Fiery Battle Expected at Merdeka Millennium Endurance
Malaysia’s prestigious 12-hour endurance race - the Petronas Primax 3 Merdeka Millennium Endurance (MME) - runs its ninth edition at Sepang Circuit this week; drawing 102 cars, 306 drivers and more than 1,000 team officials and crew members in what could perhaps be its last race in a 12-hour format.
Attracting teams and drivers that had competed in the famous Le Mans and Nurburgring 24-hour races, the 2008 race would project a different look on the starting grid on Saturday (August 30) with a smaller number of lesser-powered cars following the decision by promoter Sepang International Circuit (SIC) to allocate more places for cars above 1900cc.
Unlike previously when 52 of the 77 starters are cars below 1900cc in Class B and C, their quota had been reduced to 19 and 18 respectively with the remaining 40 places going to the entries with engines above 1900cc in Class A and the open class.
The change in regulations and MME’s race’s growing popularity had clearly attracted more international entries and more supercars including three Aston Martins, which would be competing in the 12-hour endurance for the first time.
Joining them in the battle for glory this year is a fleet of the Porsche RSRs mean machines led by defending champion - Hong Leong Kencana Racing Team, which had retained its winning trio of Mokhzani Mahathir, Lars Erik Nielsen and Sven Herberger.
“If the Hong Leong Kencana Racing team accomplished this feat at this year’s race, they would be the first winning partnership to retain the crown. And, that would be a massive achievement, given the quality of participation this year,” says SIC General Manager Datuk Azmi Murad, who is the event director for the 2008 Petronas Primax 3 Merdeka Millennium Endurance Race.
With drivers Firhat Mokhzani, Eric Yeo and Chin Tzer Jinn, Team G1 Symphony won it in 2003 and came back together to defend the title in 2004; but failed miserably. Honda Malaysia Racing Team won that title that year and attempted the feat in 2005; but ran short; finishing second overall to Amprex Proton R3. The team of Eddie Lew, Farriz Fauzy and Hiroki Katoh, however, still topped Class A.
Malaysia’s top works team - Proton R3, however, had managed to win it two times in a row; but on both occasions, team leader Tengku Djan Ley Tengku Mahaleel was partnering different drivers. In 2005, the team won with Djan, Tony Riccirdello and GT driver Genji Hashimoto in a joint partnership between Proton R3 and Amprex Motorsports.
The team went solo in the following year as Proton R3 Motorsports with Tengku Djan partnering R3 test driver Faidzil Alang and Australian Damien French to defend the crown, which they did successfully. Now, Hong Leong Kencana aims to upstage that feat with the same set of drivers.
Preparations by the team had been low-key on publicity; but those within the racing fraternity all know that the Hong Leong Kencana Racing Team was very serious in defending their crown. Their preparation had also been comprehensive. Their problem, though, they would be facing stiffer challenge this year including a fleet of equally powerful Porsche RSR machines.
And, one of the teams is a trio of highly reputable and widely experience drivers from Australia - David Wall, Barton Mower and Damien Flack, which would be backed by Kuala Lumpur-based Danville Motorsports. There would also be the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia trio of Matthew Marsh, Alain Li and William E. Connor in a Porsche 996 GT3.
ThunderAsia Racing Team would be making their debut in the MME this year. They, however, would not be greenhorns at Sepang Circuit; highly capable drivers in Malaysian Super Series two-time champion Dilantha Malagamuwa of Sri Lanka, MME 2002 winner Malaysian Tunku Hammam Tunku Sulong and Melvin Choo of Singapore.
Petronas Syntium Racing Team, which literally handed victory to Kencana Racing Team after being forced to retire while enjoying a 13-lap advantage and less than 50 minutes before the chequered flag, would be back with a vengeance. Entering two BMW Coupe Z4, instead of just one, the team would have Malaysia’s top saloon car driver Mohd Fariqe Hariuman and Johanes Stuck returning to the circuit with the support of highly experienced Japan Super Taikyu Series drivers.
The Australian Holden V8 Racing Team would also be back and team leader Mal Rose had openly declared their intentions to go all the way to the chequered flag in an enhanced Australian Holden V8 race machine.
