All 4 racers of the Honda Racing Vietnam Team performed extremely well in stage 5 of ARRC 2023. At one point, the Vietnamese representative even made it to the top 3 leaders and the distance to the Podium was very close. However, there was a dramatic turn of events that resulted in a very surprising outcome.
Two-thirds of the race has passed
After 4/6 stages, the entire Honda Racing Vietnam Team went to China to participate in stage 5 of the ARRC 2023 season with great hope. Previously, all 4 racers did very well and brought valuable points to the home team.
Entering stage 5, the representative from Vietnam is currently in 8th position in the overall standings – AP250 category with 56 points and temporarily earned 18 points in the UB150 category. Our racers are growing more and more mature, gradually taking control of the game; competing fairly and fiercely with other strong opponents in the region.
Most notably, the “feat” of twice making it to the top 6 (Race 2 -stage 3 and Race 1 – stage 4) of racer #65 Cao Viet Nam. He also made his opponents extremely uncomfortable by always aiming for a position on the prestigious Podium. The other three racers of the Honda Racing Vietnam Team also surprisingly achieved top 10 results and scored points for the racing team.
In addition, the Vietnamese racing team has also had very impressive warm-up performances, with outstanding achievements: 1st and 3rd place overall calling the names of Cao Viet Nam and Nguyen Duc Thanh at the MSBK tournament held in Sepang – Malaysia. The entire team is in a very strong and hopeful state going to the Chu Hai racing track – China.
Southern sea of waves awaits to welcome
The predecessor of the Zhuhai International Circuit, currently the oldest and largest speed arena in the populous country, was transformed from a street circuit. It was inaugurated and officially put into operation since 1999, Chu Hai racing track has achieved Grade 2 FIA standards; with a length of 4.319km, including 14 corners, with 9 right corners and 5 left corners and a straight section of up to 900m in length.
With a continuously intertwined structure of left and right turns, Chu Hai racing track requires each racer to be truly skilled in techniques to enter and exit corners, accelerate and control the braking force. Especially, the two 90-degree corners number 4 and 14 are the most difficult areas for racers, as they are both fast corners, demanding high handling speed and happening in a flash.
All mistakes will come at a high price and in reality, during training days, many barriers have been shifted or even damaged; due to racers’ efforts to handle corners in different ways, in order to find the best racing plan.
At the same time, the very long straight section also pushes the maximum speed that racers can reach to a completely different level. Therefore, the competitive nature at this speed arena is very fierce.
On the other hand, the Chu Hai racing track is located on the coast of South China Sea, adjacent to Hong Kong, Macau…and the international standard time zone is GMT +8. Therefore, both the geographical and weather conditions are quite familiar to our racers.
After the free practice races, all 4 racers entered the timed qualifying race to determine the starting positions. The person holding the team’s flag – “madman” Cao Viet Nam #65 tried his best and won the 7th place – leading Row 3.
Meanwhile, his teammate competing in the AP250 format with him is #193 Nguyen Duc Thanh starting in 22nd place. In the UB150 format, two racers #178 Nguyen Anh Tuan and #111 Nguyen Huu Tri respectively achieved unfavorable starting positions – 23rd and 25th after the qualifying session.
Day 1 of the race
AP250 Competition
Entering stage 5 in China, all hopes of Honda Racing Vietnam Team were focused on the two AP250 racers. Scoring points, making it to the top 10, even within the top 5 – these are all achievements that both #65 Cao Viet Nam and #193 Nguyen Duc Thanh are capable of. Next, what the whole team as well as both racers are aiming for is a top 3 position and appearing on the prestigious Podium.
At the start of the race, #65 Cao Viet Nam took a cautious approach, different from his usual fierce start, but still enough to maintain a position in the top 10 leading racers. Below, #193 Nguyen Duc Thanh was also very active, surpassing 2 opponents and reaching the 20th position after the first lap.
The second lap witnessed Indonesian seed racer #46 Herjun Adna “falling off the horse” while being in the top 5 leading racers. At this point, #65 Cao Viet Nam found a way to surpass 3 opponents and secured 6th place then 5th place. Below, #193 Nguyen Duc Thanh still persevered in the 18th position and after the next race got to the 17th place.
A notable moment occurred when there was an off-standard maneuver at turn 3 in the third lap causing “The Mad” to drop to 7th place. But right after that, he regained his spirit and rose to 6th place. Meanwhile, #193 Nguyen Duc Thanh was also fast in climbing up to take the 17th place in the next lap.
This result caused “The Mad” to have a second DNF since the ARRC 2023 season started. The remaining hope of the racing team – #193 Duc Thanh finished in 12th place, a result that is not bad when he started in 22nd place.
UB150 Competition
Entering the first day of the race, the air temperature reached 28°C, light sunshine while the wind was only about 10 km/h and the humidity was 68%. The weather conditions were very stable. Everyone was ready to start the Race 1 Round 5 ARRC 2023.
