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PETALING JAYA: Nazim Azman earned significant Merdeka Day cheer for the nation by winning his first British Formula 3 race this season after a spectacular start from fourth on the grid at the Brands Hatch circuit in England.
The 18-year-old is the only Malaysian who has been granted special permission to go abroad to compete in four-wheel racing at this time.
And he hasn’t squandered the opportunity, handling the car well despite the rainy conditions to win the ninth round of the championship on Saturday.
The Carlin driver jumped to first position as those ahead of him on the grid struggled to escape and did not give up position during the 14-lap race.
He resisted heavy pressure from Japan’s Reece Ushijima to finish in 19: 29.899, taking what is Carlin Racing’s fourth win of the season.
His Japanese Hitech GP rival finished second in 19: 30.598 ahead of Australian Bart Horsten (19: 31.041).
Nazim was delighted to have done his small part to cheer up the nation despite the current difficult situation.
He is limited to a bubble environment in the championship with the rest of the Carlin team members until November and it took some time to get used to the new norm.
“It was a matter of time before this moment came and it is something special to win it on the eve of Merdeka Day,” Nazim said. “The last two rounds have been a bit disappointing. At Oulton Park (first stop), we went very fast but got off at Donington (second stop) and then the same here because of the rain.
“But overall, I was pretty optimistic, I had a feeling we could do it.
“It started to rain a bit early in the race and continued until the end.
“I had to be a little careful and handle my tires wisely,” added Nazim, who is only the second Malaysian winner to win a British F3 race after Jazeman Jaafar.
It’s not the first for Nazim, who honed his skills for Meritus Racing in the SEA F4 Championship before moving to Europe.
He already won two races last year in his rookie season last year while driving for Chris Dittmann Racing.
The series is Britain’s leading single-seater championship and attracts young aspiring drivers who hope to enter Formula 1 in the future.
A total of 24 rounds will take place on eight tracks with the season finale at Silverstone in early November.
Nazim is fourth in the overall championship standings after nine races with 144 points.
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