Malaysia Speed Festival

• MSF celebrates Merdeka with night endurance race

  In Bikes, Cars, Local News, Motorsports / By Jonathan Lee / 17 August 2018 7:45 pm / 7 comments

  

  It’s fast coming up to the 61st year of Malaysia’s independence, and the Malaysian Speed Festival (MSF) is gearing up to the occasion with 14 non-stop hours of fierce car and motorcycle racing, drifting action and a celebration of automotive culture at large with the series’ Merdeka round on August 31 itself.

  The event features this year’s only Enduro Cup for the SuperTurismo race series, held at night under the bright new 150-lumen lights of the Sepang International Circuit (SIC) for the first time since the series, previously called Saturday Night Fever (SNF), received its MSF branding.

  The races are held in a 40-minute endurance format, with the same wide variety of race car categories covering everything from tiny kei cars like the Perodua Kancil to popular Honda and Toyota models. The longer races are bound to push drivers, technicians and engineers to their limits.

  Also returning is the MSF Superbikes series, which has been well received with the grid for Round 2 in April being full within an hour of registration opening – such is the eagerness of bike racers to compete. As usual, there are Super 400 and Super 1000 categories corresponding to the engine capacities, and each is split further into three groups depending on the respective riders’ pace. There will now be a dedicated female category as well, paving the way for an increasing number of women to participate in the series.

  

  Fans of sideways action will be delighted to find that the MSF Drift Gonzo is back, providing a time- and points-based challenge for drivers looking to slither their way around a laid-out course in the most outlandish way possible. In total, over 630 drivers and riders across various disciplines took part in Round 2, so expect the same level of packed, close-fought competition.

  There are other activities in store for those catching the action, as automotive lifestyle group NoEqual will be hosting its Tea and Tires V3.0 event that will show off the coolest customised vehicles. In addition, visitors will be able to enjoy refreshments from various food trucks at the North and South Paddock and at the Grandstand area.

  Once again, the MSF Merdeka round will be happening on August 31, with full-day passes offered at RM20 per person before 10am and RM35 after. The tickets come with free grandstand seating and access to all racing events happening that day.

   

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• Malaysia Speed Festival (MSF) Racing 2018 Round 2 sees huge entry list, promises epic racing weekend!

  In Bikes, Cars, Local News, Motorsports / By Adian Yein Khalid / 4 April 2018 10:53 am / 3 comments

  

  As Round 2 of MSF Racing Series approaches this coming weekend, the entry list has been finalised and we’re looking at some astonishing numbers of vehicles that will be racing in what is without a doubt the biggest racing series in Malaysia today.

  Participating vehicles include a whopping 195 racing cars, 60 superbikes in the brand new, first ever MSF Superbike racing, 10 Caterhams from the Caterham Motorsports Asia series, and 20 drift cars taking part in the MSF Drift Gonzo support event on Saturday.

  MSF Superbikes
  With the first ever MSF Superbikes round taking place this Sunday, many new riders will also take their first ever foray into competitive superbike racing. What can we expect? “Safety is optimum, but we know that when the flag drops the adrenaline takes over and these riders are going to fight hard,” said partner promoter for MSF Superbikes Liew Chin Hooi.

  Legendary Malaysian superbike racer Oh Kah Beng attended a briefing organised for the new riders earlier this week. “Race hard, race smart, be safe, and don’t forget to have fun!” exclaimed Kah Beng, who went wheel-to-wheel with the world’s best in the mid-80s at the now defunct Batu Tiga circuit and around Australasia. With his support and blessing, the MSF Superbike riders are hyped and ready to rock and roll.

  

  The Super400 category of MSF Superbikes currently seems to be the most technologically innovating, featuring a ’90s legend, the Cagiva Mito – converted to run a powerful Suzuki RGV250 two-stroke engine! This same Suzuki engine was what powered the early Aprilia RS250s as raced by Max Biaggi and Loris Capirossi in the mid-90s.

  Owner and rider Muhd Hirzi Ismail, however, has gone a step further and enlarged the engine to close to 350cc. Beast? You bet! In a very colourful racing field that includes Aprilias, Kawasakis, Yamahas, KTMs, and Suzukis, it will be interesting to see where Muhd Hirzi’s lone Cagiva stands.

