PROTON UNBEATABLE

3 April 2011, JOHOR BAHRU - The Proton Team were just unbeatable at the Malaysian Rally 2011 Championship at the Tai Tak Estate in Kota Tinggi, Johor.

Led by Chris Atkinson in a Proton Satria Neo 2000, the car simply out-powered and outclassed the field to win the opening leg of the Asia Pacific Rally Championship.

And to add to the celebration, another Proton entrant, Alister McRae, came in third.




In fact the signs were all very clear that the Proton team meant business when they both finished in a similar position after the opening stage on Saturday.

Their domination continued into the second day with yet another round of flawless performance, both from the car and driver.

Atkinson and his co-driver Stephane Prevot from Belgium finished the race over the two-stages in a total time of 3hrs: 14:49.3secs with India's Guarav Gill and his Mitsubishi Lancer coming home second in 3hrs: 16:35.9secs. Third is McRae and co-driver Bill Hayes in 3hrs:23:37.5secs.

The Proton team's victory in Malaysia has come at a time when there were doubts whether the car would hold up under tough conditions, given the bitter experience of last season's outing when both the cars developed mechanical problems and suffered an early knock-out.

But things went well in the end and Atkinson was full of praise for the car at the winners' Press conference here today.

"We have taken a big step forward with our performances here today. The new suspension system and the development work done on the engine have paid off.

It's a great start to the year as we look forward to the rest of the round at the Asia Pacific Rally Championship.

"The secret to our success here for Alister (McRae) and me was the way the car
responded. That's why we could win by such a big margin," said Atkinson.

China's Fan Fan, who is making a return to the rallying scene here after a five-year absence won the opening leg of the Malaysian Rally Championship today with a flawless performance over the two stages.



He clocked a total time of 3hrs: 44.30.6secs in his Mitsubishi Lancer Evo to push the defending champion Muhammad Rafiq Udahaya in a Subaru Impreza into second place on a total time of 3hrs: 47:20.6secs with Japan's Aji Kim in a Proton Satria Neo coming in third in 3hrs 58:51.6secs.

"I guess knowing the conditions in Malaysia having competed in the 2004 and 2005 series help me quite a bit. It's always tough rallying in Malaysia," said the Beijing based Fan Fan.

For Muhammad Rafiq, the fight continues. More so after the two local challengers, Karamjit Singh, who finished second overall last year and Saladin Mazlan, the 2009 runner-up failed to get their challenge off the ground.

Both the GSR Pennzoil team drivers suffered mechanical problems midway through and they know they need to do better at the next leg in Kangar at the end of May.

ends

THE ACTION BEGINS IN JOHOR BARU

1 April 2011, JOHOR BAHRU - Japan's Yuya Sumiyama is the fastest of them all alongside Indonesia's Rifat Sungkar on the opening day of the Malaysian Rally 2011 in Johor Baru.

Over the purposes built 2.5km dirt track for the special stage race on Friday, the two of them in a similar Mitsubishi Evo X, clocked a similar 2mins 02.1secs to finish at the top.

The achievement from the two of them will certainly give them the psychological boost as the Rally move into the rugged terrains of the Tai Tak Estate on Saturday and Sunday where the real action will take place.

The Scottish driver Alister McRae of the Proton Motorsports Team came in third fastest in 2mins 02.5secs with India's Gaurav Gill in a Mitsubishi EvoX fourth in 2mins 02.7secs.

The best Malaysian finisher was Muhammad Rafiq Udhaya, the overall Malaysian Rally defending champion in a Subaru Impreza who came in 13th fastest in a time of 2mins 18.9secs.

"The special stage race is designed for the spectators who want a close up look of the car in action. So there is no need to go flat out and take unnecessary risks.

"But I feel comfortable in my car and finished the race feeling very good. That's more important as we prepare for the real rallying action tomorrow and Sunday," said Muhammad Rafiq.

A total of 35 cars took part in the special stage race, adjacent to the Angsana Shopping centre and the organisers were happy with what they saw.

"The special stage race gave the spectators the chance to catch the drivers in action from close-up. That's the purpose. But we believe things can be done better next year to add more excitement to the fans.

