THE Shell Malaysia Motorcycle Grand Prix will be a bittersweet race for Hafizh Syahrin Abdullah whose time in the premier class will soon come an end -for the time being at least.
Hafizh, who will be making a return to Moto2 with Spanish outfit Angel Nieto next year, admitted that he does feel a tinge of sadness heading into his home race.
“It (Sepang) will be a memorable occasion for me because I will be leaving MotoGP at the end of year," said Hafizh.
“My goal is to go out and enjoy the occasion, I know the fans are expecting something special from me but it is hard for me to promise anything at the moment with the (bike) package I have.
“I have not received any technical updates for the engine, I just have to accept the current situation and manage as best as possible.
“Of course it is sad for me to leave MotoGP, I would love to stay but there are no available slots for me (for 2020) as a lot of riders had signed two-year deals (for 2019-2020).
“But this also means that there will be slots available for the 2021 season, so I have to make sure I do well in Moto2 next year so that I have a chance of moving back up to MotoGP in 2021.”
Hafizh, then riding a Yamaha YZR-M1, did well to place 10th at Sepang last year though such a result will be tough for him to replicate this year.
The 25-year-old is currently 23rd in the overall MotoGP standings with only eight points to show after 17 races this season.
Hafizh created history as the first-ever full season MotoGP rider from Southeast Asia when he signed with French premier class outfit Tech3 last year.
He enjoyed a stellar debut season in 2018, which saw him finishing a close second behind Franco Morbidelli in the Rookie of the Year standings.
The Ampang-born rider's fortunes, however, took a turn for the worse when Tech3, who had previously spent two decades with Yamaha, switched to KTM this year. The Austrian manufacturer is a relative newcomer, having just joined MotoGP in 2017.
Hafizh and even former Tech3 teammate Johann Zarco, who moved to KTM's factory team this year, struggled to adapt to the difficult handling traits of the KTM RC16 bike.