“We are better prepared this year and we aim to go all the way to win the overall title. Last year, we were running fifth outright in my Holden before an engine problem forced a retirement after six hours. It will be a different story this year,” says team leader Mal Rose, who would be partnering fellow Australian V8 drivers Peter Leemhuis and Tony Alford.
“This year we have a new GRM (Garry Rogers Motorsport) Chev 5.0 litre engine with a
sequential holinger 6 speed gearbox. This V8 Holden VY Commodore is an ex GRM race car and was last raced by Jamie Whincup in the Shell Australian Touring Car Championship and had recorded a host of pole positions and race wins including lap records.
“Since we returned from the Nurburgring 24hr in Germany in this year, we have been busy preparing the car; packing the shipping container to transport the cars and equipment to Malaysia,” said Mal.
Like the Australian Holden V8 Racing Team, Team Juniper Racing, led by Shaun Juniper, had also participated at the Nurburgring 24-hour Endurance Race and would be coming to Sepang Circuit with full knowledge in the power of their Porsche 911 GT3 RSR machine. Supported by Paul Kelly and Craig Bird, the team completed 270 laps last year to finish sixth overall. Naturally, he would not be happy to be finishing sixth again this year.
In his bid to win his fourth overall title, Tommy Lee - overall winner in 2000, 2001 and 2002, has turned to his biking friends from Msportsbike - Razlan Razali and Australian Brent Odgers, the newly crowned Malaysian Super Series open superbike champion.
Tommy, a biker himself having competed in the MSS, believed that 2008 remained an open affair, though he admitted that some of his rivals would be having advantage in terms of horse power and driving experience.
“But, Razlan and Brent are equally good on four wheels. We have tried the car and they are had posed good lap times. Furthermore, it is an endurance race - it’s more about conserving the car rather than going flat out all the time. I would say that our chances are as good as our rivals,” added Tommy, who is chief instructor with Sepang International Drive and Racing Academy (Sidra).
In 2004, Honda Malaysia Racing Team scored a sensational victory; winning the overall title in a Class A Honda Civic Type R machine with Eddie Lew, Farriz Fauzy and Super GT driver Hiroki Katoh. A repeat at the 2008 Petronas Primax 3 Merdeka Millennium Endurance, however, is highly unlikely.
“It’s very hard to imagine we winning the overall title again. The MME has become very, very competitive,” said Eddie, who would be leading a new look Honda Malaysia Racing Team this year with a full-fledged local line-up; without any Super GT drivers from Japan.
“We will focus fully on winning the class. We are not thinking about the overall title - even Class A is also very competitive,” said Eddie, who would be partnering Aaron Lim and Victor Cheong, who made an impressive debut with R2 Racing last year. The other car would have Rueben Wong, Fahrizal Hassan and Faisal Asri behind the steering wheel.
Official free practice would be on Thursday (August 28) with the official qualifying to be run on Friday (August 29). Race Day would be on Saturday (August 30) with the drivers to be flagged off at 11.45am and ending 12 hours later on 11.45pm on the eve of Merdeka.
SIC announced last year that it was looking into the possibility of reviewing the current format and considering to make the event as a 24-hour race to boost the event’s status in the international arena.
MERDEKA MILLENNIUM ENDURANCE RACE - PAST OVERALL WINNERS
2007 Lars Erik Nielsen, Sven Herberger, Mokhzani Mahathir (Hong Leong Kencana Racing)
2006 Tengku Djan Ley, Faidzil Alang and Damien French (Proton R3 Motorsports)
2005 Tengku Djan Ley, Genji Hashimoto, Tony Riccirdello (Amprex Proton R3)
2004 Hiroki Katoh, Farriz Fauzy & Eddie Lew (Honda Malaysia Racing)
2003 Firhat Mokhzani, Chin Tzer Jinn & Eric Yeo (G1 Meritus Racing)
2002 Tengku Hammam, Nigel Albon & Tommy Lee (NAZA Jaseri Racing Team)
2001 Jeffrey Wong, Admi Shahrul Ahmad Safian & Tommy Lee (TVR Sports Malaysia)
2000 Karamjit Singh, Jimmy Low & Tommy Lee (Petronas EON Racing Team)
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