PRIME MINISTER HANDS OVER THE ‘JALUR GEMILANG’ TO PROTON TO KICKSTART THE 2012 RALLY SEASON
In conjunction with the ‘PERTEMUAN PERDANA MENTERI MALAYSIA BERSAMA WARGA INDUSTRI SELANGOR’ event at PROTON Shah Alam, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Datuk Najib Tun Razak officiated the PROTON Motorsports S2000 rally team 2012 kickoff season as he hands over the ‘Jalur Gemilang’ to the Chairman of PROTON Holdings, Dato Sri Nadzmi Mohd Salleh. PROTON is to compete in the Asia Pacific Rally Championship (APRC) as well as the Super World Rally Championship (S-WRC).
Among the VIP’s at the launching were former Prime Minister and patron to PROTON, Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamed, Minister of Youth and Sports, Datuk Sri Shabeery Cheek & Managing Director of PROTON, Dato Sri Syed Zainal Abidin Syed Mohd Tahir.
Proton Rally team will compete 5 out of 7 races for the Super World Rally Championship (S-WRC) and the full 6 rounds of the FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship (APRC).
The first outing for the rally team will be the Super World Rally Championship in Monte Carlo which will be held on the 20th to 21st January 2011. The FIA Super 2000 World Rally Championship or S-WRC, is a companion rally series to the World Rally Championship, and is driven on the same stages. S-WRC is limited to production-based cars homologated under the Super 2000 rules. The series begins in 2010 and splits the production World Rally Championship (P-WRC), which was previously open to both Super 2000 and Group N4 cars, into two separate competitions, both of which get their own FIA titles.
For Proton S-WRC challenge in Monte Carlo, the SWRC team consists of former Junior world rally champion Per Gunnar Andersson and co-driver Emil Axelsson, former European rally champion Giandomenico Basso and co-driver Mitia Dotta. Speaking on skype with some of the members of the Malaysian media at PROTON on Friday, PG Andersson says he is happy that we have done a lot of development to the engine and it will be good for the team to start the season in a winning car. He also said his plans is to take PROTON’s first victory in SWRC in his home-ground of Sweden and promises to bring home the medal in his home country. PG Andersson took the gold medal and became the first crew to win the Junior Rally Championship title for the second time in 2007. He won the first Junior World Rally Championship and Swedish Super 1600 title in 2004.
During the launch, Proton showcases the trophy of their race winnings for 2011, where the Proton Rally Team achieved a 1-2 finish at the APRC’s season by sweeping all 8 titles at the 2011 rally season which includes the Manufacturer, Driver’s and 2WD categories. The brand is no stranger to winning in the regional series; it was champion in 2001, 2002 and 2004. Besides APRC, Proton is also competing in this year’s Super World Rally Championship (S-WRC).
“The SWRC is our first outing with the S2000. Given the improvements and testing done during the winter break, we are optimistic that the drivers PG Andersson and Giandomenico Basso will deliver good results for the team. We look forward to a good start in Monte Carlo,” said Datuk Abdul Razak Dawood, Head of Proton Motorsports.
At PROTON we are committed to be better and this extends to both competition and the manufacturing of production vehicles for the global market. We are also committed to winning and excelling in competition which supports our aspiration of becoming truly competitive global brand and car manufacturer,”says John Chacko, Director of Group Marketing, Branding and Motorsports.
About PROTON Motorsports Division
PROTON Motorsports specializes in the research, development and production of race cars, special and performance-driven road going models and performance parts for the Proton range of vehicles.
About PROTON
PROTON, established in 1983, is Malaysia's largest manufacturer of automobiles, and the only full-fledged OEM car manufacturer in South-East Asia. With operations in key markets from UK to the Middle East, and across South-East Asia and Australasia, especially in countries like China and Iran, PROTON produces cars to suit a range of consumer demands and preferences.
Its offerings include versatile and reliable four-door family vehicles, two-door hatchbacks for the young-at-heart, luxurious and stylish executive sedans, spacious and affordable multi-purpose vehicles, as well as the world-renowned sports cars from Lotus. Most importantly, PROTON models are now developed with Lotus Engineering, offering customers superior ride and handling experience in every drive.
PROTON’s inception as a key driver of national development has seen the brand accelerate its learning curve through technology transfer with strategic partnerships and technical collaborations. By listening to the needs of customers, PROTON cars are now steadily on track to achieve the mission for the future, with PROTON set to become a marque which builds cars with passion and soul; cars that are a delight to drive - and a pleasure to own.
