KUALA LUMPUR: After his points scoring 12th place at Buriram a fortnight ago, Hafizh Syahrin Abdullah wants to continue his momentum at the Japan Motorcycle Grand Prix which starts on Friday.
The Monster Yamaha Tech3 rider, whose previous points finish came at the Czech GP in August, hopes to close the gap in his battle with Italian Franco Morbidelli in the Rookie of the Year competition.
Morbidelli leads the rookie standings while Hafizh is second, five points adrift. The former will be joining the Petronas Yamaha Sepang Racing Team next year.
Hafizh, who will remain with Tech3 next season, hopes to hit the ground running at Motegi.
"I can’t wait to arrive in Motegi because it’s one of my favourite circuits. I hope to be inside the-top 15 again, the aim is to be the best rookie," said the 24-year-old
"The team know my style and I know the character of the bike a lot better now.
"I hope when we arrive there, we are ready to fight from the first practice to race day."
Hafizh, who struggled in qualifying at Silverstone and San Marino, said: “I need to have a good position in qualifying in order to have a good start and find a good group to score points.
"Maybe we can make it into the top 10 for the second time this year, the main goal is to collect some points and be as close to the front as possible."
Hafizh did well to finish ninth in the second round in Argentina this season but has not been able to crack the top-10 since then. Finishing 11th at the German GP is his second best result this season.
