Asiad champ Taj Izrin leads star-studded line-up for Esport GT C’ship

Japan Asian Games e-sports gold medallist Taj Izrin Aiman Taj Madira

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia will present a star-studded line-up and are among the favourites going into the 2026 TGR Asia Esport GT Championship to be held on home ground in Petaling Jaya this weekend.

The event, organised by Toyota Motor Asia (TMA), will bring together some of the region’s best simulator racers with teams from five nations – Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines.

The competition will see racers competing on Sony PlayStation’s Gran Turismo 7 platform for the honour of winning the individual and team titles.

Team Malaysia’s charge this year will be led by Taj Izrin Aiman Taj Madira (pic), Nabil Azlan and Ethen Low.

Taj Izrin is the reigning Asian Games gold medallist, the 2024 TGR Asia champion and four-time TGR Malaysia eRacing champion. This will be his seventh appearance for the Malaysian team in the regional championship.

“Winning the Asian Games gold medal is certainly a huge boost of confidence for me going into the 2026 TGR Asia Esport GT Championship and for another chance to represent Malaysia,” said the 27-year-old.

‘’Despite this achievement, I approach each competition individually, knowing very well that I will be up against some of South-East Asia’s best simulator racers.

“The goal of course will be to perform at my best and hopefully reclaim the individual title I won in 2024 and help to secure Malaysia the overall team title.”

Strengthening the team, Nabil will be counting on the momentum of being recently crowned the gold medallist at the Asia Pacific Motorsports Championship to propel him to his first ever TGR Asia Championship title.

The 24-year-old, who is also the 2025 TGR Malaysia eRacing Pro champion and winner of the E-Motorsport Competitor of the Year award, said: “As a simulator racer who was given a chance by UMW Toyota Motor to transition into real world racing and subsequently winning the Rookie and Sporting Class titles in the Vios Challenge, the personal goal now will be to return to simulator racing and win a title representing Toyota.”