Natasha racer bids for first MSS win with her father
25/05/2013
PETALING JAYA: Beaten to second place in the opening round in March, Natasha Nur Ida Adam Seatter, dubbed as the fastest lady in Asia, will have on-track parental support as she joins forces with veteran Stewart Seatter in search of her first win in the Malaysian Super Series (MSS) at the Sepang International Circuit (SIC) this weekend.
Round 2 features an endurance race with a two-driver format and Natasha has found a perfect driving partner in her father, who used to compete regularly in the MSS as well as the Asia Classic Car Challenge, previously known as Hong Kong Classic Car Series.
“Yes, this will be the first time we will race together in the same car. We have raced against each other in go-karts when I was a junior and he was in the Masters class,” said Natasha.
“They used to mix those classes to teach the juniors how to race. There are a few notable father-son combinations in endurance racing, but I’m pretty sure this is the first time a father-daughter team is competing in a Malaysian national event,” added the 20-year-old Natasha, who topped the Formula Gulf FG1000 Series Championship in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in March.
“Dad has competed in the MSS for many years and he won the championship in 2011. He knows the other drivers’ strategies. He is good at setting the car up and also the rolling starts, so that’s good for me,” said Natasha.
In last month’s opening round of the MSS, which was held as a support race for the Formula 1 Petronas Malaysian Grand Prix and run as sprint races, Natasha, driving a SR-8 Radical machine for Team Elektron, finished second in both the races in the GT Class.
Natasha is now second in the overall championship with 40 points. Angus Kirkwood is the leader with 50 points.
While noting that Kirkwood has a faster machine, Natasha believes she can turn the tables on her rival this time around.
“We will both drive the SR-8 Radicals, but he has upgraded his engine to 3.0l. So, he is is going to be much quicker as compared to the rest of us who have 2.7-litre engines.
“Both versions are allowed and it gave Angus an advantage in Round 1 where he took two firsts. But looking at the lap times, I’m not sure that the larger engine will be an advantage in the endurance race. We shall see,” said the Sarawak-born driver, who got her big break in 2009 when she was picked to join the Petronas Formula Xperience (PFX) programme
Qualifying for the MSS will take place today with the race to be run on Sunday.
Apart from the GT Class, the race this weekend will also see a combined one-hour endurance with three other classes – GT Open, Sports Production and Touring Production Class.