2 Indonesian Riders Start From The Third Row Of MotoGP Junior Mandalika

Indonesian Astra Honda Racing Team (AHM) riders during the IDEMITSU Asia Talent Cup (IATC) qualifying session (Photo: Antara)

JAKARTA - Three Indonesian racers will start the race from the third row of the IDEMITSU Asia Talent Cup (IATC) or MotoGP Junior which will be held at Pertamina Mandalika International Street Circuit, Central Lombok Regency, West Nusa Tenggara, Sunday.

The three riders from the Astra Honda Racing Team (AHM), namely Fadillah Arbi Aditama, managed to become the fastest in the qualifying session which was held on Saturday.

Another rider is Reykat Yusuf Fadillah who made his debut and made a surprise by getting the ninth starting position, followed by Herjun Firdaus, who will fill the 10th position on the grid.

Behind them, four other Indonesian AHM riders started from the fourth row, namely Azryan Dheyo's 12th start position. Meanwhile, Herlian Dandi and Veda Ega Pratama will start from positions 14 and 15, respectively.

"In adapting the track in the free practice (FP) session, I have studied several corners which I think need to be found at the maximum point. I tried several braking points so that the exit can be fast," said Fadillah Arbi Aditama, as reported by Antara, Sunday.

According to him, the time achieved in the qualifying session is still not too good, but already has the provisions to face qualifying practice (QP).

He also admitted that it was a bit difficult to find time records in the early days of QP because he was trapped in a crowded group.

"When I tried to move and make efforts to catch up to the front row, I was able to achieve my best record. Indeed, I can't be on the front row yet. But it is enough for my capital to fight for the podium in the race later," said Fadillah.

Meanwhile, Reykat Yusuf Fadillah, made his wildcard debut and made a surprise by getting the ninth starting position.

He admitted that he tried to learn from racers who had experience during FP, so they could understand the character of the track and how to deal with it. In the QP session, he also tried to focus on racing with other riders.

"My attempt was quite precise because my lap time immediately jumped at the beginning of QP. But I lost control when I was only on lap two and experienced a low side. After that, I tried to try again to make an effort to get a better lap time and in the end I started from ninth position during the race later," said Reykat.

The Astra Honda Racing Team Indonesia riders will have two races on Sunday, which is the second round in the final series of this year's racing season.

They are determined to continue the good feeling they got during the qualifying session. The two rounds of the race will start at 13.00 WITA and 17.00 WITA respectively.