UMW Toyota Motor president Datuk Ravindran K said they were extremely pleased to have concluded a second year of the GR Vios Sprint Cup.
“I would like to congratulate and underline my appreciation to all the drivers, teams and dealers for the tremendous hard work they have put in throughout the two rounds. With the launch of the Toyota Gazoo Racing GT Cup Malaysia online racing series, we will continue to push forward in support of the development of motorsports in Malaysia”.
Held independently of the GR Vios Challenge (Toyota Gazoo Racing Festival), the GR Vios Sprint Cup retains the format of a one-make series and was held as part of the Malaysia Championship Series (MCS).
It consisted of two driver teams taking on two 1-hour races on Saturday and Sunday, which included a compulsory pit stop and driver change. This was the second year of it being included in the national series.
The 21-car grid GR Vios Sprint Cup included foreign drivers, three lady drivers, a sea of young drivers and seasoned professionals competing side by side for total prize monies amounting to RM60,000 per race weekend.
Laser Motor Racing raced to its third successive win and a fourth consecutive podium finish in the four races to conclude a dominant campaign.
The second and final round 2 of the series saw the team claiming double victories with Race 1’s win going to the pair of Putera Adam and Jwan Hii, while Race 2 was dominated by teammates Eddie Lew and Amer Harris.
In Race 2 of the GR Vios Sprint Cup, Laser Motor Racing continued to exert their dominance with the pair of Lew and Amer winning the 1-hour race ahead of Prima Pearl TD Racing’s Mitchell Cheah and Mika Hakimi. Distinctive Model's Aaron Haikal and Ady Rahimy came in third.
Ravindran also announced the launch and rebranding of the GR Velocity Esports Championship, now known as the Toyota Gazoo Racing (GR) GT Cup Malaysia, online racing series.
The series, now in its sixth consecutive year, is one of the most lucrative online racing events in the country offering up to RM90,500 in cash prizes this year, the highest ever in GR GT Cup Malaysia history.
Toyota remains the only car manufacturer and brand to be involved in e-racing.
First held in 2018, the GR GT Cup Malaysia e-racing tournament has attracted more than 900 participants annually.
Ravindran said the momentum and the level of interest for virtual racing had grown tremendously and are a boost for both e-sports and motorsports here in Malaysia.
“We are proud to be able to support this platform of motor racing,” he said.
For the first time, this year UMW Toyota Motor introduced the simulator racing experience at universities across Malaysia.
These include stopovers at UNITAR, UiTM Pasir Gudang; UiTM Shah Alam; INTI Subang; Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia; Sunway University; and INTI Penang.
This is part of an important extension of Toyota’s mission to contribute to the growth of motorsports in Malaysia, particularly in the areas of developing a younger generation of talent.
It is not only designed to encourage greater participation of youths but to also bring motorsports to the masses.
The qualifying stage for the tournament starts on July 15 to shortlist the top 20 fastest drivers for the semi-final and subsequently the top 10 finalists for the finale which will be held at Sunway from Aug 19-20.
Ahead of the 2023 tournament, UMW Toyota Motor calls all aspiring e-racers bidding to be Malaysia’s fastest sim-racer to sign-up and have a go at the prize monies.
Registrations for the qualifiers are open now at www.toyota.com.my/gtcupmalaysia/
For more information on the Toyota Gazoo Racing Festival, GR Vios Challenge, GR Vios Sprint Cup and GR GT Cup Malaysia series visit www.toyota.com.my and UMW Toyota’s Facebook page.