  There will also be four female superbike racers that will be battling it out this weekend. “There are no barriers to racing at MSF, and we greatly welcome the women to show the way forwards for other women that have a burning motorsports passion,” added Liew. This is in addition to the four female car racers that consistently compete in the car racing segment at MSF, adding to the diversity and proving the opportunity that MSF brings to the Malaysian motorsports scene.

  

  MSF Drift Gonzo
  MSF Drift Gonzo kicks off with a new drift layout that will run in the Sepang Circuit paddock carpark this Saturday, featuring new obstacles such as The Spiral and a new challenge in the form of The San-Patsu.

  The San-Patsu is derived from the Japanese underground drifting world which literally translates to “three movements.” In a single fluid move in third gear at 90 km/h, drifters are expected to smoothly transition the car from left to right and back to left again and having their rear bumper touch the drift poles at each transition spot to score points.

  Sounds easy? Think again! It is a move that requires precision drifting and positioning of the rear bumper of the vehicle close to the drift pole clipping point, and yet still be set up for the next rear clipping point – all at over 90 km/h.

  Previous Drift Gonzo champion at the 2017 Finale round Ivan Choo will most likely not be back to open his defence for the Championship this year, as his turbocharged Nissan 350Z is suffering mechanical problems after an event last weekend. Disabled drifter Pak Busu will be running this weekend in his Toyota Corolla KE70, something to look out for and truly a testament to his passion that his physical disabilities pose no boundaries for the love for his motorsports hobby!

  

  MSF Cars Racing
  This is a round of new activities across the board, including in the main MSF Cars Racing segment which will feature a first ever 10-lap sprint race format with a compulsory three-minute pit stop. Historically MSF races have always been two rolling start races of five laps each, and once a year there is the MSF Enduro, a 35-minute short endurance race with compulsory driver change in the middle, to provide a mix of strategies.

  As MSF edges towards its third year of racing, things have been changed around a bit to create the races more interesting, and with that for 2018 the MSF 10-lap Sprint race format is introduced and planned to run at two rounds, starting with this upcoming Round 2.

  For the race teams, this introduces an element of strategy. Have their driver push at 100% early on to gain track position, then pit in early to let the tyres cool off before continuing the run? Or conserve the tyres and minimise scrubbing, taking advantage of fresher tyres to go longer before the required pit stop? No doubt the teams will be hunched around before the race going over their data and planning the most effective strategy!

  

  The numbers are growing in the two new categories – Super Production and Street 2000. Super Production features current model Toyota Vios and Honda Jazz as well as the odd Myvi taking up the fight. With 11 entrants by the second round, it’s proving to be a tough battleground for these types of vehicles which we usually see driving our roads daily.

  As usual the biggest interest is always in the Race Cars Open category, where the quickest, most brutal, most powerful machine engage head-to-head. In the previous round, Faidzil Alang’s much anticipated drive in the 500 whp Fleetoil Racing Honda Civic EG6 turbo came to an end in the final race he had a coming together with Shazull Hisham’s Smartroleum – Evotec Honda Civic EK9-K24, leaving Mark Darwin to take the win for Sitty-DNT Racing in another Honda Civic EG6-K24.

  The turbocharged Satria 4WD of Millennium Fatboy Racing, also promising to be a contender for the Race Cars Open title after positive pre-season practice time, did not manage to make the grid for the Final due to an issue with a fuel injector. Says team manager Thilak ‘Fatboy’ Sharma: “This round we’re planning to go all out. Karamjit [Singh] will drive first, then Alif [Hamdan] will take over after the pit stop and max it out.”

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  
  

  

  

  

  

  

  
  

   

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• Malaysia Speed Festival Series 2018 Round 1 ends with intense and exciting action across 13 categories

  In Cars, Local News, Motorsports / By Adian Yein Khalid / 2 March 2018 6:07 pm / 3 comments

  

  The first round of the Malaysia Speed Festival Series 2018 (MSF 2018) proved to be a success with 166 cars on the grid, proving that the event is the biggest of its kind despite the Chinese New Year festivities at the time.

  Participants came as far as from Thailand to take part in Sunday’s event, which managed to draw in a crowd numbering 4,210 spectators. There’s was also a good show of support from sponsors such as Hankook Motorsports, Fleetbattery and Fawster Motorsports, to ensure the event ran flawlessly.

