Young stars keen to show off Supercars overseas
03 Jun 2015
V8 Supercars' rising stars are thrilled to be heading to Kuala Lumpur for a Championship round from 2016 onwards - and will pack their bags later this year to stagea demonstration in Malaysia in August.
2014Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 winner Chaz Mostert, who drives a Ford Falcon FG X, and 2014 Barry Sheene Medalist Scott McLaughlin, steering his Volvo S60, are two of five Championship drivers who will be part of the August 7-9 showcase, soon after the Queensland Raceway round of the V8 Supercars.
Both are great examples of the future talent in the category and with fan favourite Craig Lowndes for Holden, driver and Nissan team boss Todd Kelly and former Championship runner-up Erebus' Will Davison, will get a taste of the Malaysian street circuit before racing kicks off in the 2016 season.
Mostert, who is one of the form drivers at the moment having secured five of the last six ARMOR ALL Pole Positions, said it was an honour to be chosen as one of the five drivers to represent the category overseas in August, and can't wait to inspect a new track.
"I think it's super exciting for the category to get another international round back on the calendar and to lock it in for a few years," Mostert told v8supercars.com.au.
"To be one of the five drivers to represent our series overseas for the demonstration laps is super exciting and a huge honour.
"It's not too far away, I better sort out my passport and all that sort of stuff!
"I'm very excited and it's pretty cool the series is taking cars over there to show the people of KL what we're all about."
McLaughlin missed venturing overseas after getting to sample Austin, Texas in his first year as a full-time V8 Supercars driver, and believed the time difference and travel options made it accessible for fans to see V8 Supercars off-shore in Malaysia.
"It's pretty cool, anytime I can go overseas and race something, a V8 Supercar or anything else, is awesome," McLaughlin said.
"For me to be a part of the five - obviously they want one from each manufacturer ... to go over there is pretty cool and, to be honest, to half get an idea of what it looks like."
Racing on the streets - which will showcase some of the region's famous sights such as the Petronas Towers - always means intense wheel-to-wheel V8 Supercars racing.
"[To do] an overseas race on a street track is pretty cool, I think they're on the money there going to a street track.
"We always get pretty good racing and it looks like, from what I was watching, the last corner looks like turn eight backwards at Clipsal - so it seems pretty cool and I'm really looking forward to having a crack."
Erebus' Davison has thrown his support behind the event, having raced in Kuala Lumpur previously, at the Sepang International Circuit in KL in 2005 for the A1 Grand Prix.
"I'm really pumped to race in Kuala Lumpur, I've raced there before and it's an awesome place to visit,'' said Davison.
"It's a real boost to have an international race back on the V8 Supercars calendar so well done to all involved in this new agreement.
"It's going to be exciting to head over in August to rumble on the streets of KL.''
The August 7-9 event is the test bed for future KL City Grands Prix with organisers to formalise the deal with V8 Supercars following its completion.
