The skies opened ahead of Moto2™ lining up on the grid in Malaysia, with Johann Zarco (Ajo Motorsport) facing down his first chance at the Championship from a soaked pole position – but the Frenchman played his hand perfectly to take an unbelievable win, in front of more impressive podium finishes for Franco Morbidelli (Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS) and wet weather specialist Jonas Folger (Dynavolt Intact GP). With Tom Luthi (Garage Plus Interwetten) finishing in P6 and Alex Rins (Paginas Amarillas HP40) outside the top ten, Zarco took the crown in stunning style.
Folger got the holeshot as the spray kicked up off the start line, with Morbidelli then soon taking him back as polesitter Zarco slotted into third. Title rival Tom Luthi moved from P5 to P8 in the opening stages as the Swiss rider remained cautious in the difficult conditions, with third Championship challenger Alex Rins moving up ten places from 23rd on the grid to 13th in an impressive early gain. Zarco, 22 points clear of Luthi and a few more of Rins, was the one with the advantage.
An early crash saw some drama in the intermediate class follow that of Moto3™, as Sam Lowes (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) slid out followed by Mattia Pasini (Italtrans Racing Team) at the same corner – before front row starter Axel Pons (AGR Team) then also retired in the difficult conditions.
Morbidelli led the field from Zarco after the Frenchman took Folger back, with Xavier Simeon (QMMF Racing Team) in fourth and local rider Hafizh Syahrin (Petronas Raceline Malaysia) moving into the top five. Luthi then had a shaky lap as he was passed by both Marquez and Lorenzo Baldassarri (Forward Racing Team), with the second man in the title standings down in P8 – but the rain then stopping and conditions improving steadily.
As Simeon was reeled in by those on the chase, Rins was on the fight back further back on track – with the Spaniard moving up into the top ten by 13 laps to go – but was out of title contention. As Luthi struggled in the conditions, the two men in Zarco’s way were then down in P8 and P9 and the title got ever closer for the Ajo Motorsport rider.
The front trio of Morbidelli, Zarco and Folger were locked in a game of chess at the front, as the German kept setting the quickest laps of the three, before Zarco pounced for the lead with 6 laps to go – and disappeared into the distance as he tucked in and pulled away from Morbidelli.
Another win, after another pole, and another intermediate class crown – the first man to defend the Moto2™ title since its introduction in 2010.
Baldassarri came home in a lonely fourth after getting the better of those behind but unable to catch the front trio, with home hero Hafizh Syahrin getting a good pay off for his battles throughout the race as he completed the top five.
Tom Luthi finished the race in P6 after finding some more pace later in the race – but was unable to stop the Frenchman from taking the title. Fellow hopeful Alex Rins, after starting in P23, came home in fourteenth to similarly bow out in Malaysia.
An incredible ride from Alex Marquez (Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS) saw the 2014 Moto3™ World Champion move up from a difficult qualifying in P21 to fight for P4, and then cross the line in seventh – gaining 14 places in tough conditions.
Xavi Vierge (Tech 3 Racing) made good on his practice showings at Sepang to ride through the field into an impressive top ten position, as the 2015 FIM CEV Repsol Moto2™ championship runner-up came home in P8. Luca Marini (Forward Racing Team) split the Tech 3 Racing Team in P9 in tough conditions, with the second Tech 3 of Isaac Viñales completing the top ten as all three took some serious scalps on their way to big points hauls.
Wildcard Ramdan Rosli (Petronas AHM Malaysia) had a stunning ride at his home GP, as he came home in twelfth and ahead of some usual Moto2™ frontrunners.
The curtain came down with a wheelie across the line as Zarco cemented his place in history once again – becoming the first Frenchman to win more than one Championship in Grand Prix Racing, followed by a trackside celebration as both he and a body double did a signature backflip.
Next stop: Valencia, and the Circuit Ricardo Tormo – where Rins, Morbidelli and Luthi will now have their final showdown behind the new World Champion in the table.
