Asia Talent Team riders selected for an exciting new campaign

2017-03-22 08:24
The 2017 Asia Talent Team is all set for action with five riders participating in the project which sees Dorna once again striving to help young riders develop their talent. The five riders are Kazuki Masaki, Yuki Kunii, Ai Ogura, Andi Izdihar and Somkiat Chantra.

Indonesian rider Andi Izdihar of the Astra Honda Racing Team and Japan's Kazuki Masaki are the ‘veterans’ of the team, following on for another year in the series. Meanwhile Yuki Kunii, Ai Ogura and Somkiat Chantra are all debutants. Somkiat Chantra was the winner of the 2016 Asia Talent Cup, being the first Thai rider to have taken that title. Indeed all three newcomers have graduated from the 2016 Asia Talent Cup.

Dorna Sports already runs the successful Asia Talent Cup to support young talented riders and took its commitment to the next level in 2015 by creating the Asia Talent Team in order to ensure the career progression of the most talented riders participating in the Cup.

The Asia Talent Team is run by Dorna as a part of its Talent Promotion Department activities. The 2017 team is led by Alberto Puig and supported by the Honda Racing Corporation, as well as its partners Astra Honda Racing Team and AP Honda Racing Thailand, amongst others, who will also participate in the Moto3 Junior World Championship of the FIM CEV Repsol 2017.

New paths for ATT riders
Elsewhere, for 2017, Kaito Toba will compete in the Moto3™ class of the MotoGP™ World Championship with Honda Team Asia, accompanied by another rider from the Asia Talent Cup and a fellow member of the Asia Talent Team in 2016, Thailand’s Nakarin Atiratphuvapat. Nakarin was fourth in the Asia Talent Cup in 2015, with two wins. Ayumu Sasaki, is the third rider to progress from the Asia Talent Team this year as he has been signed up to race in the Moto3™ World Championship by the SIC Racing Team for 2017.

The FIM CEV Repsol 2017 will commence on 30th April at the Albacete circuit (Spain).

Date & Circuit
30 April - Albacete (Spain)
20 May - Le Mans (France)
18 June - Barcelona-Catalunya (Spain)
9 July - Ricardo Tormo Valencia (Spain)
3 September - Estoril (Portugal)
17 September - Jerez (Spain)
8 October - Motorland Aragon (Spain)
19 November - Ricardo Tormo Valencia (Spain)

Download our Press Release with riders profile
Dorna Sports, who already runs the successful Asia Talent Cup to support young talented riders, has taken its commitment to the next level by creating the Asia Talent Team in order to ensure the career progression of the most talented riders participating in the Asian competition during the 2015 season. The Asia Talent Team is run by Dorna as a part of its Talent Promotion Department activities.

Source:

Click here to visit our forums to discuss this story