"We are thinking of widening the track to allow for a two-car race instead of the one car system we just used. Having two cars side by side would be more competitive and more challenging," said Clerk of Course Tengku Shaharin Abu Bakar.

ends


Yuya Sumiyama is the fastest of them all at SS1

FIA APRC MALAYSIAN RALLY 2011 (mr11) : Media Centre

The location of media centre for the FIA Asia Pacific Rally championship 2011 at Grand Paragon Hotel while a 'mini' media centre was also set-up at Angsana Complex (photo coming soon).

FIA APRC MALAYSIAN RALLY 2011 (mr11) : Press conference

The Pre-event press conference for FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship was held at Grand Paragon Hotel, 1 April 2011. With the attendance of top APRC competitors such as Katsu Taguchi (Japan, Team MRF), Muhd Rafiq Udhaya (Malaysia, MRU Motorsports), Alister McRae (Great Britain, Proton Motorsport), Rifat Sungkar (Indonesia, Pertamina Cusco Racing), Yuya Sumiyama (Japan,Pertamina Cusco Racing), Akira Bamba (Japan, Proton Cusco Rally Team), Tomohide Hasegawa (Japan, Hasepro Rally Team), Gunaseelan Rajoo (Malaysia, Pennzoil GSR Racing Team), Cody Crocker (Australia, Pennzoil GSR Racing Team) and Chris Atkinson (Australia, Proton Motorsports).

EXCITING TIMES AHEAD FOR MALAYSIAN RALLY 2011

Sumiyama of Pertamina Cusco Racing testing their car

31 March 2011, JOHOR BAHRU - The days ahead at the Malaysian Rally 2011 which kick starts in Johor Bahru on Friday, look exciting.

A crowd of big names in rallying are gathered for the opening leg of the Asia Pacific Rallying Championship (APRC) and also the first round of the Malaysian Championship.

There is Australia's Cody Crocker, the four time APRC overall winner driving under the GSR Pennzoil Team in a Subaru Impreza.

There is Katsu Taguchi of Japan, the defending champion of the Malaysian leg of the APRC in his Mitsubishi Evo XI and there is the pride of Proton, the Malaysia car manufacturer, represented by Alister MacRae in the Proton Neo 2000.

Muhammad Rafiq Udhaya, the defending Malaysian Rally champion in his Subaru Impreza is just as eager to defend his title and so is Karamjit Singh in a new Mitsubishi Evo , who is ready to make up for his loss last season.

The action starts on Friday with a Special Stage Race over a 2.5km purpose built track at the Plaza Angsana before the real race begins at the Tai Tak Estate in Kota Tinggi over the weekend.

"We did a trial run over the circuit at the Tai Tak Estate and it is a challenging one. I just cannot wait for the race to begin. "Rallying is full of surprises and challenges. You never know what lies ahead and lies next," said Karamjit of the GSR Pennzoil team who finished second last season.

The threat of Saladin Mazlan who is making a return to rallying after a one-year absence, is seen as a challenge Muhammad Rafiq and Karamjit cannot ignore.

Saladin came in second to Karamjit overall in the 2009 season in a Proton Satria but sponsorship issue and his love for polo has prompted him to take a break last year.

"But watch out for him. He is a talented driver," said his GSR Pennzoil Team leader Gunaseelan Rajoo.

A total of 35 entries from nine countries including China, India, Australia and New Zealand, making it one of the largest gatherings of rally entries in Malaysian soil, confirmed for the championship.

ends.



Chris Atkinson of Proton Motorsports stirs up a trail of dust during the shakedown at Angsana Complex

‘KL RALLY DAY’ A SUCCESS!

KUALA LUMPUR - Exclusive organiser, Wheel Sport Management brought rally out of the plantations and onto the busy streets of the city with ‘KL Rally Day’, proving to be a success not only among locals but tourists.

The three competing teams - Proton Motorsports, Pennzoil GSR Racing Team, and MRU Motorsports created quite a commotion at Bukit Bintang, Sogo, Pusat Bandar Damansara, and Damansara Uptown with their attention grabbing cars and loud revs.

The parade was an effort by the organizers to expose the sport to the masses and also as a treat to the existent rally fans in Kuala Lumpur.

Reigning champion from the MRC 2010, Muhammad Rafiq Udhaya of team MRU Motorsports came with his Subaru Impreza WRX STi not only signed autographs for rally fans, he even explained rallying to interested members of the public.

While there were many who came forward to have their photos taken with the cars at pit stops, there were also many onlookers on the street as the cars drove past them.

