True to earlier predictions, Suhadi Ali Rahmat continued his brilliant form when the young PETRONAS Sprinta Racing Expert rider finished 5th in today's season finale of the 2004 PETRONAS Sprinta AAM Malaysian Cub Prix Championship here at Kangar.
In today's race, Suhadi capped a great comeback when despite starting from the 14th grid position, pushed hard as early as the first corner.
As teammate Mohd Syahnas Shahidan was forced to bow out in the opening lap due to technical problems, Suhadi maintained his consistency throughout the 12-lap race and was rewarded with yet another excellent finish of the season.
Suhadi recalled, "It's good to end the season on a high note like this as it would give us a good basis to proceed next season. Our machines continue to get better as the season nears its end and I must say a big thank you to everyone who made it possible for this excellent finish."
Suhadi's excellent fifth placing not only earned him 10 more championship points to place him 11th in the final Expert class overall standings, but had also signify that the 19-year old is well on his way to the top. Suhadi was placed 15th overall in Expert class last year.
Meanwhile, the team had a rather unexpected result today in Novice class when Noorfakar Fuad failed to complete the finals after being hit by mechanical failures in his 10th lap of the 12-lap race.
Class teammate Hanizam Sanusi was also hit by the same mechanical gremlins twice in his Novice class heats and Novice Plate races respectively and could not continue his challenge in today's season finale.
Team Manager Saiful Amri Abdullah said, "Our Novice class results today was not what we expected while Suhadi continue to exceed our expectations in Expert and we hope he could continue to achieve greater heights in the coming years."
He added, "Overall, it's great that we managed to end the season today on a high note despite the hardship we have endured throughout the season. We have learned plenty from our experience and we hope to give a better challenge next year."