Yesterday, we had the special opportunity to speak with the new CEO of Sepang Circuit, Mr. Azhan Shafriman Hanif, and the plans that are already in motion from Sepang are quite encouraging and out of the box.
Of course, Sepang itself is an established and respected motorsport hub in the region but they would also like to pull non-motorsports crowd’s interest into the area. Among those in the pipeline are setting up a hotel and theme park.
But this goes without saying that they are not neglecting the motorsports side of the upgrades as well. Aside from planning to build a Driving Experience Center at Sepang, a dedicated drag strip is also in the plans to further diversify the motorsports activities that could be held there.
The go-kart circuit will also be receiving a revamp to provide a better training ground and talent development. And not to forget, an off-road circuit will also be built as well. All these plans are a part of the Sepang Master Plan set back in 2014 and hopefully we will see some of them taking shape in the next couple of years. So far, the upgrades Sepang had executed such as the roof renovation and bathroom upgrades gave the circuit a refreshed experience from our side.
Touching on the current pandemic, Shafriman also shared that while it has made things challenging for him, he has been in the motorsports arena for quite some time, experiencing the ups and downs. Those knowledge gained along the years will be put into good use to bring up the circuit and the industry.