🇲🇾 Sepang, 15 Oktober 2025 – Susulan pengumuman baru-baru ini…
Bagi sesi Qualifying, Qabil bersama pasukan memilih strategi berbeza apabila tidak mengekori kumpulan pelumba lain untuk mendapatkan peluang slipstream. Sebaliknya, mereka memilih untuk Qabil mengekalkan rentak sendiri secara bersendirian.
Dengan pendekatan tersebut, Qabil menamatkan sesi Qualifying di tempat ke-4 dengan perbezaan hanya 0.327 saat berbanding pelumba terpantas kategori ESBK Talent, Enzo Zaragoza dari Sepanyol.
Race 1
Perlumbaan Race 1 berlangsung dengan sengit sejak awal hingga ke garisan penamat. Empat pelumba termasuk Qabil bersaing rapat sepanjang perlumbaan. Bermula dari petak ke-4, Qabil pantas meluru ke kedudukan ke-2 sebaik sahaja lampu merah dipadamkan.
Qabil mengekalkan konsistensi dengan pace tersendiri, namun tiga pelumba lain terus memintas sehingga ke penghujung perlumbaan. Beliau turut mencatatkan lap time terpantas perlumbaan iaitu 1:56:094 ketika empat lap terakhir dalam usahanya merebut kemenangan. Perlumbaan yang penuh mendebarkan itu menyaksikan perbezaan masa yang amat rapat, sebelum Qabil menamatkan Race 1 di kedudukan ke-4.
Race 2
Perlumbaan Race 2 terpaksa ditamatkan dengan Red Flag susulan insiden yang berlaku di tengah litar, sekali gus memberi sedikit kekecewaan kepada Qabil.
Qabil yang bermula dengan baik dilihat tenang pada awal perlumbaan sebelum tampil lebih agresif pada empat lap terakhir. Bermula dari kedudukan ke-4 semasa empat lap terakhir, Qabil mula melancarkan serangan dengan memintas seorang demi seorang pelumba sehingga berjaya mendahului perlumbaan pada dua lap terakhir. Namun, Red Flag dikibarkan pada lap ke-13 akibat insiden tersebut.
Keputusan rasmi diambil berdasarkan kedudukan pada lap ke-12, menyaksikan Qabil diisytiharkan tamat di tempat ke-3. Walaupun begitu, Qabil tetap mengekalkan kedudukan sebagai pendahulu keseluruhan ESBK Talent dengan mengumpul 202 mata, iaitu kelebihan 32 mata berbanding pelumba di tempat kedua, Arnold Alessio. Pusingan seterusnya akan berlangsung pada 13 dan 14 September di Estoril, Portugal, manakala Qabil akan berada di Barcelona untuk menjalani latihan intensif sehingga tiba pusingan tersebut.
🇬🇧Circuito de Navarra, Spain | 31 August 2025 – The second round of the Espana Superbike Championship returned to Circuito de Navarra, the same venue as the previous round. Qabil began the race week with consistent form, finishing Free Practice 1 in 2nd position and Free Practice 2 in 3rd.
For the Qualifying session, Qabil and his team opted for a different strategy by not following the main group of riders to take advantage of slipstream opportunities. Instead, they chose for Qabil to set his own pace independently.
With this approach, Qabil secured 4th place in Qualifying, just 0.327 seconds behind the fastest rider in the ESBK Talent category, Enzo Zaragoza of Spain.
Race 1
Race 1 proved to be intense from start to finish, with four riders, including Qabil, battling closely throughout. Starting from 4th on the grid, Qabil made a strong launch, immediately moving up to 2nd place as the lights went out.
He maintained a consistent pace, but three other riders pushed past him towards the closing stages. Qabil, however, managed to clock the fastest lap of the race with a time of 1:56.094 in the final four laps as he fought for victory. It was a thrilling race with extremely tight margins, before Qabil eventually crossed the line in 4th place.
Race 2
Race 2 was forced to end under a Red Flag following an incident in the middle of the track, leaving Qabil slightly disappointed.
After a steady start, Qabil looked calm in the opening stages before switching to a more aggressive approach in the final four laps. From 4th position, he began attacking, overtaking one rider after another until he took the lead with two laps to go. However, the Red Flag was waved on lap 13 due to the incident.