  The event featured 13 categories – Super Production, Super 1500 NA, Super Street, Saga Cup Casual, Saga Cup Advance, Saga Cup Pro, Street Tuned Limited, Street 1600 Limited, Street 2000 NA, Proton 1800, Race Cars 1600, Race Cars 1800 and Race Cars Open – some of which have received revisions.

  In the Super Production category, Petropenn-Piston Project’s car #411, driven by Muhammad Roni Misman, dominated both heats of the race to take the win. “Looks like our efforts from last year is finally paying off. We are more motivated to march on to the second round which is expected to be more challenging. The target for this year is definitely to be the champion in this series,” said Roni.

  

  

  Coming in second place is Flex Racing’s car #343 piloted by Hendra Eryawan and Mohd Norhafidzi, which finished 10 seconds behind car #411. Fizzi Motorsports’ entry (Mohd Yusof Muda/Chong Tung Lung) meanwhile, finished in third place.

  The Super Production category, which made its debut over the weekend, allows naturally-aspirated vehicles up to 1,500 cc produced from 2006 onwards to participate. Examples include the Honda Jazz, Toyota Vios, and Perodua Myvi, all of which are pretty popular models in the local market.

  In other selected highlights, the new Street 2000 NA category featured quite a number of Toyota vehicles, particularly the Altezza and GT86. Sixteen-year old Amirul Haikal wowed the competition by securing first place overall with the LMC Racing Team’s GT86 car #825,

  Meanwhile, team SMRT86 came in second place thanks to the efforts of Syed Rizal and Faisal Asri in another GT86. Finally, third place went to the duo of Shazli Mohamed and Fadhlan representing SP Auto Tuning in an Altezza, after a hard-fought battle with Millenium Motorsport’s Proton Wira car #105 driven by Faisal Naim.

  

  

  Moving on to the Race Cars Open category, one of the fastest in the series, the pair of Akid Azlee and Mark Darwin from SITTY-DNT found success by beating out Azlan Malik (WENSO Racing Team) and Shamir Aizan (Smartroluem-Prodrag).

  The race wasn’t without incident, as the first heat demonstrated, with an intense dogfight between Faidzil Alang in car #29 (Fleetoil Racing Team) and Azlan Malik in car #50 (WENSO Racing Team) resulted in an accident when Faidzil attempted to overtake Azlan at turn 15 of the Sepang International Circuit.

  This resulted in Faidzil’s retirement from the race, and left the door wide open for Mark Darwin, who proceeded to overtake Azlan. It was also a heroic drive by Shamir Aizan in car #404, as he started the second heat from last place due to technical issues, but managed to end the session in third.

  The results of each MSF category are as follows:

  Super Production
  1. M.Roni Misman (Petropenn-Piston Project) – 14:34.565
  2. M.Yusuf Muda/Chong Tun Lung (Flex Racing) – 14:44.620
  3. M.Noorhafidzi/Henra (Fizzi Motorsports) – 14:47.631

  Super 1500 NA
  1. Willam Ho/Ricky Siow (Momentum Auto Garage) – 13:56.995
  2. K.Logesvaran (MTRD Sing Boy Racing) – 13:57.174
  3. Keu Shian Shi/Alex Chow (Momentum Auto Garage) – 14:20.039

  Super Street
  1. Azlan Malik/Arep Ahmadi (WENSO Racing Team) – 19:18.163
  2. Chong Tun Lung/Lai Chee Kwin (Speed Racing Motorsports) – 19:21.035
  3. Raja Imran (MR Proworks-Ftuned) – 19:36.329

  Saga Cup Casual
  1. Mohd Jaz/Mohd Hafiz (MERU Speed) – 15:45.429
  2. Nasharuddin Abd Aziz (LOCO Racing) – 15:46.315
  3. Mohd Syaifudin (Team Mode Racing) – 15:47.874

  Saga Cup Advance
  1. Shaiful Zamri (Malkar Racing) – 14:55.455
  2. Lim Lee Hua/Khair Nur (Seng Motorsports) – 15:11.693
  3. M.Aliff/M.Shahril (OneSoulMotorsports) – 15:12.974

