THE PADDOCKS | 2006 MERDEKA MILLENNIUM ENDURANCE RACE
Images By: Andy Goh
| Battle For Honours Begins [8/26/2006] Exactly seven minutes into midnight, competitors for the seventh edition of Sepang's 12-hour Merdeka Millennium Endurance race (MME) blasted off the grid as the roaring thunder of tens of thousands horsepower filled the air at Sepang Circuit tonight. 
Leading the procession of awesome mean machines for the Petronas Primax 3 Merdeka Millennium Endurance 2006 was Tengku Djan Ley Tengku Mahaleel of Proton R3 Racing Team, which is attempting to be the first team to successfully defend the coveted title. 
MME Flag-Off Partnering R3 test driver Faidzil Alang and Australiam Damien French won the right to start from pole after clocking the fastest aggregate time of 2 minutes 27.098 seconds in qualifying where seven cars had an early trip home after failing to place themselves among the top 77 cars. 
Flagged off by Finance Minister II Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcob, the 2006 battle began under a clear sky and dry track, giving advantage to the two-wheel R3's Lotus Exige and its sister models and the Porsche GT3s over the four-wheel driver Mitsubishi Evo, Nissan Skyline GTR and Subaru WRX machines. 
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With three drivers to a car, they would take turns to complete as many laps a possible within the next 12 hours around the 5.543 Formula One circuit in a true test of man and machine. 
Hailed as Asia's Biggest Race with the participation of 77 cars, 231 drivers and some 1,000 crew members, the MME was introduced at the turn of the millennium as an effort by the circuit to provide more competitive racing for Malaysian racers as well as to make Sepang as the hub for motorsports in the region. 
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