Jazeman jives over his first win in 12 Hours of Sepang after team’s flawless run

A job well done: Jazeman Jaafar (second from right) and his teammates celebrating with their trophies after winning the 12 Hours of Sepang. — Motul 12 Hours of Sepang

PETALING JAYA: A flawless run gave national racer Jazeman Jaafar his first 12 Hours of Sepang victory with team 33R Harmony Racing yesterday.

Together with teammates Jason Loh, Luo Kailuo and Chen Weian, Jazeman brought their Ferrari 296 GT3 across the finish line in first place after 328 laps around the Sepang International Circuit (SIC) yesterday.

Starting the race from pole position, the final stint of the race was driven by local hero Jazeman after taking the wheel from his Chinese teammates.

They dominated the race by taking overall victory and the GT3 class win ahead of EBM Porsche GT3 R’s Adrian D’Silva, Leok Hartog and Dorian Boccolacci, who fought to the end after an earlier slow puncture disrupted their pit strategy and saw them finish second.

The 2024 race winners Origine Motorsports settled for third place, while Absolute Racing took fourth in overall and in class.

Jazeman was overjoyed after winning his first 12 Hours of Sepang race, commending the team on a flawless execution in the pits as the team were the only ones running a non-German manufactured car.

“It was an incredible 12 hours of hard work and dedication. We kept our heads down without making any mistakes,” he said after the win.

“Faultless pit stops and perfect executions. I’m happy that we crossed the line and got my first 12 Hours of Sepang win.’’

This was Jazeman’s second time competing in the race as he had previously joined Viper Niza Racing in an Aston Martin in 2023, finishing that race in seventh.

This year, local team Viper Niza put their Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo of Douglas Khoo, Dominic Ang and Melvin Moh at the top of the GT3 AM Masters class and sixth overall.

Another pole to flag victory was seen for 610 Racing in the GT3 AM category with drivers Chen Fangping, Lu Wenlong, Li Xuanyu and Hu Bo.

In the GTC category, Malaysian racing queen Leona Chin took the chequered flag in the 610 Racing car together with Sunny Wong, Yan Chuang and Peter Li.