  Saga Cup Pro
  1. Tommy Lee (STS Racing Team) – 14:34.725
  2. Damian Dielenberg – 14:38.347
  3. YC Foo/Ken Yap (Fast Racing Team) – 14:41.338

  Street Tuned Limited
  1. Dzamir/Admi Sharul (Suzuka Racing Team) – 19:24.539
  2. Roakhir/Hapizu (Infinity Petropenn) – 19:32.629
  3. Zairi Latif/Faiz Sulaiman (WG-MA Racing Team) – 19:36.407

  Street 1600 Limited
  1. Hazrin/M.Azri (Unixx JMS Tuner) – 19:36.043
  2. Zuhaidi Ishak (Fleetoil Racing Team) – 19:40.150
  3. Hazlami/Muslim (WAKOS RNR) – 19:46.850

  Street 2000 NA
  1. Amirul Haikal (LMC Racing Team) – 19:34.704
  2. Faisal Asri/Syed Rizal (SMRT86) – 19:52.786
  3. Fadhlan/Shazli (SP Auto Tuning) – 20:13.820

  Proton 1800
  1. K.Perajun (DV Motorsports) – 19:33.281
  2. Sukran/Nur Azam (SPRT Motorsports) – 19:42.262
  3. Afiq Haikal (LMC Racing Team) – 19:45.594

  Race Cars 1600
  1. Desmond Yee (N1 Racing Team) – 13:36.683
  2. Syahmi Mahzan/Syahrizal (Ftuned Racing Team) – 13:42.762
  3. Soffiz Hardy/Wan Ahmad Farouk (Ftuned Racing Team) – 14:28.722

  Race Cars 1800
  1. Akid/Mark Darwin (SITTY-DNT) – 13:20.333
  2. Ahmad Shab/Fadzlisham (KanjoR-DNT) – 13:22.832
  3. Lim Puay Soong (Autolite Racing) – 13:32.815

  Race Cars Open
  1. Mark Darwin/Akid (SITTY-DNT) – 12:01.781
  2. Azlan Malik (WENSO Racing Team) – 12:09.338
  3. Shamir Aizan (Smartroluem-Prodrag) – 12:18.976

  

  

  

  

  

  
  

  

  

  

  

  

  
  

   

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• Malaysia Speed Festival 2018 kicks off this weekend

  In Cars, Local News, Motorsports / By Adian Yein Khalid / 20 February 2018 6:23 pm / 1 comment

  

  The Malaysia Speed Festival Series 2018 (MSF 2018) will get underway this weekend at the Sepang International Circuit with a full day of motorsports activities and excitement.

  This will be the eighth year of the championship, for what is the biggest car racing series in the country, providing affordable door-to-door racing for Malaysians; and is popular among racers from surrounding Asian countries to participate in. The MSF Series is all about motor racing for the masses and has been successful in creating a safe yet highly-competitive affordable racing environment.

  MSF Series 2018 will feature six rounds this year:

  • Round 1 – February 25, 2018
  • Round 2 – April 8, 2018
  • Round 3 – July 8, 2018
  • Round 4 – August 31, 2018
  • Round 5 – October 14, 2018
  • Round 6 – December 2, 2018

  This year, the MSF Series expands further by introducing two new important and popular motorsports disciplines – MSF Superbikes and MSF Drift Gonzo, both of which will commence from Round 2. This brings new exhilaration and entertainment to spectators and fans of the MSF Series, intensifying the excitement of witnessing wheel-to-wheel racing.

  

  

  For Round 1 happening this weekend, the cars segment of the MSF Series features new categories – the Super Production category for naturally-aspirated vehicles up to 1,500 cc produced from 2006 onwards, as well as the Street 2000 category for naturally-aspirated production vehicles up to 2000 cc.

  These new categories bring the participating cars in the MSF Series up-to-date with more recent machinery such as the Toyota GT86, Toyota Altezza and Proton Inspira in the Street 2000 category. Meanwhile, you’ll find cars such as the Honda Jazz, Toyota Vios, and Perodua Myvi in the Super Production category.

