PETRONAS MIE Racing Honda Team
In 2019 MIE Racing participated in a joint project with Honda and Althea Racing, entering the FIM WorldSBK Championship with an HRC factory-supported team, the Moriwaki Althea Honda Team, and fielding experienced British rider Leon Camier and Japanese rider Ryuichi Kiyonari.
MIE Racing founder and Team Principal Midori Moriwaki managed the project. Though challenging, the 2019 season allowed MIE Racing and Honda to gain important experience in view of the 2020 season.
In 2020 MIE Racing confirmed its firm commitment to the FIM WorldSBK Championship in entering the series with the satellite MIE Racing Honda Team AND 2017 MFJ*3 All Japan Road Race Championship winner and factory HRC rider Takumi Takahashi.
In 2021 MIE Racing Honda Team announced Leandro “Tati” Mercado as its rider for the 2021 Superbike World Championship aboard the CBR1000RR-R FIREBLADE. The former 2014 Superstock 1000 champion haD regularly demonstrated his ability to quickly adapt and be fast aboard different machines. The Argentinean was an experienced rider whose race career has spanned different categories, including six seasons in the Superbike World Championship.
In 2022, as well as confirming Mercado after a promising first season together, Team Principal Midori Moriwaki signed Malaysian rider Hafizh Syahrin to the ranks of the MIE Racing Honda Team.
In 2023, after announcing the signing of Eric Granado for the 2023 Superbike World Championship alongside reconfirmed Hafizh Syahrin the Team inked a new deal with Malaysian energy company, PETRONAS, thus becoming the PETRONAS MIE Racing Honda Team
The agreement with PETRONAS enabled Midori Moriwaki’s team to expand upon its projects and set itself some ambitious goals for 2023 and beyond. While the PETRONAS MIE Racing Honda Team continues to compete in World Superbike with riders Hafizh Syahrin and Eric Granado, the 2023 season will also see it field a Supersport team for the first time with the formation of the new PETRONAS MIE MS Racing Honda Team counting on younger and skilled riders Tarran Mackenzie and Adam Norrodin, as they carve their professional path.
Just ahead of the start of the 2023 FIM Superbike World Championship, the four riders, together with Midori Moriwaki and representatives from PETRONAS, unveiled the beautiful new livery of the Honda CBR1000RR-R and Honda CBR600RR, which stands out for its distinctive PETRONAS colour scheme, makes an unmistakeable impact both on and off track.
With the arrival of PETRONAS, MIE Racing will also focus on wider-ranging, long-term projects as well as the development of an ‘academy program’ that will see the partners join forces to harness WorldSBK and WorldSSP as the platforms and catalyst for a Malaysian talent development program that seeks to promote and develop the talents of up-and-coming riders. This venture will enable PETRONAS to exhibit its expertise and conduct product testing and development with the team, which will help amplify the energy company’s premium products for the high-performance production Superbikes.
