Dentsu Sports Asia to manage Malaysian motorcycle racer Hafizh Syahrin

Malaysian motorcycle racer Hafizh Syahrin (pictured) has appointed Dentsu Sports Asia (DSA) as an exclusive commercial partner to manage his non-motorsports-related commercial contracts globally. These include endorsements, promotional contracts, non-Motorcycle Grand Prix (MotoGP) media activities and event appearances. The contract is an annual renewable one.Hafizh is Malaysia's top motorcycle racer and the first rider in Southeast Asia to compete in the premier motorcycle world championship, the MotoGP. According to Hafizh, DSA is led by individuals who are passionate about sports in general, including motorsports, particularly the two-wheel variety."Working together with former national athletes who are now with DSA, such as Olympians and former national swimmers Jeffrey Ong and Khoo Cai Lin, gives me great confidence in their abilities to manage my commercial interests and I believe they will do an excellent job," he said.Ong, vice president of DSA who was appointed to his role earlier this year, described Hafizh to be an "exciting young talent" with the potential to become one of the best MotoGP riders in the world."We see plenty of opportunities for DSA to help develop Hafizh’s career by managing his commercial partnerships and sponsorships, which will free up his time and enable him to focus on his training and racing. By leveraging DSA’s sports business expertise and experience, we hope to be able to assist Hafizh in achieving even greater heights in motor racing," Ong said.He added that the growth potential for motorsports in the region is huge and the Sepang International Circuit is being developed as a Southeast Asian motorsports hub. As such, there are opportunities to improve the careers of the racers and other related jobs such as engineers, technicians, mechanics and other support staff.Among the list of athletes managed exclusively by DSA are gymnast Farah Ann, swimmer Welson Sim, taekwondo athlete Sara Yap, triple jumper Hakimi Ismail and para-athlete Ridzuan Puzi.