SHELL MALAYSIA MOTORCYCLE GRAND PRIX
Moto2 Race Classification 2016.
| Pos. | Points | Num. | Rider | Nation | Team | Bike | Km/h | Time/Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 25 | 5 | Johann ZARCO | FRA | Ajo Motorsport | Kalex | 137.8 | 45’51.036 |
| 2 | 20 | 21 | Franco MORBIDELLI | ITA | Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS | Kalex | 137.6 | +3.256 |
| 3 | 16 | 94 | Jonas FOLGER | GER | Dynavolt Intact GP | Kalex | 137.6 | +3.689 |
| 4 | 13 | 7 | Lorenzo BALDASSARRI | ITA | Forward Team | Kalex | 136.7 | +21.428 |
| 5 | 11 | 55 | Hafizh SYAHRIN | MAL | Petronas Raceline Malaysia | Kalex | 136.5 | +24.700 |
| 6 | 10 | 12 | Thomas LUTHI | SWI | Garage Plus Interwetten | Kalex | 136.5 | +26.184 |
| 7 | 9 | 73 | Alex MARQUEZ | SPA | Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS | Kalex | 136.4 | +28.177 |
| 8 | 8 | 97 | Xavi VIERGE | SPA | Tech 3 Racing | Tech 3 | 136.3 | +28.855 |
| 9 | 7 | 10 | Luca MARINI | ITA | Forward Team | Kalex | 136.3 | +29.247 |
| 10 | 6 | 32 | Isaac VIÑALES | SPA | Tech 3 Racing | Tech 3 | 136.3 | +29.969 |
| 11 | 5 | 24 | Simone CORSI | ITA | Speed Up Racing | Speed Up | 136.2 | +30.866 |
| 12 | 4 | 93 | Ramdan ROSLI | MAL | Petronas AHM Malaysia | Kalex | 136.2 | +31.260 |
| 13 | 3 | 87 | Remy GARDNER | AUS | Tasca Racing Scuderia Moto2 | Kalex | 136.2 | +31.793 |
| 14 | 2 | 40 | Alex RINS | SPA | Paginas Amarillas HP 40 | Kalex | 136.1 | +34.697 |
| 15 | 1 | 19 | Xavier SIMEON | BEL | QMMF Racing Team | Speed Up | 135.5 | +46.669 |
| 16 | 2 | Jesko RAFFIN | SWI | Sports-Millions-EMWE-SAG | Kalex | 135.3 | +49.126 | |
| 17 | 11 | Sandro CORTESE | GER | Dynavolt Intact GP | Kalex | 135.3 | +49.293 | |
| 18 | 52 | Danny KENT | GBR | Leopard Racing | Kalex | 135.2 | +51.610 | |
| 19 | 57 | Edgar PONS | SPA | Paginas Amarillas HP 40 | Kalex | 135.1 | +54.949 | |
| 20 | 23 | Marcel SCHROTTER | GER | AGR Team | Kalex | 135.0 | +55.461 | |
| 21 | 30 | Takaaki NAKAGAMI | JPN | IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia | Kalex | 134.4 | +1’08.613 | |
| 22 | 27 | Iker LECUONA | SPA | CarXpert Interwetten | Kalex | 134.0 | +1’16.574 | |
| 23 | 54 | Mattia PASINI | ITA | Italtrans Racing Team | Kalex | 133.6 | +1’25.838 | |
| 24 | 14 | Ratthapark WILAIROT | THA | IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia | Kalex | 131.9 | +2’01.635 | |
| Not Classified | ||||||||
| 20 | Alessandro NOCCO | ITA | Leopard Racing | Kalex | 131.1 | 7 Laps | ||
| 70 | Robin MULHAUSER | SWI | CarXpert Interwetten | Kalex | 130.7 | 14 Laps | ||
| 49 | Axel PONS | SPA | AGR Team | Kalex | 130.5 | 18 Laps | ||
| 22 | Sam LOWES | GBR | Federal Oil Gresini Moto2 | Kalex | 128.2 | 18 Laps | ||
Moto2 World Standing 2016.
