Bangladesh pro-racer Avik Anwar clinched P2 overall in Race 1 of Round 1 in the ongoing Malaysia Championship Series 2023 at Sepang International Circuit, located in the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur Saturday.
Starting at Grid 3 in the multi-class racing event, Avik grabbed his sixth podium in the Malaysia Championship Series driving Honda Civic (in Touring Production category), finishing 22 laps in 1 hour and 1 minute with the best lap time of 2.29 minutes at the 5543-meter-long track.
Avik was just 14.36 seconds behind P1.
Another Bangladesh racer participating in the championship – 21-year old Aiman Sadat however, was DNF (Did Not Finish) after the drive shaft of his Honda FD2r broke down in the 43rd minute of the race.
Sharing his jubilation with Dhaka Tribune at the Sepang Circuit, Avik informed that the scorching temperature of the newly laid track was tough to handle but that he never lost focus.
According to the race commentator, the temperature of the track on the day had clocked 58 degrees Celsius.
So intense was the heat that Avik's brake pads were literally on fire when he pitted in the 35th minute of the race.
Also Read: Avik, Aiman aim to fight for podium in Malaysia Championship Series
“It was hot but I tried my best. Probably lost two kilos of my weight. The car was hot so I couldn't push. The indicators were giving warnings. I had to catch up with everyone but I think eventually I did a good job. I will try my best tomorrow [Sunday in Race 2] against some tough competitors on this newly laid track,” said Avik.
Avik in Race 2 will start at Grid 2 against the same opponents and at the same venue Sunday with a time penalty of 12 seconds during his pit stop.
A time penalty to the minimum compulsory pit stop duration is added to the top three finishers of the race.
P1 of Race 1 is handed 15 seconds penalty time, 12 seconds to P2 and 8 seconds is added to the pit stop time of P3.
Aiman (in Stock Production 1 category) on the other hand will start at Grid 15.
The Malaysia Championship Series is a national racing series promoted and organized by Sepang International Circuit as an initiative to promote and develop 4-wheel racing sports in Malaysia.
The series originated from the old Malaysian Super Series championship, which was introduced in 2002 – three years after Formula 1 first came into the Malaysian shores as Sepang International Circuit took advantage of the renewed interest in motorsports amongst Malaysians.
The series was rebranded as the Malaysia Championship Series in 2015 to inject further interest and excitement into the series.
