The results of the race weekend seemed perfect for veteran driver Faidzil Alang, who secured his second straight overall win at the 2026 MSF Merdeka 111-Lap Race held at the PETRONAS Sepang International Circuit.
Faidzil had a great performance, starting from pole position and recording the fastest lap of 2 minutes and 27.462 seconds. He maintained the lead throughout the race, supported by his teammates, newcomers Muhamad Nurazmi and Ariff Hanafiah.
Together, they drove the #148 Papaya Autohaus Mercedes-Benz A45, finishing all 111 laps around the 5.534 km circuit nearly 30 minutes faster than expected. They were also crowned champions in the Super Series Limited class.
In second place, 1 minute and 44.184 seconds behind, were Syahrizal Jamaluddin and Muhammad Hasif in a Toyota Yaris. They were followed by the Kegani Racing Academy team of Kenny Lee, Loke Yin Yi, and Daniel Storkensen, who finished third and won the Super Compatto class in a Toyota Levin.
“This was the result of a team effort. We have been racing with the A45 for quite some time and achieving some strong results in the past, we had enough data to set-up the car well. We made four pitstops during the race. Knowing that we had to make more stops than others, we just concentrated on setting a competitive and consistent pace,” said Faidzil.
“We were quite confident that the car would take us across the finish line but in order to do this, all three drivers needed to be disciplined, drive carefully and be gentle with the car. It’s great to be back on top of the winners’ podium and to win the overall race a second time.”
The race had eight classes: Super Series Limited, EXN GT86 x BRZ Racing Cup, Super Compatto, Standard Production, Standard Production MAX, Super Production, SWX, and K-Series Battle.
The Kegani Racing Academy celebrated finishing 3rd overall and winning the Super Compatto class. This was impressive because the team had fallen back to 5th place during the race and took 11 minutes to fix a broken clutch hose.
“The MSF Merdeka Race has always been memorable and once again we have proven that we can again beat many newer cars on the grid. The car was good, the team did an exceptional job preparing it (we had a gearbox issue just days before the race weekend), and we had good pace throughout qualifying and the race. The last time we raced this car was in 2024,” said lead driver and Team Principal Kenny Lee.
The team maximized its driving stint on track, making only three pitstops, but while enjoying a comfortable lead encountered unexpected damage which forced the crew into overdrive.
“The crew took 11 minutes to get us back on track and from then on, I just started pushing. We regained the class lead with eight laps remaining.”
It was the 9th edition of the MSF Merdeka 111-Lap Race, held on the night before Hari Merdeka. This year, nearly 200 racing vehicles and 300 racers gathered for an exciting weekend of the MSF SuperTurismo and MotoMSF competitions for both car and motorcycle participants.
A total of 63 cars started the 111-Lap race. The Merdeka Race weekend also featured 61 cars in the Merdeka 75 Cup, which lasted 75 minutes with four categories: Saga Cup, MyVi Cup, CamPro Cup, and Tuner Production. Additionally, there were 13 cars in the Skilldrvn One Make Race Series, 15 superbikes in the MotoMSF Merdeka 33-Lap Endurance Race, and 9 Harley Davidson motorcycles in the American V-Twin Cup.
In the MotoMSF Merdeka 33-Lap Endurance Race, Dhiraj Tan and Sankaran Shamugam finished ahead of their closest rival by one minute. Strategy and teamwork were crucial, and the race was won by a team riding a 600cc Supersport bike.
In 2nd place, finishing 1 minute and 08 seconds behind, were last year’s winner, Mohammad Fahmi Abudl Wahaf, and his partner Mohd Radzi Omar on Ducati bikes. The 3rd place went to Tony Ng Wei Shyang and Ke Huanni, who rode Honda CBR600RR Supersport bikes.
The event also included former Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup and CEV Moto3 Series rider Amirul Hafiq Azmi, who returned to racing with partner Carmen Lee. However, they were later disqualified for violating rules by refueling in the pit lane.
“We’d like to thank all the teams, drivers, partners and sponsors who continue to make this one of the most looked forward to event every year. The MSF Merdeka 111-Lap Race is the cornerstone of grassroots racing in Malaysia. This year the event attracted an even growing pool of regional as well as international drivers and moving forward we believe it will also establish itself as a solid proving ground for emerging new talent,” said Adian Yein Khalid, MSF Principal.
The MSF Merdeka Race is organized by Kelab Sukan Motor MSF Malaysia, an official club registered with the Malaysian Sports Commission and an affiliate member of the Motorsports Association of Malaysia (MAM).
MSF MERDEKA 111-LAP RACE/ MOTOMSF MERDEKA 33-LAP ENDURANCE RACE RESULTS
OVERALL
1. Faidzil Alang/Muhamad Nurazmi/Arif Hanafiah
2. Syahrizal Jamaluddin/Muhammad Hasif
3. Kenny Lee/Loke Yin Yi/Daniel Storkensen
SUPER SERIES LIMITED
1. Faidzil Alang/Muhamad Nurazmi/Arif Hanafiah
2. Syahrizal Jamaluddin/Muhammad Hasif
3. Lim Chi Hong/Mohd Faisal Naim
EXN GT86 X BRZ RACING CUP
1. Daniel Harris Jaeggi/Lew Xuan Yan
2. Ethan Ong/Pepito S. Lo/Andre Makkina Tan
3. Chang Choon Ming/Tan Eng Ping/Tan Hong Xin
SUPER COMPATTO
1. Kenny Lee/Loke Yin Yi/Daniel Storkensen
2. Foo Yung Chieh/Freddie Ang
3. Lim Ee Cheok/Ng Wui Leng
STANDARD PRODUCTION
1. Lim Jian Hong/Lim Zheng Chuen/Xie Boyu Jonathan
2. Soh Chee Siang/Lee Chee Wan/ Lester Lian
3. Luke Anton Netto/Mark Gerard Netto/Richard Mark Waller
STANDARD PRODUCTION MAX
1. Khair Nur Adi/Khair Nur Adli/Mohamad Anaqi
2. Chang Tze Seng/Tay Jin Yang
3. Marcus Ong Jin Yeong/Ong Gee Yeong
SUPER PRODUCTION
1. Soon Chew Poh/Ling Guang You/Wong Mun Seong
2. Justin Yap/Alvin Toh/David Kang/Ong Jin Long
3. Brandon Choong/Wong Kok Yong/Kang Chin Wan
K-SERIES BATTLE
1. Dante Clement/Joshua Thiran/Ng Zhang Jack
2. Nah Jie Ying/Carmina Wong/Lim Jun Cheng
3. William Yong/Mohd Faizal naim/Wan Fadli Shah
SWX
1. Kendrew Wong/Calix Yip
2. Tham Li Ming/Teo Zhengyi/Mohd Irwan/David
3. Shawn Tan/Ji Min Lin/B. Kishen
MOTOMSF MERDEKA 33-LAP ENDURANCE
1. Dhiraj Tan/Sankaran Shamugam
2. Mohd Fahmi Abdul Wahaf/Mohd Radzi Omar
3. Ng Wei Shyang/Ke Huanni