Hafizh Syahrin will try to bounce back from a DNF in Austin at this weekend race in Jerez
Even though he didn’t finish last race in Austin, Texas, Malaysian rider Hafizh Syahrin has been one to watch during the start of the 2018 MotoGP season. Coming from Moto2 to MotoGP can be a difficult mission, but Syahrin has shown potential to be at the top.
Before this weekend race in Spain, at the Jerez de La Frontera circuit, Hafizh Syahrin spoke to Monster Energy, Tech3 Yamaha team main sponsor, about his past before arriving at the top of motorcycle racing, and how he is feeling racing with the top riders.
Here’s the five questions made to Hafizh Syahrin and how he answered them.
How did you get into motorcycling in Malaysia?
When I was around 8 years old I used to spend time with my father in the workshop. At that point we had no home! So I went to school from there, ate there, everything. We were travelling a lot when I started to race pocketbikes; we travelled around Malaysia with the small bike in the back of the car. Sometimes we didn’t even have enough money to stay in the hotel, so we just slept in the car too. From there, I knew I wanted to change my life, so I said to myself “I want to be a professional rider and I want to be the best rider in Malaysia.” Now, I’m in the MotoGP category. I didn’t believe that this could happen!
Syahrin on the #55 Yamaha M1 has been at an impressive level this year!
Have you always had a love for speed?
Yes, I love the speed and the sound of the bike. Also, when I was young we had a lot of two-stroke bikes and so that smell for me, is like a beautiful girl’s perfume! I’m in love with it.
Moto2 to MotoGP must be quite a step…
I had four years in Moto2. There are a lot of differences with the power, the electronics, the tyres – it is completely different. The teamwork and the strategy of the team is also different from Moto2 which means I that I have a lot to learn and study.
Are you liking the Monster Energy Yamaha Tech 3 set up?
Yes, for sure. I really like it. They are very calm and understand my situation – I missed a few of the tests before the season started but tried my best to catch up as fast as I could, working hard to understand everything in order to avoid being far from the rest of the riders. I’m really enjoying the set-up of the team.
The Tech3 staff has been really important in getting Hafizh Syahrin up to speed in MotoGP
The off-season must have been a challenge…
After I finished last season, I actually had had a big day: I got married! So now life is a bit different for me (laughs). As for the racing aspect, nothing much changed. I was keeping the same pace, training a lot and trying to improve during training. In fact, I needed to train twice as hard because I was jumping up to MotoGP.
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