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| From left: Syazril Amri (2nd), K.Logeswaran (1st) and Mohd Afiq (3rd) |
Mohd Afiq Bin Mohd Zulkifli is a Malaysian youth thrives on
competition and challenges. An accomplished Wall Climber and a Kcar hard core
enthusiast, he decided to have a go in racing in 2011 in the GAB Super Compact,
an introductory racing competition for Super Compact Championship.
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| Climb Afiq! Climb!!! Photo by: Razee |
At 27 years young, he’s been married for two years now. With
a young wife and a two year old son, he is at a cross road…
And he’s not to be blamed.
Afiq, is a natural when it comes to racing. He clearly inherited the talent from his father, who’s also a Superbike racer during the
heyday of Batu Tiga Circuit in Shah Alam.
When Afiq joined Super Compact, he did it meticulously. He
didn’t jump straight away into the first race. Instead, he came to watch the
race and did a thorough research before participating in the second round of
GAB Super Compact 2011.
He first prepped up his car with the basic setup, and works his
way up when he began to show improvement in the subsequent rounds. When Afiq
began to regularly visit the podium (second and third placing), his dad began
to take notice.
Mr.Zulkifli is a no nonsense kind of person. He’s a realist,
and thoroughly support his children in whichever field they’ve chosen. Afiq is lucky to have
very supportive parents.
He worked out a sponsorship deal for Afiq, and also a very
close friend of Afiq who’s also racing in GAB Super Compact at the time, Mohd Shairazi
Izhar.
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| They were "like peas and carrots". Middle is Afiq's car, on the right is Razee's car in Super Compacts' Pit. |
These two were "like Peas and Carrots”. They formed a highly competitive pair of Super
Compact racers. They are the ideal scenario in Malaysia where talented racers
try their best to participate in affordable and sanctioned racing environment, in which Super Compact Championship is
trying very hard to emulate.
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| Shairazi (L) and Afiq (R). Twins? Naahhh... |
Still, the basic cost of proper racing in Malaysia is way
too high for the ordinary citizens to really immersed into. Racing tires, for
example, cost a bit too much compared to Malaysia’s per capita income. The
cheapest being a 13 inch imported semi slick cost RM350.00 to RM380.00 a piece, when
the majority of the racers only earn about to RM2,500.00 to RM3,000.00 per
month. The cost of 4 pieces of semis
alone will at least cost them RM1,400.00! This being Malaysia one of the top rubber producer in the world…
Then we have the safety requirements. Roll cage brand new will cost RM1,500.00 to
RM2,000.00 per car. Fortunately in Malaysia, used bolt on roll cages can be
sourced from outside the country at a third of the cost. But they are few and
far between.
FIA racing suits cost RM1,500.00 onwards. The smart racer
will usually buy the used ones, albeit expired FIA date. The helmets, gloves and racing shoes are the
ones the typical racer in Malaysia acquire first, since they can be used on a
daily basis. (Cost of RM500.00 for the shoes, RM200.00 for gloves, and RM300.00 onwards for helmets (Non HANS).)
There’s also the miscellaneous expenses for the racing car
setup, such as dyno jet, suspension set up and basic maintenance, entry fees, transportation and so on.
If only the companies and businesses in Malaysia understand the logic and reward of
racing sponsorship, Malaysia would have a larger number of racing talents
emerging from the masses.
Back to Afiq. The sponsorship for his young racing career
has ceased. He needs to find an alternative solution to continue showcasing his racing
talent in Super Compact Championship. His father already contributed so much in launching his racing
ambition. Its decision time for him, and the same with other Super Compact racers, we're praying very hard sponsorship will be available soon.
CM.
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;))
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