Qatar race seems like ages ago, says Khairul

Khairul Idham Pawi raced in the first round of the MotoGP season in Qatar in March but the Covid-19 pandemic forced him to come home and kept him away from racing.

With the season about to resume, Moto2 Malaysian rider is itching to return – because the race in Qatar feels like it was ages ago.

“It feels like the Qatar GP was back in 2019. We all know it won’t be a normal season, racing without fans, with a limited staff, the paddock half empty, but I think we all understand that this is the only way we can start again.

“We will race again in July. I am really excited about the restart. We will race in Europe with the possibility of doing some overseas races,” said the 21-year-old.

The MotoGP world championship will resume with two back-to-back races at the Jerez Circuit in Spain in the middle of next month. A minimum of 12 races are planned for Europe and possibly more if the calendar is expanded to include fly-away venues in Thailand, Malaysia, United States and Argentina towards the end of the year.

Petronas Sprinta Racing’s Khairul is keeping his fingers crossed.

“Hopefully, everything keeps going the right way and we can come back soon to normal life. I started to ride a bike since last week and I could also ride at Sepang International Circuit. It’s incredible to have the opportunity to train outdoors in such facilities. I am really grateful.

“I just look forward to travelling to Europe and racing again.”

The Perak-born Khairul, however, will have to wait for the nod from the Malaysian government to give him special permission to leave for Spain next month.