15 Oct 2011 ARRC Underbone 115cc qualifying: Ramdan off to a good start

Mohd Ramdan Mohd Rosli pulled off a strong start to his Underbone 115cc campaign to storm Friday’s timesheet during the fifth round of the PETRONAS Asia Road Racing Championship (ARRC) here at the Audi Zhuhai International Circuit, China today.

The PETRONAS Syntium Moto Yamaha AHM rider timed 2:12.416s ahead of the field of 13 riders followed by compatriot Mohd Affendi Rosli (Harian Metro Y-TEQ SCK Honda Racing) second fastest with 2:13.290s and Gupita Kresna (Kawasaki NHK Rextor Manual Tech) third, 2:13.397s.

Meanwhile to register fourth and fifth fastest were defending Champion, Hadi Wijaya with 2:13.452s and Mohd Iskandar Raduan (PETRONAS Syntium Moto Yamaha AHM) with 2:13.545s respectively.

Additionally, Ramdan was also fastest for the free practice session earlier today which commenced under wet conditions with 2:23.022s. But though he is pleased to have clocked the best lap time today, Ramdan believes his work here in Zhuhai is far from over.

"It feels great to come in fastest for both the free practice and qualifying today but this is just the beginning for us. We still have tomorrow and Sunday to face so we need to continue working hard," said the 15-year old.

The Malaysian youngster went on to add, "Although fastest, it wasn’t our best work because the sprocket we used for the qualifying did not suit the circuit. Therefore the team engineers will change that bit and hopefully I can go faster in the second session tomorrow."

When asked if the expected wet weekend will affect his game, Ramdan added, "Rain should'nt be an issue because underbone machines are light and no sliding is necessary as compared to the SuperSports 600cc. I believe most riders think the same way too. But regardless of the weather condition, I will definitely deliver my very best this weekend to secure pole position and get a podium finish," he said.

Affendi shares the same sentiments as Ramdan following an up and down performance in the past four legs. He evaluated his return to the Audi Zhuhai International Circuit and commented, "Fruitful, that pretty much sums up today. My Honda was in great condition and we used different setups for the morning practice and evening qualifying and both of it proved to be competitive. However we will use a different setup tomorrow and compare which works best for the race. All in all, coming in second fastest indeed gives me motivation especially here in Zhuhai, one of my favorite tracks. Hopefully I can keep up the good pace for Saturday and Sunday."

Meanwhile Gupita who is also content to be with the frontrunners. "Coming in third fastest here in Zhuhai shows that I'm improving since my debut in the PETRONAS ARRC in Sepang. In addition, this is my first time racing here in Zhuhai so the feeling is very good and it gives me the confidence to do better tomorrow and try to fight for the podium on Sunday," said the Indonesian rider.

As for the rest of the Underbone 115cc riders, Affendi’s teammate Norizman Ismail appeared sixth fastest followed by Zaidy Mohd Zaifaizal (Motul Yamaha YY Pang), Prawat Yannawut (Yamaha Thailand Racing), Denny Triyugo (Yamaha Yamalube FDR KYT), Sudarmono, Mohd Amirul Ariff Musa (Pachie Yuzy Honda Racing), Rafid Topan Sucipto (Yamaha CKJ TJM Racing) and Jirawut Ratsamee.

Underbone 115cc Qualifying 1 Results

  1. Mohd Ramdan Rosli (Yamaha) 2:12.416s
  2. Mohd Affendi Rosli (Honda) 2:13.290s
  3. Gupita Kresna (Kawasaki) 2:13.397s
  4. Hadi Wijaya (Kawasaki) 2:13.452s
  5. Mohd Iskandar Raduan (Yamaha) 2:13.545s
  6. Norizman Ismail (Honda) 2:14.721s
  7. Zaidy Mohd Zaifaizal (Yamaha) 2:15.081s
  8. Prawat Yannawut (THA) 2:15.314s
  9. Denny Triyugo (Yamaha) 2:15.905s 
  10. Sudarmono (Yamaha) 2:15.969s
  11. Mohd Amirul Ariff Musa (Honda) 2:16.617s
  12. Rafid Topan (Yamaha) 2:16.836s