DAPURPACUID – The Astra Honda Racing Team (AHRT) racers managed to dominate the main podium in the Asia Production (AP) 250 class, at the Sepang International Circuit, Malaysia, Saturday.
The first podium was achieved by Herjun Atna Firdaus (#46) after undergoing an exciting struggle between five other racers, including Kiandra Ramadhipa (#212) near the finish line.
This achievement is considered a ‘mandatory agenda’ for the racers trained by Astra Honda Motor to continue the podium trend in that class, which makes AHRT racers firmly occupy the top and second positions in the temporary standings.
After the race, Herjun admitted that he continued to try to maintain the rhythm of the speed so that he could stay with the front group, and the strategy proved successful.
“Until the end of the lap I was able to maximize the potential of the CBR250RR to secure victory in this race 1. Tomorrow I will try again to achieve victory for Indonesia,” he explained.
It was a different story with Ramadhipa who had to swallow a bitter pill in the fifth round of the 2024 Asia Road Racing Championship (ARRC), after he was unable to maintain his position at the front.
The ‘special’ position was achieved by him and Herjun who achieved it in the qualifying session, namely the first and second order on the starting grid. As soon as the starting light came on, Ramadhipa managed to make a smooth start.
The young man from Sleman, Yogyakarta immediately sped away from his rivals and led the race. Meanwhile, Herjun continued to follow Ramadhipa in third position.
Entering the last three laps, the pressure from other racers began to intensify. With the rpm cut rule that both of them got, the two young Indonesian racers continued to struggle to maintain their podium positions.
Nearing the finish, Herjun was continuously followed by other racers. The fierce competition in the 8-lap race ended brilliantly when Herjun managed to acquire the first position at the final corner.
The race results showed Herjun successfully reaching the highest podium, 0.005 seconds behind the racer. Meanwhile, Ramadhipa who had a collision at the final corner, had to be satisfied with finishing in fifth position.
“Not a good result, but I am still grateful. After the start, I was actually able to lead the race. But towards the end of the race, I started to have difficulties because of the aggressiveness of the other 4 riders in the front group.”
“Finally I had to be satisfied with finishing in fifth position. Tomorrow (race 2) I will try harder to reach the podium,” Ramadhipa explained further.
Based on the results of the first race in the AP250 class, Ramadhipa still occupies the top position with 122 points and Herjun is in second place with 119 points in the temporary standings.
SS600 Class Unsatisfactory Results
Competing with three mainstay riders, namely M. Adenanta Putra (#21), Veda Ega Pratama (#54) and Rheza Danica Ahrens (#123), the AHRT racers have not shown their best performance in the first race of the Supersport 600 (SS600) class.
From the qualifying results, Adenanta filled the fourth position on the starting grid, while Veda was in seventh and Rheza had to start the race from the 10th row.
Taking place in 10 laps, Adenanta and Veda tried to compete in the front group. Disaster approached Adenanta while competing in the second lap. He fell due to a collision with another racer, but was still able to continue the race and finish in 11th position.
“I’m sorry I haven’t been able to reach the podium in this race 1. The mistake I made finally made me fall,” added Adenanta after ending the race.
“But I still tried until I finally finished in 11th position. In race 2 tomorrow, I will try to achieve better results. Please pray and support.”
Veda, who continued to fight for third place, had to be satisfied with finishing fifth, while Rheza, who continued to compete in the front group, had to end the race in seventh place.
“I achieved less than optimal results in this race 1. Actually, I have found my racing rhythm, only the gap with the front group was too far, making it difficult for me,” said Veda.
“Plus my mistake on the last lap made me lose 1 position. Today’s lesson will be my capital for the second race tomorrow,” he said.
“Throughout the race, I had difficulty catching up with the front group and was in group 3. Tomorrow I will try again to achieve better results,” concluded Rheza.
In the temporary standings of the SS600 class, Adenanta is in second place with 121 points, Rheza is in sixth place with 77 points, and Veda is in seventh place with 73 points.
The second race of the fifth series of ARRC Sepang will take place on Sunday (15/9) starting at 13:30 WIB and 14:20 WIB. Both races can be watched on the Asia Road Racing Championship Youtube channel. (dpid/TH)
Source: dapurpacu.id
