The French squad will continue their relationship with the Malaysian for at least one more year
Monster Yamaha Tech 3 are delighted to announce that Hafizh Syahrin will continue with them into the 2019 season, with the Malaysian signing a one-year contract extension for Hervé Poncharal’s team that will see him make the switch to a factory spec KTM machine next year.
Following Syahrin’s late call up to the premier class for the 2018 campaign, the 24-year-old delivered an impressive rookie performance in Qatar to earn points in his first ever MotoGP race. Then in Argentina, Syahrin produced an outstanding ride in tricky conditions to secure his first top ten finish, as well as top rookie honours in just his second race on the Tech 3 bike.
Four-point scoring finishes in six starts, which leaves Syahrin as the leading rookie in the Championship, shows the extraordinary learning curve Syahrin has taken.
“It’s hard for me to say and to believe,” expressed the Malaysian. “First of all, I have to say thank you very much to Hervé for trusting in me and giving me this opportunity to stay with the Tech3 family and at the same time to join the KTM family. I also have to express a huge thank you to my manager Dato’ Razlan, who helped me to achieve this dream arriving in the MotoGP class, plus thank you to KTM for believing in Hervé and in me. I will work hard for 2019 and I’ll be better prepared, as this is not as surprising as this season. I’m incredibly happy to get this chance, I even feel close to crying with joy. Thanks to everybody and especially to Hervé and Dato’ Razlan for always believing in me.”
“Today is a very special day for me and for the whole Tech3 team,” added Poncharal. “Since Hafizh jumped on our MotoGP bike, it’s been like a dream, every single day, because he’s been very fast and a lot faster than some people were thinking and we’ve been very proud of what he did. I know it was a great achievement for a Malaysian rider to be the first one of his country arriving in the MotoGP class, for his first ever MotoGP race, he scored points and since that day he has been consistently battling for the top rookie spot and apart from that, Hafizh is a very special character.”
The number 55 will join current teammate Johann Zarco, Pol Espargaro (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) and Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Ajo) on 2019 RC16s.
By MotoGP
