GAZOO Racing Vios Challenge finale this weekend

Season 6 of the TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Festival reaches its finale round this weekend at the Sepang International Circuit and as in past seasons, the highlight of the event will be the GAZOO Racing (GR) Vios Challenge one-make race.

The racing series has become firmly embedded in the Malaysian motorsport scene, having begun as an initiative by UMW Toyota Motor to develop the sport and draw in a new generation of participants. Over the years, it has broadened in its role and GAZOO Racing Malaysia has even started a program to develop newcomers.

45 drivers in 4 categories
The third and final round of the series will be of great interest to racing fans who will want to see who are the champions in the various categories. This weekend, a total of 45 drivers will be competing in the 4 categories – Super Sporting Class, Sporting Class, Rookie Class, and Promotional Class.

Activities for all the family
Besides the races, the 2-day TGR Racing Festival is also an event with other activities for all the family. It will include concert performances; Meet & Greet sessions with the celebrity racers who take part in the series; Tempatan Fest featuring booths for food, vintage accessories, street wear, and art.

The live performances will be by artistes such as hip-hop singer KMY KMO and local rapper Luca Sickta, and Malaysian pop and alternative rock group OAG. Also on stage will be alternative rock band Iqbal M, and 16 Baris featuring Joe Flizzow, MK, SonaOne, ALYPH, AbangSapau, Killa Driz, Sophia Liana, Gard, Pele, Fuego & DJ CZA.

There will be activities for everyone in the family, including kids.

“The finale has been curated as a special ‘’Thank you’ and to celebrate all our fans who have been instrumental in the continued success of the TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Festival,” said UMW Toyota Motor’s President, Datuk Ravindran K.

Datuk Ravindran added that, over the 6 seasons a total of more than 18 million spectators (on ground and online viewers) have watched the races and other activities live. “Undoubtedly, this has firmly established the event as the premier one-make saloon car racing series in Malaysia,” he said.

All-new Vios racing car
With the Toyota Vios having undergone a generational change, the fourth generation model has also been developed for the series. Apart from the fact that all the cars racing in the GR Vios Challenge must, of course, be the Vios, they must also be identical in specifications. Strict regulations and inspections ensure this so that the power outputs are identical and it is very much a competition of driver skill and strategy rather than just power.

Racing fans will be able to see the all-new fourth generation and race-ready Vios at the Sepang circuit. Just as the new Vios has significant improvements in line with Toyota’s aim of providing ever better cars, the racing version also gets changes that improve its performance for faster lap times.

The latest Vios which was launched in March this year. No doubt, the new Vios GR Sport will use many of the lessons learnt from racing to be a more capable sedan.

It continues with a 1.5-litre engine mated to a 5-speed manual transmission, with a more rigid and stable all-new platform as well as revised aerodynamics. Chassis enhancements make it more planted in corners and more responsive to driver input .

The cars will be raced by the 9 celebrity racers in the Promotional Class before being made available for use in all categories in Season 7 of the GR Vios Challenge in 2024.

Free admission but register first
Admission is free but you have to register for entry so remember to do this before going. Click here to register for entry to the event. There is ample parking but do bring along protective gear for both hot sun as well as rain. The weather forecast indicates that it will be mostly cloudy or sunny but these days, you never know as the monsoon season has just started and it could also rain in the afternoon.

If you cannot make it to the circuit or are not in Malaysia, you can still watch the races as they will be streamed live on www.toyota.com.my/tgrmalaysia and across all of TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Malaysia’s social media platforms on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

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