  The biggest attraction will be the Race Cars Open category, where the most extreme of Malaysian motor-racing machinery take to the circuit for 10 laps of flat out racing in a scramble for glory. There have been urban legends and stories of incredible race car builds, and it is during the MSF Series that these fabled vehicles are put to the ultimate test of both power and reliability.

  The proof of a well-tuned, production-based vehicle is its ability to clock blistering lap times flat-out consistently. This means putting in lap after lap while in the company of the well-known heat that is always evident at the Sepang circuit. Creating big power in a vehicle isn’t difficult, but getting it to last while tackling the corners is what truly marks out an all-round track monster from the rest.

  

  

  During the event, the Saga Cup category continues to be the most thrilling and amusingly close quarters racing that you’ll see on Malaysian soil. This year, the category will be split into three sub-categories to accommodate the number of entrants! The top sub-category known as “Saga Cup Pro” is populated by some of the top Malaysian racing drivers such as Damian Dielenberg, Faidzil Alang, and Alif Hamdan as they battle in similarly-specced cars, placing an emphasis on driving skill above all else.

  Another big news is the introduction of the new Hankook RS4 tyre as the control tyre for MSF Series 2018. There’s plenty of expectations placed on the tyre given the favourable reports from overseas, and the teams and drivers are expecting quicker lap times. The MSF Series will be one of the first racing series in the world to run the RS4 as an official control tyre.

  Local Malaysian suspension specialists Fawster Motorsports have also provided support as an official partner for MSF 2018, as they grow their product range and brand as high-performance handling specialists. The MSF Series will also be supported by Fleet Battery, Malaysian manufacturers of high-powered batteries with high output cold cranking energy.

  Spectators are welcome throughout the day, with ticket prices for paddock access at RM35, while access to the grandstand is free. For more information, visit www.msfracing.com.

  

  

  

  

  

  

  
  

  

  

  

  

  

  
  

   

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• Malaysia Speed Festival (MSF) Round 4 coming July 9

  In Cars, Local News, Motorsports / By Jonathan Lee / 6 July 2017 4:59 pm / 9 comments

  

  Yes, the Malaysia Speed Festival (MSF) will be back at the Sepang International Circuit (SIC) this Sunday, July 9 for Round 4 of the championship – and it’s set to be another action-packed race with more than 150 cars across different classes expected to do battle against each other. The upcoming round will be of particular interest as it is an Enduro round with longer 35 minute races, driver changes and points bonuses.

  In the main Race Car Open category, the Mayhem-Fast Autoworks MaxxOil team’s Keifli Othman has romped off with three wins on the trot, and now leads the championship with an astounding 840 points compared to SITTY-DNT’s Ahmad Akid’s tally of 635 points. The latter managed to leapfrog early favourites such as teammate Mark Darwin, Fastlap Autoworks’ Faidzil Alang and Evotec Racing’s Shazull Hisham.

  Moving on to the Proton 1800 NA class, Eelan from VAG Racing managed to benefit from Ngah Motorsport’s Lau Seng Kiat’s crash in the previous round, as did SPV Automotive’s Nicholas Au. The two of them have closed the gap in the standings with 575 points and 525 points respectively, compared to Lau’s 605 points. Seasoned racer K. Perajun also stands a chance, having won both races in Round 3.

  

  

  Last but not least is the popular Saga Cup, which saw Tommy Lee winning Round 3 in the Expert class. But it was SMRT’s Jay Choong who, after coming second, now leads the championship with 695 points; ST Wangan’s Boy Wong, who lost a wheel, is in second with 630 points. It’s a close race in the Novice class too, with SMRT’s Syed Rizal leading Loco Racing’s Ahmad Faizry with 550 points versus 545 points.

  Other forms of racing that will be present at MSF include Special Kei, Street Tuned and Street Tuned 1,600, Super Street, Super 1500 NA and 1,600 and 1,800 Race Car races. Paddock tickets are priced at RM20 before 11 am on July 9, and RM35 after. For more information, visit MSF Racing’s official website or its Facebook page.

  

  

  

  

  

  

  
  

  

  

  

  

  

  
  

  

  

  

  

  

  
  

   

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• Malaysia Speed Festival (MSF) MegaLap Time Attack Series 2017 – Round 1 happening in Sepang on May 20

  In Cars, Local News, Motorsports / By Jonathan Lee / 5 May 2017 1:48 pm / 0 comment

  

  The Malaysia Speed Festival (MSF) will return to the Sepang International Circuit (SIC) for Round 3 on May 21, but the festivities will kick off the day before with Round 1 of the MSF MegaLap Time Attack Series. Spectators will be able to watch some of the quickest tuned street cars take to the track in order to set the fastest time over one flying lap.

