SIC out from MotoGP, Moto2 & Moto3 in 2022.

The Malaysian media had a Q&A session with Sepang International Circuit (SIC) CEO Azhan Shafriman on the 16^th of August 2021 to find out the status of SIC in the Motogp, Moto2 and Moto3 following the announcement by Petronas that they will no longer be sponsoring the premier class and the two other classes next season.

Azhan Shafriman, or more affectionately known as Shaf clarifies that with Petronas pulling out, the Premier class (Motogp) will be running independently under the current team principal Dato’ Razlan Razali. It is understood that currently Dato’ Razlan is sourcing for potential main sponsor to keep the team running for 2022 season. Will this mean that Yamaha will not be considering giving the team full factory support and the team will remain a satellite team? As for Moto2 and Moto3, it spells the end for these two classes with SIC and Dato’ Razlan no longer keen to continue on.

The immediate plan for SIC is to focus on the talent development program in the Spanish FIM CEV Repsol championship, which Malaysia have 3 riders representing the country, Adam Mohd Norrodin in Moto2, Syarifuddin Azman (Damok) in Moto3, Hakim Danish and Sharul Ezwan (Juan) in the European Talent Cup (ETC) class. Shaf reiterate that there are a lot of talented riders in Malaysia, but they need to prove themselves before they can aim to be amongst the “big boys” in the Motogp championship. Hence the FIM Repsol CEV championship or the FIM MiniGP World Series will be a great platform for them to start their journey.

Running and managing a motorcycle racing team in the world arena is an expensive affair and with almost 2 years of worldwide economic slowdown due to the pandemic, many sponsors are pulling out, one reason or another. SIC appreciate the support it gets from the Ministry of Youth and Sports (KBS) in the FIM Repsol CEV championship but SIC is also hoping more local companies will come forward with sponsorships to help develop these young talents so that Malaysia can be proud to eventually have at least one or few champion worthy riders bring back the coveted Motogp champion world title. So, what are the numbers and the ROI’s will the interested parties be getting? Do give SIC a call and they are more than willing to work out a good package for you.