Sepang International Circuit Hosts Turbulent Free Practice for Asian Le Mans Series Opener
Malthe Jakobsen clocked the fastest time in Free Practice 2 at the Sepang International Circuit, setting a 1:55.667 in the #4 CrowdStrike Racing by APR ORECA 07 – Gibson. The session was significantly affected by a thunderstorm, which disrupted initial laps and led to numerous red flags.
After a rain-soaked Free Practice 1, conditions improved momentarily, allowing Jakobsen to top the timesheets, displacing his Algarve Pro Racing teammate John Falb, who finished second with a time of 1:56.199, marking him as the best of the Bronze-ranked competitors. Marino Sato followed in third for LMP2 newcomer Ponos Racing, while Alexander Mattschull of DKR Engineering and Roberto Lacorte of Cetilar Racing rounded out the top five.
In LMP3, reigning ELMS champion Paul Lanchere set the pace for CLX Motorsport with a 1:57.826 in the #17 Ligier JS P325 – Toyota, edging out Romain Vosniak’s #8 Team Virage Ligier by 0.192 seconds. The Duqueine D09 entry, piloted by Fabian Michal, secured third position.
In the GT category, GetSpeed dominated with a noteworthy 1-2 finish from their Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVOs, led by Shigekazu Wakisaka’s impressive 2:08.014 in the #9 entry. Abdulla Ali Al-Khelaifi finished second, while Yasser Shahin’s Corvette Z06 GT3.R completed the podium.
The session was marred by four red flags due to various incidents. Notably, Benjamin Sousa’s off-track excursion at Turn 7/8 halted the session early on. Other interruptions involved multiple car troubles and keepers like Isaac Barashi experiencing difficulties at Turn 12.
With all 47 entries on the circuit, including the #43 Inter Europol Competition LMP2, which faced issues in the earlier session, the drivers adapted to treacherous conditions that rendered lap times approximately 15 seconds slower than optimal.
Looking ahead, qualifying for the first two races of the 2025/26 Asian Le Mans Series will take place tomorrow at 9:15 MST, leading into the four-hour race set for 13:00 MST. Live coverage will be available on the Asian Le Mans Series YouTube channel.
