Hafizh Syahrin grabs four points in Le Mans

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s MotoGP rookie rider Hafizh Syahrin Abdullah fought hard to earn championship points at the France Grand Prix in Le Mans on Sunday.

The Monster Yamaha Tech3 rider clocked 42 minutes 24.735 seconds to settle for a 12th place in the 27-lap race.

Hafizh Syahrin earned four championship points for his effort and he currently stood in 17th place in the overall championship standings with a total of 13 points.

“In the race, I was feeling very good, but it’s a shame that I did a bad start and then I was behind a slow group, I had to pass one by one.

“I know that my pace was very strong and I think I could have been inside the top 10 with this, but it’s difficult to pass on this track and you also need to be really brave to pass in the first corner. I tried it many times but in the end, I lost to a faster group in front.

“This is a nice experience for me and I try to learn and understand for the next races. Also, my confidence is coming back. In Mugello, I hope I can give my best again, I try to stay focused and work hard on my physical condition and my riding,” said Hafizh as quoted in the team’s website.

Hafizh Syahrin’s best result after five rounds so far, was a ninth place finish in the second round in Argentina last month.

Meanwhile, the other Malaysian rider, Khairul Idham Pawi of Idemitsu Honda Team Asia, earned his first championship point of the season after coming home 15th in the Moto2 race.

He is now in 25th spot in the Moto2 standings with one point.

In Moto3 class, it was a frustrating end for the Petronas Sprinta Racing rider, Adam Norrodin when he crashed out with one lap to go. - Bernama