Being the new kid on the block did not stop the Organic Touch - F Tuned Racing Suspension Rally team (OTFT) from triumphing at the recent Rally of Terengganu (ROT), which was the final round of the Malaysian Rally Championship (MRC) 2018.
Held at the Terengganu International Endurance Park (TIEP) in Lembah Bidong, Setiu on December 14 & 15, OTFT's Nazatul Shima binti Mamat and her co-driver, Muhammad Firdaus bin Mohd Fodzi, were crowned champion in the Novice category.
This was a tremendous achievement for the duo, not only because ROT was only their second time rallying, but Nazatul Shima was also one of the only two female drivers in MRC 2018.
"I am really surprised and in disbelief of our victory. Of course, we are proud of winning the Novice category and we cannot wait to get back to the drawing board with the team. It will not be the Novice category for us anymore next year, so we must do better.
"This achievement is dedicated to the whole OTFT crew who had been supporting me since the very first day and to all my teammates who shared their knowledge and coached me as well," said the homegrown driver after the prize giving ceremony.
OTFT also bagged the third place in the 1300cc category with local hero, Muhammad Syakirin bin Razaki, and co- driver Amir Izham bin Abdul Aziz. This resulted in OTFT taking home third overall in the team category for this year's ROT.
Also racing for OTFT were Dinie Nazmie bin Abd Rahman and Mohd Nazam Shah bin Sulaiman (1800cc category); and Azmeer Yusri bin Yusof and Mohd Erwandanny bin Suaad (1600cc category). They were runner-up in their respective categories at the Rally of Perlis earlier in the year.
Adding to the challenges of the rally, the east coast monsoon season made the sandy tracks muddy and slippery. Due to the adverse conditions on Day 1, several cars got stuck in the muddy tracks or overshooting into ditches.
Non-stop rain on the second day forced officials to change most of the special stages as floods had risen, making it impossible for the rally cars to pass through.
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