• Round 2 of the 2018 Pirelli Malaysia Superbike Championship saw see-saw results for the TOC Automotive College-backed TOC-HKM Racing Team.

• However, the team’s technicians did a great job to restore one heavily and another slightly damaged bikes.

• Team rider Amirul Hafiq Azmi won the Superstock Race 2 and finished 2^nd in the Superbike Race 2 at the Sepang International Circuit.

In campaigning in the 2018 Pirelli Malaysia Superbike Championship Round 2 at the Sepang International Circuit,  TOC HKM Racing Team had started the event well initially; Amirul Hafiq Azmi fought his way up the field from his 11^th qualifying grid to finish 2^nd behind a hard-charging Azroy Hakeem, in Saturday’s Superstock Race 1.

The team’s BMW S 1000 RR was well-prepared has the speed and Amirul Hafiq has the skill but Azroy was already too far in front to chase down.

However, he crashed spectacularly in the subsequent Superbike Race 1 and destroying the bike in the process. He was holding on to 3^rd position at that moment.

His teammate Muhammad Jamalul Tarmizi, on the other hand, was caught in a see-saw battle with Thailand’s Michael Muesel, often swapping positions. However, just a handful of laps left to go, Muhammad Jamalul overshot a corner and low-sided in the gravel trap. He was able to pick the bike back up and crossed the line in 15^th. (Please click on the link below for a detailed report.)

2018 Pirelli Malaysia Superbike Championship (MSBK) Round 2 (Saturday)

Not a very good day to remember.

TOC HKM Racing Team’s crew worked through the early Sunday morning to repair Amirul Hafiq’s bike for Race 2 of the Superstock and Superbike categories.

In Superstock Race 2, Amirul Hafiq once again charged up the field and closed the gap to Azroy Hakeem and shadowed the latter from Lap 5. Amirul Hafiq made his move by outbraking Azroy into Turn 4 (a great feat by its own) and pulled away immediately to win the race.

Next was Superbike Race 2. While Azlan Shah Kamaruzan and Rajini Krishnan of India blasted off into the distance, Amirul battled with a number of riders into 4^th. Rajini then overshot Turn 9 and dropped to fifth. That meant the Swiss rider Jonathan Serrapica was in 2^nd. Amirul hunted down Serrapica mercilessly and passed the rider to take 2^nd spot which he held on until the finish.

Muhammad Jamalul also rode a smart race on the TOC HKM Racing Team Kawasaki ZX-10R to cross the line in 6^th.

Sunday’s comeback showed the experience and resilience of the team and they did an amazing job to go from a trashed bike into a race-winning machine. In fact, pundits in the paddock were adamant that it was the end of the TOC HKM Racing Team for this round following the previous day’s misfortunes.

But this demonstrates what we’ve been harping about in the last few articles: If Certified Technicians are important outside the racetrack, they are crucial (to the stage of performing miracles) during a race weekend. To cite what Dato’ Ahmad Razlan Razali said during our interview last week, the developments in racing activities creates a huge demand for certified and trained technicians. The results today showed what he said was correct.

The TOC Automotive College upped the ante in projecting their branding from this round, by putting up boards of their Bina Bakat program and also the Superbike Technician Course in the paddocks.

Please visit TOC Automotive College’s Facebook page or their campus (map below) or call call (+603) 7960 8833 for more information. Likewise, you can find more information about the TOC Bina Bakat Program here, or email info@toc.edu.my. Please click on this link for further information on the TOC Superbike Technician Course.