2018 Pirelli Malaysia Superbike Championship Round 4 & 5
Sepang Circuit Jalan Pekeliling 64000 KLIA Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia
Promoted and organised by Sepang International Circuit (SIC), Malaysia Superbike Championship (MSBK) is effectively the country’s national championship for circuit motorcycle racing, with added excitement with the participation of top international riders from the region.
Formally rebranded in 2015, the MSBK was created through a branding exercise of motorcycling competitions under the Malaysian Super Series (MSS) that was first organised by SIC in 2002. After 15 years, the circuit decided on uplifting the image and status of the series to woo in more participation from manufacturers, international and national racing teams and riders and biking enthusiasts. With bigger participation, SIC hopes to inject more excitement and creating greater interests from the main stream media.
Race regulations were also further enhanced under to emulate the prestigious FIM World Superbike Championship (WSBK) with an aim of preparing local talents for bigger exposure at the international level.
Following race regulations of the WSBK, the MSBK offers the 1000cc Superbike Championship and the 1000cc Superstock Championship for full-fledged production bikes. It also runs the Supersport Championship in accordance to race regulations of the 600cc World Series at the WSBK.
In an effort to provide a level playing field for the participants and ensuring their maximum enjoyment in competitive racing, two classes were created for all three categories to separate the expert and novice riders.
As a multi-pronged series, the MSBK is also established as a platform to unearth new talents. Hence, it created series for the lower classes bikes like the Open 250 Cup, which was introduced last season and the KTM RC Cup Asia, which became the support race to MSBK this year.
As the only national series fully run at the world class MotoGP track, the series had benefitted top Malaysian riders including current Moto2 rider Hafizh Syahrin Abdullah, who competed in the series whenever available to remain sharp and to further build his stamina. Former Moto2 riders like Azlan Shah Kamaruzaman and Zaqhwan Zaidi, and the current Moto3 rider, Adam Norrodin, have also competed and benefited from the series. |
