KUALA LUMPUR – Qabil Irfan Azlan’s achievement of becoming Malaysia’s first world champion in motorcycle racing was not a fluke and can be attributed to his father’s brilliant planning and foresight.
The 11-year-old speedster made history on Tuesday after winning three straight races in Valencia, Spain to emerge overall champion of the FIM MiniGP World Series.
Last year, Qabil finished fourth overall in the World Series, and on his way back home, his father, Azlan Abdul Rahman, had already started planning how to improve his son’s performance.
The first few steps were to buy an Ohvale motorcycle and secure funds. After reaching out for funds from family and friends through Facebook, Azlan had a breakthrough.
The Terengganu government was the first to jump in to assist and helped Qabil get his Ohvale motorcycle.
“Riders abroad normally use Ohvale motorcycles in training, and I knew that if Qabil could own one to train with, his chances of winning would be better.
“I could not afford to buy one myself as it was expensive. I don’t come from a wealthy background, but because of my son’s interest, I tried my best to fulfil his needs to achieve success in motorcycle racing.
“My Facebook post caught the attention of Terengganu Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar, and the state government gifted an Ohvale bike for Qabil,” said the 47-year-old.
Qabil won his world title in the 160cc category, but Azlan’s foresight in advising his son to train with the 190cc bikes proved to have contributed to Qabil’s mission to win the world title.
“I told Qabil to train on larger CC motorcycles because it will give him an advantage when he races on his smaller CC motorcycles.”
“My son knows how to communicate the problem with his motorcycle to the mechanic, and that was an advantage for him. That helped him qualify first for Race 1 after struggling in free practice,” said the father of three. – November 30, 2023