Hafizh Syahrin Abdullah’s hopes of finishing within the points in the Argentina Grand Prix (MotoGP) went up in smoke as the PETRONAS Raceline Malaysia rider could only manage to finish the Moto2 race 20th on Sunday.
Held at the Termas de Rio Hondo Circuit, Hafizh had a rocket start and was running in 10th in the first lap. Unfortunately, handling issues with his Kalex saw him run wide the following lap while fighting with the midfielders and he gradually dropped down the order.
In the end, the 19-year old completed the race in 20th in 40’49.717s, three spots below his starting position (17th).
Meanwhile poleman, Esteve Rabat took his second win for the season, leading the race uninterrupted from start to finish with 40’06.114s while Xavier Simeon and Luis Salom rounded up the podium steps with 40’08.208s and 40’09.816s.
“I had a perfect take off and was able to get a good position in the first lap. Unfortunately I faced some troubles with the handling. I tried to push still hoping to finish with championship points but the more I push, the more I ran wide especially at the hairpin section of the track. I apologize to everyone for not being able to deliver here in Argentina,” said Hafizh.
“Now we look forward to the next race at Jerez. But first we need to identify the problem because this is the second time it has happened to me,” he added.
PETRONAS Raceline Malaysia team manager, Barry Leong commented, “It was quite unusual for Hafizh to have handling issues when he was doing so well in the practice and qualifying. We will try our best to look into this matter and make sure it does not happen again.”
Race Results
1.Esteve Rabat (SPA) 40’06.114s 2.Xavier Simeon (BEL) 40’08.208s 3.Luis Salom (SPA) 40’09.816s 4.Daminique Aegerter (SWI) 40’10.982s 5.Simone Corsi (ITA) 40’11.124s Selected 20.Hafizh Syahrin Abdullah (MAS) 40’49.717s