| Pos. | Rider | Bike | Nation | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Johann ZARCO | Kalex | FRA | 251 |
| 2 | Thomas LUTHI | Kalex | SWI | 214 |
| 3 | Alex RINS | Kalex | SPA | 203 |
| 4 | Franco MORBIDELLI | Kalex | ITA | 197 |
| 5 | Sam LOWES | Kalex | GBR | 162 |
| 6 | Jonas FOLGER | Kalex | GER | 159 |
| 7 | Takaaki NAKAGAMI | Kalex | JPN | 159 |
| 8 | Lorenzo BALDASSARRI | Kalex | ITA | 125 |
| 9 | Hafizh SYAHRIN | Kalex | MAL | 117 |
| 10 | Simone CORSI | Speed Up | ITA | 98 |
| 11 | Dominique AEGERTER | Kalex | SWI | 71 |
| 12 | Alex MARQUEZ | Kalex | SPA | 69 |
| 13 | Mattia PASINI | Kalex | ITA | 63 |
| 14 | Sandro CORTESE | Kalex | GER | 61 |
| 15 | Marcel SCHROTTER | Kalex | GER | 58 |
| 16 | Axel PONS | Kalex | SPA | 55 |
| 17 | Xavier SIMEON | Speed Up | BEL | 46 |
| 18 | Julian SIMON | Speed Up | SPA | 40 |
| 19 | Luis SALOM | Kalex | SPA | 37 |
| 20 | Luca MARINI | Kalex | ITA | 34 |
| 21 | Miguel OLIVEIRA | Kalex | POR | 33 |
| 22 | Xavi VIERGE | Tech 3 | SPA | 33 |
| 23 | Danny KENT | Kalex | GBR | 28 |
| 24 | Isaac VIÑALES | Tech 3 | SPA | 19 |
| 25 | Jesko RAFFIN | Kalex | SWI | 14 |
| 26 | Remy GARDNER | Kalex | AUS | 8 |
| 27 | Anthony WEST | Suter | AUS | 6 |
| 28 | Ratthapark WILAIROT | Kalex | THA | 6 |
| 29 | Ramdan ROSLI | Kalex | MAL | 4 |
| 30 | Robin MULHAUSER | Kalex | SWI | 4 |
| 31 | Edgar PONS | Kalex | SPA | 4 |
| 32 | Tetsuta NAGASHIMA | Kalex | JPN | 2 |
| 33 | Federico FULIGNI | Kalex | ITA | |
| 34 | Steven ODENDAAL | Kalex | RSA | |
| 35 | Alessandro TONUCCI | Kalex | ITA | |
| 36 | Iker LECUONA | Kalex | SPA | |
| 37 | Ricard CARDUS | Suter | SPA | |
| 38 | Naomichi URAMOTO | Kalex | JPN | |
| 39 | Efren VAZQUEZ | Suter | SPA | |
| 40 | Taro SEKIGUCHI | TSR | JPN | |
| 41 | Alessandro NOCCO | ITA | ||
| 42 | Danny ESLICK | Suter | USA |
Credits : Photos and content courtesy of MotoGP.com
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Wing Hin Motorsports Looks To Japan To Expand Its Driver Development Program![]()
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“This is a strong result to kickstart the season but the development process continues and both drivers acknowledge that the challenges ahead will get tougher.”![]()
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Wing Hin Motorsports’ Driver Development Program received a huge boost when two of its drivers finished the opening round of the Japanese Toyota GAZOO Racing GR86/BRZ Clubman Series in 2nd and 6th positions at Autopolis Circuit.![]()
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Malaysia’s Mitchell Cheah got off to a dream start in his racing debut in Japan when he powered the Wing Hin Motorsports GR86 to a hard-fought 2nd place.![]()
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Wing Hin Motorsports Looks To Japan To Expand Its Driver Development Program![]()
![]()
“This is a strong result to kickstart the season but the development process continues and both drivers acknowledge that the challenges ahead will get tougher.”![]()
![]()
Wing Hin Motorsports’ Driver Development Program received a huge boost when two of its drivers finished the opening round of the Japanese Toyota GAZOO Racing GR86/BRZ Clubman Series in 2nd and 6th positions at Autopolis Circuit.![]()
![]()
Malaysia’s Mitchell Cheah got off to a dream start in his racing debut in Japan when he powered the Wing Hin Motorsports GR86 to a hard-fought 2nd place.![]()
![]()
The 2026 Toyota GAZOO Racing GR86/BRZ Cup will be run over seven rounds. From the season-opener at Autopolis, the Series moves to Round 2 from 16-17 May at Sportsland Sugo, followed by Round 3 from 27-28 June at Okayama International Circuit; and Round 4 from 8-9 August at the Tokachi Speedway. Round 5 will be held at Fuji Speedway from 5-6 September, followed by Round 6 from 3-4 October at Suzuka Circuit before the 7th and final round at Mobility Resort Montegi from 21-22 November.
Wing Hin Motorsports Looks To Japan To Expand Its Driver Development Program![]()
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Having won the Toyota GAZOO Racing GR86/BRZ Clubman Series last year, Malaysia’s Wing Hin Motorsports is doubling down on its’s presence in Japan to establish a gateway for the rise of racing talent from Asia.![]()
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In collaboration with Masahiro Sasaki, a Gazoo Racing and Rookie Racing driver, the Malaysian team will field two drivers at the opening of the 2026 Toyota GAZOO Racing GR86/BRZ Clubman Series this weekend as part of its Driver Development Program. Wing Hin Motorsports had won the Series in its debut last year with Naquib Azlan and also clinched a 4th place overall with a second Malaysian driver Amer Harris.![]()
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