PETALING JAYA: It was a week to remember for Hafizh Syahrin Abdullah (pic) after earning an impressive top 10 finish in the Lenovo Race of Champions at Misano Circuit in Italy.
Hafizh finished ahead of several world class Ducati MotoGP riders, including reigning world champion Marc Marquez of Spain.
Hafizh was one of only three non-Italian names in the top 10 classification, finishing 23.617s behind the winner Nicolo Bulega. The Italian led from start to come out on top with a 1.4s advantage over the line in the end.
Alberto Surra beat Lorenzo Baldassarri to second spot while Marquez eased down to 12th spot.
Interestingly, Hafizh also clocked the fastest lap of 1:36.657s in the field, thus proving his ability to compete on the world stage.
Hafizh was racing as Asia’s representative in the iconic event held to celebrate 100 years of Italian bike manufacturer Ducati’s participation in motorsport.
“An experience I will not forget. Racing again alongside MotoGP stars Marc Marquez, Francesco Bagnaia, Franco Morbidelli, Alvaro Bautista and many more at an iconic track,” said Hafizh. “The week started well with 10th fastest in qualifying and ended strongly.”
The Malaysian is currently the reigning Asia Road Racing Championship (ARRC) title holder and has won all six races this season.
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