And after 8 hours 25 minutes, the 181 laps of Sepang 1000KM Endurance race finally comes to an end with Proton R3’s Satria Neo piloted by Syafiq Ali and Super GT driver Morio Nitta taking the checkered flag. But Proton has more reasons to celebrate as the second spot on the podium was also theirs, thanks to the new and promising Preve race machine.
Despite being put into competition for the first time, the Preve surely did not disappoint with the 180 laps after 8 hours 26 minutes 55.674 seconds on the field. The combo of James Veerapan and Masedenial Ali Maskamal Khan proved deadly as coming in second is no easy feat, especially when you are up against some tough competitions like the Honda Malaysia Racing Team and Fawster Motorsports supported by Mazda Malaysia.
The Type R Racing Team, who for this time fielded a Toyota Altis to do the job secured a third place on the podium. As no strangers to driving in an endurance race at the Sepang Circuit, the trio of Lai Wee Sing, Soh Kee Koon and Wong Yew Choong managed to complete 179 laps; an impressive run, but they had seen better days before where they took first position at 2009 and 2011 and second overall in 2010.
And where did Team 28 finish? With the lineup of strong competitors and lots of hopefuls, staying out of trouble and pacing themselves had totally paid off as they managed to avoid major complications and crossing the finish line at a respectable ninth place with 168 laps in the bag. A big congratulation goes to the trio of Desmond Khoo, Teo Jon Tatt and Chong Boon Kiat, and may 2013 be a better year for the three of you!
The Sepang 1000KM Endurance Race was introduced back in 2009 to give a fairer chance of cars with smaller engine capacity to compete, as the MMER 12-hour endurance hosts a lot of international teams and high-powered supercars. This gives an opportunity for those with limited means to actually experience running in an endurance race and use it as a platform before jumping into a bigger scene.
SEPANG 1000 KILOMETER RACE – TOP 10 FINISHERS
Sepang International Circuit – 5.543km
1. Syafiq Ali/Morio Nitta (Satria Neo) 181 laps – 8:25:06.699 seconds
2. James Veerapan/Masedenial Ali (Proton Preve) 180 laps
3. Lai Wee Sing/Soh Kee Koon/Boy Wong Yew Choong (Toyota Altis) 179 laps
4. Keifli Othman/A.Kesamoorthy/Akash Nandy (Suzuki Swift) 177 laps
5. Tengku Ezan Ley/Farriz Fauzy (Honda Jazz) 177 laps
6. Ahmad Faizry/Juzaili Jasmay/Kosmas Kalaitzidis (Satria Neo) 175 laps
7. Chin Hwa Lip/Admi Shahrul Ahmad Safian (Suzuki Swift) 172 laps
8. Gilbert Lim/Timothy Lam/Edwin Yow/Tan Yean Ming (Suzuki Swift) 168 laps
9. Desmond Khoo/Teo Jon Tatt/Chong Boon Kiat (Suzuki Swift) 168 laps
10. Sutan Mustaffa Salihin/Kok Pak Chiang/Siah Woei Pyng (Proton Gen 2) 168 laps