  One of the top contenders will be the Mercedes-Benz A 45 AMG prepared by AHM Technik and driven by Alif Hamdan, who will be gunning for a lap time of under 2 minutes 30 seconds. “We were able to do a 2 minute 34 second lap during MSF Round 2 racing last month on street tyres, and looking at the data our target of 2 minute 29 seconds should be achievable on semi-slick tyres,” he said.

  However, the planned debut of Alif’s highly-modified Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VI, nicknamed Blue Arrow, has been scuppered as large changes were required after its last test session at SIC last month. The car was famous for setting the second fastest time in the Open Class at the 2012 World Time Attack Challenge.

  “We’re disappointed not to be able to make it this round as we’re hoping to set a new Sepang Circuit lap record for street-based saloon cars, but we’ll definitely be there for the final in December!” Alif said.

  

  Aside from top-level track monsters, MegaLap Time Attack will also cater to less powerful machines, with classes for engine capacities not exceeding 1,600 cc (with lap times expected to dip below 2 minutes 40 seconds) as well as for automatic and CVT-equipped vehicles with engines smaller than 2,000 cc.

  The day will also play host a Retro Havoc vehicle gathering and barbecue – one of Malaysia’s largest custom car shows, it will showcase retro and custom vehicles from Malaysia as well as around the region. The gathering will run from afternoon until nighttime.

  Participants can register for the MegaLap Time Attack by going onto MSF Racing’s official website. Pricing for spectator access runs at RM20, with the Retro Havoc gathering and barbecue priced from RM30 per person. More details can be found on the MegaLap Time Attack website.

  

   

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• Keifli Othman wins Round 1 of Malaysia Speed Festival (MSF), Boy Wong clinches Saga Cup victories

  In Cars, Local News, Motorsports / By Jonathan Lee / 3 March 2017 11:24 am / 2 comments

  

  Malaysian racer Keifli Othman made a flying start to his race campaign for the 2017 Malaysia Speed Festival (MSF) last weekend, winning both races in the Race Car Open category in the opening round. The Mayhem-Fast Autoworks MaxxOil driver beat out Fast Lap Autoworks’ Faidzil Alang and SITTY-DNT’s Mark Darwin, repeating the form that the former Formula Asia champion showed in pre-season testing.

  “This is a fantastic result for the team and a redemption of my failed attempt last season,” said Keifli. “It’s still early days in the championship and I don’t expect my rivals to be pleased with their results today. We expect them to improve in the coming races, which means that we just got to work much harder to keep this momentum and hopefully reward us with the title that we missed out last season.”

  Meanwhile, the absence of top drifter Tengku Djan Ley and GT racer Fariqe Hairuman meant that ST Wangan’s Boy Wong stormed away with both victories in the Saga Cup Expert category, beating JNA Racing Team’s Alif Hamdan and even managing to keep up with the Super 1,500 NA cars initially in the first race.

  

  “I made a good start and it certainly paid off as I knew that things were going to be chaotic at Turn 1, especially with a large grid,” said Wong. “Staying out of trouble was key and I had a feeling that the guys behind me had some issues which made the job easier for me. As for the next race, I expect my rivals to come back stronger but I´m prepared for it and looking forward to a tightly-contested battle.”

  The Malaysia Speed Festival returns to the Sepang International Circuit (SIC) for Round 2 on April 16. Paddock tickets for the race are priced at RM20 before 11 am on race day, and RM35 after. For more information and full race results, visit MSF Racing’s official website or its Facebook page.

  

  

  

  

  

  

  
  

  

  

  

  

  

  
  

  

  

  

  

  

  
  

   

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• Malaysia Speed Festival (MSF) – Proton to support up to 8 R3 Customer Racing Programme teams in Sepang

  In Cars, Local News, Motorsports, Proton / By Anthony Lim / 16 February 2017 4:09 pm / 3 comments

  

  The Malaysia Speed Festival (MSF) will kick off its second season next weekend at the Sepang International Circuit (SIC). Round 1 of the racing series, previously known as Saturday Night Fever (SNF) will take place on Sunday, February 26.

