which has 77 entries this year, will also see a total of 15 SP2 Class Toyotas competing in the GAZOO Racing Vios Enduro Cup that is exclusive to and open to all generations of the model competing in the Vios Challenge and Vios Sprint Cup race series.
The year cannot end without running Malaysia’s popular endurance race – the Sepang 1000km (S1K) – and it will take place on November 17, 18 and 20 at the Sepang International Circuit (SIC). On November 19th, it’s voting day for the General Elections so activities will be suspended on that day,
As a big finale to the race calendar, this year’s S1k has the highest number of entries since 2019. The full grid will see no less than 77 cars. The entries are not only from Malaysia; with travel restrictions due to the pandemic now eased, there are also competitors from neighbouring countries.
Besides a dominant 1-2 victory in the 8 Hours of Bahrain, final round of the 2022 World Endurance Championship (WEC), as well as securing a clean sweep of titles, TOYOTA GAZOO Racing also made history by taking a historic Hypercar title double.
Outgoing World Champions Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi and Jose Maria Lopez took a hard-earned win, their second of the season in their #7 GR010 HYBRID, to confirm the as Hypercar manufacturers’ World Champions.
Sebastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley and Ryo Hirakawa, in the #8 GR010 HYBRID, had started the weekend level on points with their Alpine title rivals. but finished second to become Drivers’ World Champions, adding to their 2022 Le Mans 24 Hours win.
Toyota won the 24 Hours Le Mans again, the fifth year in a row that the Japanese carmaker has won the classic endurance race. Toyota is the only other Japanese carmaker to win the 24-hour race, the other being Mazda in 1991 with its 787B.
This year, Toyota is using a new racing car, the GR010 HYBRID developed to the LMH (Le Mans Hypercar) technical regulations. It’s a completely new machine, sharing virtually nothing with the LMP1 (Le Mans Prototype) class TS050 HYBRID car that was used successfully in previous years.
The TOYOTA GAZOO Racing team’s fourth 1-2 finish at the 90th edition of the race was led by the crew of Sebastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley and Ryo Hirakawa who drove in the #8 GR010 HYBRID for 380 laps. They were followed across the finish line by 2021 winners, Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi and José María Lopez, in the #7 car, 2mins 1.222 seconds behind.
The two Toyota hypercars were in a class of their own and engaged in close battles at the front. The lead changed several times as the race went through the night, with traffic, slow zones and track evolution all coming into play. Most of the time over a period of 16 hours, the two cars ran just a few seconds apart.
As the morning started, there was a rare moment of trouble when the #8 car had a puncture with Buemi at the wheel. But the complexion of the race changed decisively on lap 256 when Jose had to move the race-leading #7 car to the side of the track following an issue relating to the front motor. He had to perform a system reset and was then able to return to the pits. Further resets solved the issue and allowed the car to rejoin the race but nearly a lap behind the new leader in the #8 GR010 HYBRID.
With closely-matched performance, that deficit proved too great for the #7 crew to overcome, despite Jose setting the fastest lap of the race within the remaining 30 minutes of the race. It was therefore left to Brendon to take the #7 car across the finish line, completing 5,177 kms in 24 hours.
Third and fourth places were taken by the cars of Scuderia Cameron Glickenhaus, also racing in the hypercar class, which has covered 370 and 375 laps. Fifth place in the category (but 23rd overall) was the Alpine A480 – Gibson which was off-pace due to a number of technical problems that plagued the car and team.
Aston Martin claimed another victory with its Vantage GTE as partner team TF Sport won the GTE-Am class. The victory, in a year featuring a record-equalling 23-car GTE-Am entry, marks a second in three years at Le Mans for TF Sport following its class success in 2020.
As the third round of the 2022 World Endurance Championship (WEC), Le Mans offered double points and a chance for TOYOTA GAZOO Racing to jump upwards in the Manufacturers’ and Drivers’ standings. The new season had seen a close start in the Hypercar class against strong competition from Alpine and Glickenhaus.
However, after the Le Mans race, TOYOTA GAZOO Racing has moved to the top, 22 points ahead of Alpine. The Drivers’ championship remains wide open, though, with the #8 crew just 3 points ahead of the leading Alpine trio, and #7 20 points behind.
Nissan Motor and Nissan Motorsports & Customizing Co. (NMC) have entered Nissan Z Racing Concept cars in the second round of ENEOS Super Taikyu Series 2022 – the NAPAC Fuji SUPER TEC 24 Hour Race. The event is held at the Fuji Speedway this weekend and the two cars will have the numbers ‘230’ and ‘244’.
The aim of running the two cars is to explore possible competition in various motorsports categories. Car 230, entered by the NISMO team, is equipped with a carbon-neutral-fuel (CNF) compatible engine, while Car 244, entered by the Max Racing team, is powered by a powerful petrol engine.
The two cars have been developed with the knowledge gained over many years of Super GT and customer racing car involvement. By entering the tough 24-hour endurance race, Nissan hopes to accumulate valuable data that can only be obtained through racing. This particularly applies to the CNF-compatible engine that can be applied to future development.
Nissan aims to achieve carbon neutrality throughout its product life cycle by fiscal year 2050 and is therefore also enhancing its efforts in motorsports. For instance, the carmaker is the only Japanese manufacturer that participates in the all-electric ABB FIA Formula E World Championship for single-seater cars.
“In our pursuit of innovation, we have always challenged the limits of what is possible, but we have never compromised on what excites our fans. Whether it is the excitement mixed with the roar of the engines or silent speed, our ambition is to empower our customers to enjoy their experience without compromise,” said Ashwani Gupta, Nissan’s Chief Operating Officer. “The participation of the Nissan Z Racing Concept cars in this demanding race will bring many valuable learnings to develop competitive engines compatible with carbon-neutral fuel.”
