Malaysia to make MotoGP history

Quartararo are the two who have been chosen.

The team’s official launch is expected to come at the Silverstone round next week.

But who exactly are Morbidelli and Quartararo and how will they be able to benefit this Malaysian team?

Morbidelli, 23, and Quartararo, 19, are young riders who have both, at one point or another in their careers, been tipped to be future world champions.

Currently racing with Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS, Morbidelli is has made a decent start to his career in the premier class and is only two points behind Hafizh in the rookie standings.

Hafizh leads with 24 points. Morbidelli joined Moto2 as a full season rider in 2014 and it only took him a year before notching his first podium finish at Indiana in 2015.

He made the step up to MotoGP after winning the Moto2 world championship title last year with a massive 65 point advantage over second placed Tom Luthi of Switzerland after winning eight races.

Morbidelli, who is of ItalianBrazilian parentage, is also well known for his affiliation with seven-time premier class world champion Valentino Rossi.

Morbidelli is a product of the VR46 academy and Rossi is widely regarded as his mentor and close friend.

Quantararo, who is currently racing in Moto2 with Speed Up Racing, had in the past been tipped to follow in the footsteps of Marc Marquez after managing some impressive results in the lower championships at a very young age.

The Nice-born rider had won six Spanish Championship titles prior to moving up to Moto3 in 2015 as a 15-year-old.

He had a decent debut season then with two podium finishes but lacked results in 2016 and also in 2017, when he made moved up to Moto2.

Quartararo, however, has shown glimpses of his potential this year, winning his first race at Barcelona and then followed it up with second-place at Assen.

Both riders undoubtedly have the potential to put in a strong challenge on behalf of this new Malaysian team next year.

Good results for the team will be important to not only ensure crew moral remains high but to also give major sponsors a reason to continue backing the team.

Hafizh has done well on Tech3's Yamaha YZR-M1 this season but how he fares on their new KTM's next year remains a huge question mark.

His contract with Tech3 will end at the end of next season and there is always the possibility of him moving to the SIC outfit - and back on Yamaha machinery - in 2020.

Razlan has in the past made it clear that this new team are intended to provide a platform for qualified Malaysian riders to compete at the highest level, not just Hafizh.

If a Malaysian does well in Moto2 next season, a move up to the premier class could be possible in 2020.