Moving On Up: Alex Yoong

Alex Yoong High Res

Paddock magazine catches up with Alex Yoong, a very promising and solid racer. 

Date and place of birth:

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

July 20th, 1976.

Team:

Absolute Racing, Audi R8 LMS Cup

Highlights:

2001, 2002 Formula 1 with Minardi

2005-2008 A1 GP with Team Malaysia (5 wins)

2006 Rookie of the year at the 24 hours of Leman

2014 Audi R8 LMS Cup Champion

If you’re unable to motivate yourself, then maybe sport is just not for you.

What was your very first experience of motor racing?

I remember being 3 years old, watching by the track to see my first car race. I remember my sister still being in a pram next to me when the cars rolled up to start the race. I was hooked instantly, no doubts about it.

Personally, my first race as a driver was when I was 16 in a Proton Saga group N one-make series.

How did you finance your early years?

Don’t ask (laughs).

One of the biggest challenges for every driver is to attract sponsorship. What is your recipe of success?

My own recipe is kind of straightforward – beg, borrow and steal. I believe a modern racer simply has to be a bit single-minded, determined and sometimes just plain stupid to somehow keep going.

How do you deal with the competition on the track?

You have to be aware of the conditions around you, such as the exact type of competition, preparation of the drivers, the teams (yours included), expectations and other important factors. Once you have that covered, you must decide on your strategy; all that matters now is concentrating on extracting the absolute maximum from yourself and the tools at your disposal (your team included).

The rest should just fade away. No competitor is going to push you as hard as yourself. If you’re unable to motivate yourself, then maybe sport (motorsport included) is just not for you.

What are your career highlights?

Additionally to my racing victories, I won a gold medal in waterskiing at the 2011 South East Asian Games. That was actually pretty cool, because when I started training again for it, I hadn’t skied in almost 14 years.




There are no comments

Add yours