The lights went out! The racers simultaneously released the brakes and stepped on the throttle with full speed at the start of the race. Thanks to taking advantage of the opportunity, #111 Nguyen Huu Tri immediately broke through and surpassed several opponents in the first lap. Only a few seconds later, four racers #38, #61, #22, and #60 fell off their bikes and abandoned the race, continuing to create opportunities for the trio Anh Tuan, Huu Tri to move up.
At the end of the first lap, #178 Nguyen Anh Tuan temporarily surpassed 7 opponents and ranked 17th while young racer #111 Nguyen Huu Tri trailed him in 20th place, leaving behind 5 opponents and patiently waiting for an opportunity.
The subsequent development was quite unfavorable for the Vietnamese representatives, as #178 Anh Tuan gradually dropped positions after each lap. At the end of the fourth lap, he was only in 18th place, trying to climb up but unfortunately lost the order immediately after.
The final overall result after 6 laps, #178 Nguyen Anh Tuan ranked 20th while his young teammate #111 Nguyen Huu Tri held the 21st position immediately behind. The winner of Race 1 was Md Akid Aziz – racer with number #13 from Malaysia.
Day 2 of the race
AP250 Qualifying
At the start of Race 2, #65 Cao Viet Nam continued to execute a cautious tactic similar to the first race day and held a position in the top 10 leading racers. Two racers #33 and #15 both fell off their bikes after a collision and helped #193 Nguyen Duc Thanh rise to 18th place after leaving 3 opponents behind.
The duo #65 and #193 both caused a lot of anxiety for the fans, as they faithfully stuck to the “guerilla” tactic and maintained their positions throughout the next 2 laps. And then it was all extremely surprising when the old fox #65 Cao Viet Nam suddenly accelerated at turn 14 and surpassed 5 opponents, squeezing into the top 5 on the long straight section as the next lap began.
The next development, #65 continued to “defeat” an opponent and secured the 4th place; but then, he was attacked and dropped to 5th place when Race 2 was halfway through. Below, #193 still persisted in the 18th position and waited for an opportunity that could come at any time.
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In the following rounds, the battleplan “putting the enemy to sleep” was repeated by Cao Viet Nam. And in the 8th round, #65 suddenly rose strongly, surpassed two opponents #36 and #46 to win the leading 3rd place.
This was a moment of overflowing emotions, never before has the hope been pulled so high on the Podium flag. Cao Viet Nam maintained a very good performance and proved to be a formidable opponent for all racers in the AP250 category. However, lacking a bit of luck, the Vietnamese has not been able to step onto the Podium yet.
At the final lap, due to a bit of unfortunate luck, #65 Cao Viet Nam dropped to 8th place with regret before crossing the finish line. His teammate #193 Nguyen Duc Thanh maintained his position and finished the race in 17th place.
UB150 Qualifying
Entering the second race day, things started quite difficult when the duo #178 Anh Tuan and #111 Huu Tri could not immediately break through from the first few laps. Both of them held the 23rd and 25th positions since the start.
With remarkable efforts, #178 Nguyen Anh Tuan has surpassed each opponent in the second lap to rise to 22nd and then 21st place. On the other hand, the 15-year-old racer #111 Huu Tri also surpassed the Malaysian racer #24 Hafiza Rofa and temporarily ranked 24th.
In the fourth lap, #178 Nguyen Anh Tuan slowly approached the 19th place and soon after that the 18th place. His younger brother #111 Huu Tri also didn’t fall behind when he stubbornly held onto the 22nd position.
In the final lap, #178 Nguyen Anh Tuan successfully surpassed opponents and “finished off” the race with a 17th place finish with a gap to the first place of less than 3 seconds. Meanwhile, #111 Nguyen Huu Tri also completed the race in 20th place.
Summary of stage 5 of the ARRC 2023 motorcycle race: after two fiercely competitive days, the entire Honda Racing Vietnam Team achieved very encouraging results.
At the end of Round 5, our team still maintained the 8th position in the overall standings – AP250 category, with 68 points (thanks to 8 points from Race 2 by Cao Viet Nam and 4 points from Race 1 by Nguyen Duc Thanh). In the UB150 category, the team continued to have 18 points and ranked 12th.
More importantly, our racers have shown effort and skills that are no inferior to their opponents. Cao Viet Nam can compete fairly and deserves a spot in the top 3. However, lacking a bit of luck, the Vietnamese have not been able to step onto the Podium yet.
The aspiration for achievements, the determination to fight, and the clear goals of all 4 Vietnamese racers will surely be shown most truthfully in stage 6 – also the last stage of the ARRC 2023 season to be held at the Chang racetrack, Thailand from 1-3/12/2023.
Anh Phan (Tuoitrethudo)
Photos by: Minh Dai
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