Afiq Ikhwan claimed the fastest time of the day and beat the Series record at the circuit to claim pole position for JK Racing Asia Series round 7. Ikhwan’s time of 1:30.918, beat the qualifying lap record held by Sean McDonagh who set the record back in 2008 by 1.1second.
“I am so happy! We really worked hard for this weekend. We tried a few set-ups and this one really suits me”.
When asked how he feels about the circuit now that he has set the new lap record, with a big beaming smile Ikhwan said “I am loving the track right now!
“We hope we can do well tomorrow and I’ll try my best to keep my pace and keep it consistent to win every race” ended the Meritus driver.
Championship leader Lucas Auer was not too far behind, claiming the second spot on the grid, with his 1:31.426. Although happy with the time, Auer finds the circuit quite tricky but is still aiming for a win.
“Qualifying was pretty okay. Maybe I messed it up because I was not 100% there. But I think we have a good car for the race and the rest we will see tomorrow”.
The Austrian driver with EuroInternational found the circuit challenging, saying “the circuit is really hard to drive. It is different than any other circuit but it’s a good circuit and I like it”.
Australian driver Duvashen Padayachee credited his time to the hard work put in by his Eurasia Motorsport team. “The team did a fantastic job today. We weren’t really up there the whole weekend but we looked at some data and managed to make it back up.
“I got the quickest time after the red flag session then I had an off” laughed Padayahee. He is looking forward to starting the race up in the second row tomorrow.
The third to ninth placed drivers were all separated by just one second, leaving it to be a very close race tomorrow. Drivers are all loving the circuit for different reasons and are looking forward to a great race.
Rounds 7 & 8 will be held on Saturday, 23rd July 2011 at 11.15am and 3.15pm (local time) respectively while Round 9 will be held at 9.55am while Round 10 will be held at 2.40pm on Sunday, 24th July 2011.
Rounds 7-10 of the JK Racing Asia Series is held as part of the Asian Festival Of Speed event on 22-24 July 2011 at Sentul International Circuit, Indonesia. This will be the third outing before the Series travels to China, Singapore and India.
JK Tyre & Industries, the leading tyre manufacturer in India, is the title partner for the JK Racing Asia Series. The Series is also supported by AirAsia, Asia’s leading low-cost carrier.
The JK Racing Asia Series is currently the only Junior Formula that provides a unique opportunity where the drivers are given a platform to compete in front of the Formula 1 fraternity. On three occasions the JK Racing Asia Series will support Formula One Grand Prix, in Malaysia, Singapore and the newly built circuit in India.
The JK Racing Asia Series is organised by Motorsport Asia Ltd.
Qualifying Result
Top 10
1. Afiq Ikhwan MAL 1:30.918
2. Lucas Auer AUT 1:31.426
3. Duvashen Padayachee AUS 1:32.152
4. Irfan Ilyas MAL 1:32.267
5. Nabil Jeffri MAL 1:32.406
6. Akash Nandy MAL 1:32.513
7. Hiqmar Danial MAL 1:32.658
8. Raj Bharath IND 1:32.694
9. Freddie Ang MAL 1:32.696
10. Aaron Chang MAL 1:33.045
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