Under a day of full sun, Andi got a good feeling on the bike at Motegi to make good lap time to finish 4th fastest in qualifying. Nakarin pushed his best to go 6th on the grid, with Zaqhwan still struggling with the setting in 8th position.

At the start of Race 1, an incident between Kunii and Nakarin caused Nakarin to crash out, and with liquid leaked onto the track the red flag came out. After a 20-minute clean-up, racing restarted with the original grid positions.

Nakarin's bike was repaired with incredible work from the team just in time for him to re-join the race. With a great start, he ran strongly in the front group and rewarded the teamwork with a hard-fought second place finish.

Zaqhwan started in sixth and kept fighting there until the checkered flag, while Andi unfortunately crashed out. He brought the bike back to the garage but there was not enough time to finish the race.

Tomorrow is race two where the team believe it will be even more exciting than today!

Nakarin Atiratphuvapat #41 / QP – P6, Race 1 – P2

"Incredible today! This morning in qualifying, I feel better with the bike but not enough speed to follow the top riders, but I just believe in myself. In the race when starting I have so much confidence I could stay P3 like not so difficult. But on the second lap Yuki hit me and crashed, his bike was broken then red flag! I can bring my bike to repair for restart. I just try again - my bike was not perfect with handling after the crash, but there no time to adjust. I was just thinking to go in front for the podium. I was behind BMW and Ducati, I learned a lot from them and see where I can overtake them. I try to pass many times and finally, I can finish P2. I'm happy for today as it’s over my target!"

Zaqhwan Zaidi #21 / QP – P8, Race 1 – P6

"So, for overall today I feel a bit unlucky in the qualifying time because my best lap has been disturbed with another rider and I only managed to get P8. It's not the result I want, but we focused on Race 1. So, on the start was not so bad and I try to keep into front group but in the last three laps I feel a struggle with bike and my condition was not so strong. I know it will be a tough race, but I push and give my best finally I get P6. I was thinking tomorrow I can be better because I understand the problem and we to solve for tomorrow Race2. Thanks for all support."

Andi Farid Izdihar #23 / QP – P4, Race 1 - DNF

"Today in qualifying I improved my feeling on the bike and also the set up. In Race1 I feel I was struggling in the beginning but step by step I feel good, and I manage to get in front but suddenly I lost front grip in turn 8. I want to forget mistake on Race 1 and focus for Race 2 tomorrow."

Makoto Tamada - HADR Team Manager

"In the qualifying round, we spent more time on setting up the machine than on the ranking. The riders did their best even in that situation. In Race 1, our team had Nakarin and Andi fall. The race was restarted due to a red flag, but Nakarin's best performance resulted in an impressive second place. We will update the setup for Race 2 tomorrow, and we hope that both Andi and Zaqhwan will be able to race in the top group."