  The close racing series proved to be a hit in its inaugural year, with nearly 300 drivers participating last year behind the wheel of 149 different race cars, and the organiser expects these numbers to be maintained in 2017.

  There’s plenty of racing variety to be found in the MSF, including Special Kei, Super 1,500 NA, Proton 1,800 NA, Street Tuned and Street Tuned 1,600, Super Street and 1,600 and 1,800 Race Car races. There’s also the Race Car Open category, which features cars that have been professionally prepared and tuned for maximum performance, pairing professional racers with top racing tuners across Malaysia.

  A highlight of the series is the Saga Cup category, a revival of the Proton Saga Championship of the 1990s, which became a stepping stone for many of Malaysia’s racing legends. The new championship is split into two categories, Expert and Novice – with the former being the stamping ground of the country’s top racers as well as its racing legends from the ’80s and ’90s, who will fight tooth and nail for the win.

  

  

  Proton R3 will be in the mix this season, supporting up to eight of its R3 Customer Racing Programme (R3CRP) customers, who will be deploying cars in the 1600 Race Car class and the Saga Cup class.

  The R3CRP, which began last year, offers both racing and rallying to interested parties, with teams or individuals able to gain access to the outfit’s race-winning machinery for both racing disciplines.

  For something like the Saga Cup, it’ll cost something like RM25k for R3 to do up a full race-prepped Saga. This is on top of the purchase price of a base car, which the customer has to source out himself. There’s also the option to have R3 supplying a race crew and hospitality services, at additional cost.

  Tickets for Round 1 of the MSF are priced at RM20 before 11 am on February 26, and RM35 after. For more information, visit MSF Racing’s official website or its Facebook page.

  

  

  

  

  

  
  

   

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• Malaysia Speed Festival (MSF) 2017 kicks off Feb 26

  In Cars, Local News, Motorsports / By Jonathan Lee / 14 February 2017 5:33 pm / 8 comments

  

  The Malaysia Speed Festival (MSF) is returning to the Sepang International Circuit (SIC) next weekend for its second season in its current format. The racing series, previously known as Saturday Night Fever (SNF), promises to deliver yet more close racing, with both amateur and professional drivers battling on the track in production-based racing cars.

  Round 1 of the 2017 season will begin next Sunday, February 26. The series has proved a hit in its inaugural year, with nearly 300 drivers participating over the course of the year, behind the wheel of as many as 149 race cars. The organiser expects these numbers to be maintained in 2017.

  There will likely not be a shortage of talent on hand – the roster of racers who have competed at MSF last year includes top drifter (and Lotus Cars Malaysia head) Tengku Djan Ley, rally legend Karamjit Singh, GT racer Fariqe Hairuman, Formula Asia champion Keifli Othman and Malaysia Super Series champions Boy Wong and Faidzil Alang.

  

  Female racers such as Boey Chai, Geraldine Read, Nursharina Binti Nor Ramlle and Faye Kusairi have also taken to the track, while this year will see the entry of teenage brothers Afiq Haikal and Amirul Haikal, age 15 and 16 respectively – experienced go-karters who will make their debuts in sedan racing.

  A highlight of the series is the Saga Cup category, a revival of the Proton Saga Championship of the 1990s, which became a stepping stone for many of Malaysia’s racing legends. The new championship is split into two categories, Expert and Novice – with the former being the stamping ground of the country’s top racers as well as its racing legends from the ’80s and ’90s, who will fight tooth and nail for the win.

  

  

  Another top attraction is the Race Car Open category – this top-flight racing series features cars that have been professionally prepared and tuned for maximum performance, pairing professional racers with top racing tuners across Malaysia.

  Other forms of racing that will be present at MSF include Special Kei, Super 1,500 NA, Proton 1,800 NA, Street Tuned and Street Tuned 1,600, Super Street and 1,600 and 1,800 Race Car races. Paddock tickets for the race are priced at RM20 before 11 am on February 26, and RM35 after. For more information, visit MSF Racing’s official website or its Facebook page.

  

  

  

  

  

  

  
  

   

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