You can look out for your pictures on our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/malaysianrally and feel free to tag Malaysian Rally in your pictures of KL Rally Day.

Don’t forget to catch the opening round of the 2011 Asia Pacific Championship, which forms part of the 2011 Malaysian Rally Championship at the Plaza Angsana Johor Bahru and Tai Tak Estate in Kota Tinggi from April 1st until 3rd.

Wheel Sport Management would like to thank PKG, Proton, Naza, and Redberry for being a part of KL Rally Day. A big thank you also goes out to the media for supporting the event.

Asia-Pacific & Malaysia Rally Championship cars to parade through the streets of Klang Valley - be sure to look out for them!

22 March 2011, KUALA LUMPUR - Be on the lookout for Asia-Pacific & Malaysia Rally Championship cars this Wednesday 23rd March from 11am till 5pm as they parade through the streets of Klang Valley, bringing the rally to the road as part of the KL Rally Day.

Team Proton Motorsports, Pennzoil GSR, and MRU Motorsports will be revving up beasts such as the Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX, Subaru Impreza WRX, Proton Gen-2 and both the Proton Satria Neo 1.6 as well as the Proton Satria Neo S2000.

The entourage will be flagged off from Petaling Jaya for the Golden Triangle, passing some of the interesting landmarks in Kuala Lumpur. Amongst the routes that they will take includes Jalan Ampang, Jalan Sultan Ismail, Jalan Bukit Bintang, Jalan Raja Chulan, Jalan Telawi and Jalan Gelenggang. Follow @malaysianrally or #klrallyday on twitter for updates on their exact location.

There will be noise and excitement while you stand a chance to get your pictures taken with both the cars and the Rally Girls as they make their pit stops around the city.

Expect to see up to 9 international teams and a lot more horsepower at the opening round of the 2011 Asia Pacific Championship, which forms part of the 2011 Malaysian Rally Championship at the Plaza Angsana Johor Bahru and Tai Tak Estate in Kota Tinggi from April 1st until 3rd.

FIA APRC MALAYSIAN RALLY 2011 (mr11) : Provisional Entry list

EIGHTEEN DRIVERS REGISTER FOR APRC 2011 - MORE TO COME

As the close off date approaches there are now 18 confirmed drivers registered to compete in one or more of the Asia Pacific Rally Championship competitions. As entries for Pacific Cup are not required until April 21 this number is expected to grow further.

Heading the drivers registered for the full six round competition is last year’s champion Katsu Taguchi from Japan. The APRC's most experienced driver is joined again by Indian team-mate Gaurav Gill in Race-Torque prepared MRF Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 10's. Australian Chris Atkinson and Alister McRae from the UK will both drive for the factory backed Proton team using the latest S2000 Satria Neos. As last year, it is expected that these two teams will provide most of the competition and it will be interesting to see if the R4 spec'd Mitsubishi's can foot it with the very quick and nimble Protons.

In the past 2 days Wan Yu Rally Team China have confirmed their entry with Chinese drivers Fan Fan, Hao Yuan and 3-times British champion Mark Higgins. With the latest spec'd Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 10 to drive Higgins could prove to be ' the fly in the ointment' amongst the APRC regulars. Vastly experienced at World Rally Championship level and with a long list of victories in all levels of the sport, Higgins will undoubtedly be one to watch.

A new combination is the "Cusco-Pertamina Team' with Indonesian Rifat Sungkar leading their APRC assault in a Cusco prepared Mitsubishi Lancer. Yuya Sumiyama will return to defend his Asia Cup title for the team, while it is expected that Cody Crocker will compete in Australia and New Zealand as 'Cusco-Pertamina' go for the APRC teams award. Crocker is also expected to be in Malaysia too but as part of an assault on the Malaysian Rally Championship.

Young Japanese driver Akiro Bamba in a Proton Neo 1.6 is doing both the Junior series and is fully registered for the APRC has he hopes to win the 2WD Class for Proton-Cusco. Entered for the Junior Series only and driving for Cusco-Proton team is Kosuke Takashino from Japan.

Malaysia is represented by Gunaseelan Rajoo, the former Malaysian Rally champion going for the 2WD class in a Suzuki Swift. New Zealand veteran Brian Green will drive a variety of cars starting with an MRU prepared Subura Impreza in Malaysia, returning to Mitsubishi Lancers for the Pacific events.