The official result was taken from lap 12, meaning Qabil was classified 3rd. Despite this, he continues to lead the overall ESBK Talent standings with 202 points, holding a 32-point advantage over second-placed Arnold Alessio. The next round will be held on 13–14 September at Estoril, Portugal, while Qabil will remain in Barcelona for intensive training ahead of the upcoming race.
#4 Qabil Irfan
Frando Racing VHC Team Liqui Moly
🇲🇾”Race 1 tadi agak tough bagi saya. Saya starting dengan baik, dari P4 terus ke P2 dan mengikuti rapat pelumba depan saya dan ada ketika saya mengetuai perlumbaan.
Dipertengahan perlumbaan sangat mencabar, semua pelumba mahukan kemenangan termasuk saya dan kami berlumba seolah2 setiap lap adalah lap terakhir. Alhamdulillah saya tamat ditempat ke-4 dan mengumpul point yang beharga.”
“Race 2 yang penuh bermakna iaitu Hari Kemerdekaan Malaysia saya dapat tamatkan Race 2 di tempat ke-3. Secara keseluruhan untuk Race 2 ini lagi sengit dari semalam, cuaca sangat baik. Tapi red flag di lap ke-2 terakhir dimana saya sedang leading perlumbaan. Saya sedikit kecewa kerana saya yakin saya boleh tamatkan perlumbaan dengan lebih baik. Tapi saya redha dan terima keputusan ini.
Terima kasih kepada Sepang Circuit, Terengganu Inc, RCB, ZK Racing, semua sponsor dan penyokong yang sentiasa menyokong saya. Kita jumpa next round 6 di Estoril lagi 2 minggu. Saya akan berada di Barcelona bagi latihan untuk persediaan race Estoril.
The middle part of the race was really challenging, as every rider wanted the win, including myself, and we were racing as if every lap was the last. Alhamdulillah, I finished in 4th place and collected valuable points.”
“Race 2 was very meaningful as it coincided with Malaysia’s Independence Day, and I managed to finish 3rd. Overall, it was even more intense than yesterday, with great weather conditions. Unfortunately, the red flag came out with two laps to go while I was leading the race. I was a little disappointed because I’m confident I could have finished even stronger, but I accept the decision.
Thank you to Sepang Circuit, Terengganu Inc, RCB, ZK Racing, all sponsors and supporters who are always behind me. See you in Round 6 at Estoril in two weeks’ time. I’ll be in Barcelona preparing intensively for the race at Estoril.”
Zulfahmi Khairuddin
Pengurus Pasukan SIC Racing
🇲🇾 “Secara keseluruhan, prestasi Qabil minggu ini tidak seperti yang kami harapkan. Walaupun pada awalnya dia agak kompetitif, keputusan akhir tidak begitu baik. Namun saya percaya Qabil telah memberikan yang terbaik, dengan perbezaan hanya 0.1 saat daripada pemenang. Untuk Race 2, kami sudah aturkan strategi untuk menyerang di lap terakhir, tetapi malangnya perlumbaan dihentikan dengan bendera merah.
Selepas ini, Qabil akan berada di Sepanyol untuk menjalani latihan sehingga ke pusingan seterusnya, manakala pasukan akan membuat beberapa perubahan pada jentera untuk memastikan dia kekal kompetitif. Buat masa ini kami masih mendahului, tetapi tidak boleh membiarkan Alessio terus memenangi perlumbaan kerana jurang mata semakin rapat. Saya yakin dengan usaha pasukan dan Qabil sendiri, kejuaraan ini boleh dibawa pulang ke Malaysia.”
🇬🇧 “Overall, Qabil’s performance this week was not as strong as we had hoped. Although he was quite competitive at the start, the final result was not what we expected. Still, I believe Qabil gave his very best, finishing just 0.1 seconds behind the winner. In Race 2, we had planned a solid strategy to attack on the last lap, but unfortunately the race was stopped with the red flag.
Moving forward, Qabil will remain in Spain for training until the next round, while the team will make some adjustments to the bike to ensure he stays competitive. For now, we are still leading the standings, but we cannot allow Alessio to keep winning races as the points gap is getting closer. I am confident that with the team’s efforts and Qabil’s determination, we can bring this championship title home to Malaysia.”
