DESPITE having the odds stacked against him, Mohd Habibullah Mohd Saleh won Round 1 of the Sepang International Circuit-Automobile Association of Malaysia Motocross Malaysian Championship at the Sepang Circuit yesterday (Sunday).

Habibullah or 'Gabit' to many firstly only knew his inclusion for this season's competition just a couple of days before the weekend.

"I had no bike, no testing and was only called by CBK Motor Sport at the last minute," said the 18-year-old.

"The team managed to get me a brand new Kawasaki which thankfully worked fine throughout the weekend," he added.

Though he may have won the overall weekend title, Habibullah's consistency remained as his strength.

He finished second in Race 1 and 3 and third in Race 2 as New Zealander Larry Stuart Blair and Habibullah's older brother Almirul Ashsahid took the first two wins.

"I was a little lucky with Larry and my brother crashing in Race 3. Thailand's Pakasit Suksripaisal managed to take the lead and win the race but I did my best to hold the second position to give me enough points and win the weekend title," said Habibullah, who has had his most successful weekend in his second season in the Expert class.

Despite a winning finish, his inclusion in the second round is still in doubt due to sponsorship.

"Nothing is final at the moment but I hope to secure a team to keep my chances of the overall title alive. However, personally I will begin my physical training at full swing," said Habibullah. 

In the Veteran category Johhann Rodriguez dominated with three wins, while Abdul Halim Melan topped the Cubcross category.

The Novice class saw Khairil Syazwan Mohd Khair win all three races and in the Junior category Faizuddin Naim Ishak made sure it was his weekend with triple first place finish.

Results