There's an impressive line-up in both the Asia and Pacific Cups - where drivers can compete in just the three events of those regions. Full-timers Taguchi, Gill, McRae and Bamba are all entered in Asia Cup joined by Malaysian MRU team owner Muhammad Udhaya and Japanese drivers Yuya Sumiyama, Tomohide Hasegawa and Masaaki Hatano.

The Pacific Cup has the largest entries of any of the APRC competitions with Atkinson, Fan Fan, Hau Yuan, Higgins, Sungkar, Green and Rajoo all going for the cup. These fully registered drivers are joined by New Caledonians Jean Louis Leyraud and Daniel Palau. Pacific Cup entries are expected grow further as final registration is not required until April 21. Australian's Cody Crocker and Nathan Quinn are expected to enter Pacific Cup, joined by Indonesian Suban Aksa.

With the ability to enter four local wild-cards at each event and Teams entering one-off guest drivers to get Team Trophy points, further drivers are expected to join the APRC in 2011.

For a full list go to http://www.fiaaprc.com/media/2011/03/aprc-entry-list-2011-4.pdf

12 Mar 2011 - by Brian Young

FIA APRC MALAYSIAN RALLY 2011 (mr11) : April 1st - 3rd

The Asia Pacific Rally Championship and The Malaysian Rally Championship

Tuesday, 1 March, 2011 - A host of big names are expected at the opening round of the 2011 Asia Pacific Rally Championship (APRC) which forms part of the 2011 Malaysian Rally championship (MRC) to be run off at the Plaza Angsana Johor Bahru and Tai Tak Estate in Kota Tinggi from April 1st until 3rd. For the first time ever, a short 2km special stage has been created in the Plaza Angsana area (next to Menara Hasil) as part of the organiser’s wish to inject more awareness towards rallying to the public.

Heading the list is Japan's defending champion Katsu Taguchi who will be racing under the MRF banner and the runner-up, team mate Guarav Gill of India as the duo made it a 1-2 finish over the six-round championship which saw the participants raced in Malaysia, New Zealand, Australia, New Caledonia, Japan and China. Malaysia's challenge at the APRC will be spearheaded by the reigning MRC 2010 overall winner, Muhammad Rafiq Udhaya and his co-driver Sean Gregory in their Subaru Impreza and the Pennzoil GSR team of Gunaseelan Rajoo and Jagdev Singh with a Suzuki Swift Sport in the 2WD category. Japan's Yuya Sumiyama who won the China leg of the APRC last year, is also confirmed for the Malaysian leg of the championship under the Cusco banner.

The Malaysian car manufacturer Proton, will also be represented with their Proton R3 team with Scotsman Alister McRae and Chris Atkinson putting up their challenge behind the wheels of their Proton Satria Neo S2000. The Proton R3 team had an encouraging start to their APRC debut last year but a series of mishaps in the later stages in the dirt and gravel of the Tai Tak Estate cost the team dearly. But as Clerk of the Course Tengku Shaharin Abu Bakar said, a bit of luck is always needed in rallying, and the Proton Team is hoping for lots of it this time around.

But as the APRC title chase looks competitive, the hunt for the MRC overall title is just as intense. There is Muhammad Rafiq and there is also Karamjit Singh of the GSR Pennzoil team, who finished second overall last year. Karamjit in a Mitsubish Lancer and Muhammad Rafiq were locked in a fight to the finish over the four rounds of the MRC but a series of mishaps along the way, killed off his hopes of landing the crown. The two will continue from where they left off last year and over the four rounds this year, starting in Kota Tinggi and then Chuping, Perlis in June; Malacca in October and Negeri Sembilan in November, it will be interesting to see who wins the battle this time.

The promoter of the mr11, Wheel Sport Management Sdn. Bhd., has also lined up a series of events to support the championship. Among them is the 3 days Mini-Carnival from 1st of April at the Plaza Angsana Johor Baru, which will include a concert featuring some local artistes; an exhibition of rally car accessories and the highlights of the weekend is the daily Special stage race in town before the race continues in the vicinity of Tai Tak plantations in Kota Tinggi.

As of printing time, a total of 19 cars from as far as the UK are taking part in the championship and according to Tengku Shaharin, the list is very encouraging. "With the help and co-operation from the Johor State government and Johor Tourism Dept., we are confident that the event will be a success and help promote Johor on the world tourism map," said Tengku Shaharin.

-Ends