“The tougher the race, the more we learn. We expect to acquire ample data and know-how for future vehicle development and, at the same time, we aim to show fans the unique driving performance of the all-new Z that we hope will exceed their expectations,” added Takao Katagiri, Head of Nissan’s Motorsports Business Unit Office and President of NMC.
Nissan Z Safety Car
Besides the two concept racing cars, Nissan Motor and NMC have also provided new Nissan Z for use as a safety car in the Super GT race series. The car has been presented to the organisers, the GT Association, Inc., and the sportscar will make its debut in the third round of the 2022 season at the Suzuka Circuit.
Among the duties of the Safety Car will be pre-race inspection of the tracks for obstacles and leading competition cars when race accidents occur.
Unveiled in August 2021, the all-new Z generation has been enthusiastically received by new and old fans alike. By competing in this season’s Super GT with the Nissan Z GT500, Nissan and NMC aim to broaden the Z’s fan base and increase the exposure of the Super GT series.
For more information on Nissan products and services in Malaysia, visit www.nissan.com.my.
The Toyota Yaris which was entered in the Sepang 1000KM endurance race (S1K) recently was the first ever appearance of the model in a local race and it was a ‘baptism by fire’ on all accounts. Competing in the top MTC Production Class, the Yaris, driven by the pair of 16-year old Hayden Haikal and 24-year old Timothy Yeo, had taken the chequered flag 3 laps ahead of their nearest rival. However, a post-race penalty reclassified the duo to third position in class and fourth overall.
Three Toyotas occupied the top 5 front positions on the starting grid for the 9-hour/181-lap race laps around the 5.534-km Sepang International Circuit. The number #39 Yaris had been the highest-placed Toyota on the starting grid, qualifying second with a time of 2 min 38.932 seconds. They were followed by Wing Hin Motorsports team mates and the pair of Boy Wong and Dannies Ng in the number #38 Vios.
Two entries from GAZOO Racing Malaysia
Backing them up were the trio of Tengku Djan Ley, Naquib Azlan and Akio Takeyama from TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Malaysia in car number #37 (another Vios) which was fifth fastest. TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Malaysia fielded a second entry, another Vios crewed by a trio comprising celebrity Zizan Razak, and young drivers Jwan Hii and Mika Hakimi in the SP2 Production Class in car number #36. Despite qualifying 30th , they went on to finish 20th in class and fifth in the inaugural running of the Vios Enduro Cup.
With three Toyotas in contention for overall victory, TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Malaysia’s number #37 Vios, the number #39 Yaris and the number #38 Vios showed their dominance from the beginning to the final hours of the race. Four cars traded places for the lead throughout the race, but no one expected a huge turn of events that was to unfold in the closing laps.
Bad luck for #38 Vios
The number #38 Vios’ hopes of a podium finish were essentially erased due to technical issues, forcing it to rejoin 6 laps down but still managing to finish fourth overall and in Class. The number #37 Vios, meanwhile, was well poised for victory until 26 laps to the finish when the front left wheel was ripped away, dropping the team to 11th in Class.
Their misfortune left the race for the taking of car number #100 driven by Mitchell Cheah and Brendan Paul Anthony, but their hopes of a victory too came to a crushing end when mechanical problems 10 laps from the finish put them into retirement.
Yaris takes podium finish on debut
As all this unfolded, the charging #39 Yaris kept piling on the pressure and clocking consistent lap times right up to the chequered flag. “The Yaris performed impeccably, not putting a foot wrong! This is a huge testament to the car’s performance and reliability under extreme conditions, and to finish on the podium in the prestigious S1K race on its debut is, without a doubt, an amazing result,” said a happy Mr. Takeyama who is also GAZOO Racing Malaysia’s Chief Motorsports Officer.
“We would like to have won and seen two or all three cars on the podium but unfortunately, in racing, nothing is ever certain until you cross the finish line, and this is a disappointment we will have to graciously accept despite running very competitively until the final hours,” he said.
“The S1K is a challenging test of nerves not only on the reliability and durability of the car, but also the physical and mental strength of the competing teams and drivers,” he said, with his personal experience of racing in the event. ”As a team, we have proven to ourselves that we are competitive, and this setback has certainly fuelled our desire to come back and be even stronger next year.”
The Yaris’ third place finish, however, was made that much sweeter with one of the drivers (Hayden) being a competitor and the youngest ever champion in Toyota’s Vios Challenge racing series. In fact, eight of the drivers in the top 4 cars in contention for the race win had competed in the one-make series which has run for 4 seasons.
“The TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Festival and Vios Challenge will next year enter its fifth successive season and we hope that it has not only made a huge impact towards enhancing the profile of Malaysian motorsports by bringing it to the masses, but also in creating a strong foundation for the development of existing, new and especially young drivers. We are committed in making an impactful contribution to Malaysian motorsports and this is an initiative we intend to continue to expand on moving forward,” Mr. Takeyama promised.
Inaugural Vios Enduro Cup
In the inaugural Vios Enduro Cup, Aylezo Motorsports’ trio Mirza Syahmi Mahzan, Zen Low and Aiman Haziq completed 166 laps enroute to collect a cash prize of RM10,000. It was a 1-2 victory for Aylezo with Dato’ Danny Yip, Kenneth Teh and Chang Choon Ming placed second. In third spot was 23 Motors’ Al- Farouk and Abdull Miqail, followed by Toyotsu Racing’s Liew Jo Choon, Tan Chan Wei in fourth.
A total of 10 Toyota cars took to the track for the S1K race which attracted 38 teams, with three cars competing in the MTC Production Class and the remaining seven vying for positions in the SP2 Production Class and the inaugural running of the Vios Enduro Cup.
