UMW Toyota Motor Sdn Bhd has just announced the running of Season 3 of the Toyota Gazoo Racing (TGR) Festival which will kick-off in September.
Season 3 will feature four rounds consisting of eight Toyota Vios Challenge One-Make Races organized on specially-constructed street circuits and at Sepang International Circuit, with three classes of racing: Promotional class for local celebrities, and the Sporting and Super Sporting classes for amateur and professional racing drivers respectively.
Racing in Season 3 will not be confined to the track, and will also move to the virtual realm with the continuation of the Gazoo Racing Velocity E-Sports series. First introduced in September last year, the competition successfully attracted more than 400 participants locked in virtual wheel to wheel racing.
Another new element at the TGR Festival for motorsports and car enthusiasts to look forward to is the Gazoo Racing Outlet that will showcase a line-up of special models inspired and derived from Toyota’s motor-racing involvement, one of it being the Gazoo Racing Supra.
“Toyota has accomplished so much in motor-racing and we want to bring enthusiast and customers closer to the Toyota brand and products by leveraging on Toyota’s rich motorsports heritage. The TGR Festival was never about just selling more cars, but celebrating the success of Toyota and Gazoo Racing in global motorsports, from the Dakar Rally and World Rally Championship to the most recent victory in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and translating these achievements to benefit the masses domestically,” said Mr Akio Takeyama, Deputy Chairman of UMW Toyota Motor.
“With Gazoo Racing, Toyota’s global direction is pushing the limits via its involvement in motorsports, and this is translated into building better products and shaping the strength, capability and creativity of its workforce. We embrace this philosophy in our business domestically, and now with models like the Vios, Yaris, and soon to be available Supra, we believe UMW Toyota Motor has the right product mix locally to establish an even bigger footprint in Malaysian motorsports.”
Bringing motorsports to the masses has not only been translated into organizing the TGR Festival at specially-constructed street circuits and away from a permanent racing circuit, for example in places like Penang, Terengganu and Johor, but its one-make Vios racing format has also made it an affordable racing series for amateur and professional drivers.
The achievements of Season 2 which witnessed a 14-year-old competitor successfully transitioning from karting to saloon car racing, Takeyama said, also makes the TGR Festival an attractive platform for young drivers to hone their skills in their pursuit to reach the higher levels of motor-racing.
Meanwhile, celebrities who will be competing in the Promotional class are actor Shukri Yahaya, beat-boxer Shawn Lee, presenter Nabil Ahmad, singer Khai Bahar, singer Nabila Razali, singer Wany Hasrita, actress Janna Nick and defending champion actress Diana Danielle. Season 3 also welcomes two newcomers, actress/presenter Ain Edruce, and actor Syafiq Kyle. Takeyama himself, will also be returning to compete in the series in his third straight season.
UMW Toyota Motor President Mr Ravindran K. said the TGR Festival is in essence an extreme proving ground to demonstrate the capabilities of Toyota cars, especially introductory models like the Vios.
“Manufacturers today share the goal of building cars that are practical, affordable, economical, reliable and packed with technological advancements. For Toyota, it is equally important that our products not only fulfill these expectations, but live up to the most enduring conditions, offer customers a high degree of driving satisfaction, performance and ownership excitement,” he said.
Mr. Ravindran K. also pointed out that the combination of on and off the track racing activities, together with the showcase of the Gazoo Racing Outlet and Gazoo Racing Supra underlined the company’s aspiration to establish a bigger footprint in Malaysian motorsports moving forward.
“Motorsports is not purely confined to competition but involvement at so many levels. It is also about cultivating greater interest, passion and appreciation and we believe the combination of on track racing, virtual racing, motorsports-inspired and derived models, and bringing the spectacles of motor-racing closer to the people will contribute to giving Malaysian motorsports a further boost,” he said.
The sponsors for Season 3 of the TGR Festival include Toyo Tires, leading supplier of advanced automotive technology, systems and components Denso, TRD Asia, Japanese engine oil and lubricant manufacturer Moty’s, Enkei wheels, M7 energy drinks and Toyota Capital Malaysia.
Season 2 of the TGR Festival ended in April this year with the running of four rounds, eight races, attracting more than 80,000 race fans, 1.1 million online viewers, and with the crowning of three new champions in the Promotional, Sporting and Super Sporting classes.
