The Round 1 of the 2025 Vios Challenge concluded with Race 2 delivering some mighty fierce on-track action which saw the younger generation of racers outpacing the accomplished veterans.
The opening round of the year had 36 racers, including drivers from Thailand and Singapore, competing in three classes: Super Sporting for professionals, Sporting for amateurs, and Rookie for young drivers under Toyota GAZOO Racing Malaysia’s Young Talent Development Program.
In Race 2 of the Sporting Class, experienced driver Dato’ Ken Foo started strong but struggled against a group of young drivers. He led for only three of the 20 laps at the Petronas Sepang International Circuit before coming under pressure.
Foo had a good start from pole position but faced tough competition from drivers like Elson Lew, Brandon Ho, Mika Hakimi, Adam Mikail, Raja Amirul Syauqat, Taj Izrin Aiman, and Thai driver Monai from RUK Team Nexzter PMC 52.
The key moment happened on Lap 3 when Ho overtook Foo for the lead, but shortly after, a multi-car incident pushed him back into the pack. This allowed Foo to regain the lead for five more laps until Lew and Taj Izrin moved ahead.
Lew stayed in first place until the end, finishing just 1.9 seconds ahead of Taj Izrin. Although Ho fought back to finish third, he received a post-race penalty for a rule violation, which moved Thai driver Monai into third place.
“I was just trying to be consistent throughout the race and waited for the frontrunners to make mistakes,” said Lew.
For Taj Izrin, who finished his first one-make series saloon car race weekend with a 3rd place in Race 1 and 2nd in Race 2, the season start has been amazing and surprising.
“I’d like to thank my team for a great race weekend. I made a mistake at the start, I was a bit nervous and I had to calm down. I told myself I had 20 laps to catch up and that was precisely what I did,” said Taj Izrin.
The drivers in the Super Sporting Class were involved in an exciting competition, but it was Mitchell Cheah from Prima Pearl TD Racing, a former champion, who won the race. Nabil Azlan from Wheelcorp took second place, having also finished third in Race 1, making it two podium finishes for the weekend. Eddie Lew from Laser Motor Racing came in third.
The race action was similar to that in the Sporting Class, with veteran driver Lew leading for only eight laps before younger drivers took over.
Two full course yellow flags briefly paused the race, allowing Cheah and Nabil to surprise Lew and move into the top two spots.
“We were good in practice and even during qualifying but when it came to Race 1 I suffered a technical issue and struggled to finish,” said Cheah.
“We managed to rectify the issue for Race 2 and it was great to start from 8th on the grid and climb all the way to the top to give the team the result they truly deserved. I am just as determined to do my very best to win the overall championship for the second time. I still have a very long way to go this season so we’ll see how it goes.”
The Rookie Class race saw Ian James take an easy victory, finishing over 13 seconds ahead of 18-year-old Aydan Khaliq, who placed second for the second time in a row. Genevieve Ooi, the only female racer, came in third.
“Honestly I just tried to stay consistent to the end of the race and to preserve the car,” said 22-year-old Ian. “I had somewhat of a good start but it was difficult to shake off the other rookies.”
For Genevieve, the result in Race 2 was uplifting considering she finished down the pecking order in Race 1.
“I told myself I needed to keep the driving clean and smooth from start to finish. I was fortunate to steer clear of the incidents happening ahead of me and capitalized on the opportunity when it presented itself,” said Genevieve.
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ROUND 1, RACE 2 RESULTS
SUPER SPORTING CLASS
1. Mitchell Cheah – Prima Pearl TD Racing
2. Nabil Azlan – Wheelcorp
3. Eddie Lew – Laser Motor Racing
SPORTING CLASS
1. Elson Lew – BAE Racing by ES Yang
2. Taj Izrin Aiman – Saksama Motorsports
3. Monai – RUK Team Nexzter PMC 52
ROOKIE CLASS
1. Ian James
2. Aydan Khaliq
3. Genevieve Ooi