NAMSSA sends Esguerra, Espiritu to the 2023 FIM Asia Cup race in Thailand

Top national road racers Dustin Esguerra and Robert Ryan Espiritu will represent the country in the opening round of the 2023 FIM Asia Cup of Road Racing  (ACRR) to be held in Thailand on September 1-3 at the Thailand Circuit, Nakhonchaisri.

The ACRR is an annual continental competition organized by FIM Asia where a minimum of 6 Asian countries compete. The first round will have the Thailand national federation FMSCT as the FMN host. ACRR will have another race in Taiwan in October before the finals in the Philippines to be held in December.

Esguerra from Taytay, Rizal and Espiritu from Marilao, Bulacan, have earned their places to this prestigious event by being the top Philippine domestic road racers in the premier class of 2023 Philippine National races sanctioned by NAMSSA as of the time of selection. Riders already competing at the international classes this year in the ARRC are not eligible.

The NAMSSA is the Philippine FMN of the Federacion International de Motorcyclisme (FIM),  the international governing body for motorcycle sports, and is recognized by both the Philippines Sports Commission (PSC) and the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC). The USRA established in 2011, is an affiliate organization of NAMSSA since 2022 and a partner in organizing and promoting national motorcycle road races in the country.

The Defending Nations Cup Overall Champion is our very own NAMSSA Philippines Team.  We have conquered the ACCR three times already in the past. The 2014  title and the last two held in 2019 and 2022. In fact, Esguerra was a race winner and part of the champion team that won the title last December in Tarlac, to the delight of the local racing community.

Meanwhile, Espiritu was the big winner in the Motul Super Series Malolos City GP Nationals held last May.

For the Thailand round, the ACRR riders will compete on equally prepared GPX Demon GR200R racebikes provided by FMSCT partner GPX.

Esguerra is a GP rider of the DE69 Faito Koso Denoo Team while Robert Espiritu is a GP rider of the CRA SEC Aspira Super RR Team. Both teams are part of the Super Series Permanent Franchise Teams (PFTs) that compete exclusively in NAMSSA and USRA sanctioned races in 2023.

NAMSSA and FIM Asia President Macky Carapiet is happy that the ACRR season will be underway. “NAMSSA is delighted to continue our program in sending qualified Filipino racers to international competitions. In cooperation with our partner USRA and its organizers, we have found deserving and talented riders to be part of the National Team that will defend Philippine honor in Thailand this December. The ACCR is a continental championships with similar level of prestige and competition as that of the Asian Games in athletics. Three times already we have proven that Filipinos can achieve the top gold positions in this sport, beating other Asian countries in the process. This is something that all Filipinos should be proud of. Let us all show support to Espiritu and Esguerra as they try to win another gold for the Philippines next month,” said Mr. Carapiet. “The strategic plan of NAMSSA is to develop the grassroots racing development in the Philippines and elevate the Filipino athlete onto the international, continental and world championships, and this already has been proven and done as we have won many podium medal awards for the country in the Asian region,” he added.

The USRA is equally delighted  of this development.  “This is only the second year of our partnership with NAMSSA and  we have already made significant steps in providing international opportunities for our top road racers. In 2022, we managed to bring international road race competiton to our country and in 2023, NAMSSA will send our riders abroad starting this September,” said USRA President Mr. Eduardo Lumague.

“We are grateful to NAMSSA for supporting our top national riders at the international and continental level. Our FMN’s support to them is a significant boost to the local racing community and a concrete motivation for more young racers to aspire to the greater dream of representing the Philippine flag,” added USRA Board and Super Series Group Co Chairman Al Camba.

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