WorldSBK – Next up Mandalika for the PETRONAS MIE Racing Honda Team

The PETRONAS MIE Racing Honda Team is already hard at work at the Mandalika International Street Circuit in Indonesia, the stage for this weekend’s second Superbike World Championship round.

Riders Hafizh Syahrin and Eric Granado competed in round one, held at Phillip Island in Australia, just a few days ago. The event proved challenging, with mixed conditions over the course of the weekend not exactly facilitating the team’s work. Both Hafizh and Eric are nevertheless confident that they will be able to do more on Indonesian soil.

While Syahrin competed at the Indonesian track last season, finishing with a best result of thirteenth, the circuit is an unknown quantity for rookie Granado, who will need to work hard and fast to get up to speed.

Inaugurated only very recently, in 2021, the Mandalika International Circuit is located on Lombok island, in the West Nusa Tenggara province. While the 2021 WorldSBK round played out in wet conditions, last year’s races were characterised by very hot and humid weather. The track incorporates six left-hand turns and eleven right-handers and is 4.3 km in length.

Hafizh Syahrin

“I prefer the feeling at Mandalika compared to Australia. The Indonesian track was quite slippery last year which means you don’t have many options in terms of lines, but I have a little more confidence there in terms of the layout, whereas the wind at Phillip Island continuously affects your feeling. Our goal this coming weekend will be to continue to work step by step to improve our package.”

Eric Granado

“I’ve seen videos of previous races and the layout looks really great and a lot of fun. It’s bound to be another weekend with variable conditions, so we’ll have to wait and see what the weather brings. I’ve seen that the track offers good grip though, and so I hope we can improve session by session and day by day, learning more each time we race and getting gradually closer to the front.”

Track information:

Country: Indonesia
Name: Mandalika International Street Circuit
Length: 4.300 km
Pole position: left

Corners: 6 left-hand, 11 right-hand

SBK RECORDS: Best lap – Razgatlioglu (Yamaha) 1’32.163 (2022). Superpole – Razgatlioglu (Yamaha) 1’31.371 (2022).

2022 SBK RESULTS:

Race 1 – 1. Razgatlioglu (Yamaha); 2. Bautista (Ducati); 3. Rea (Kawasaki)

Superpole race: 1. Razgatlioglu (Yamaha); 2. Rea (Kawasaki); 3 Locatelli (Yamaha)

Race 2 – 1. Razgatlioglu (Yamaha); 2. Bautista (Ducati); 3. Rea (Kawasaki)