Moto3 rookie Danish: “You have to be aggressive when it counts!”

Hakim Danish finished third overall in the 2025 Red Bull Rookies Cup. This year, he is competing in his rookie season in the Moto3 World Championship with the MSi team. The Malaysian made it into the top 10 in just his second race in Brazil, after which the 18-year-old regularly achieved top results. At Mugello, he secured his first podium finish in the Motorcycle World Championship, and at Brno he claimed his first victory. Danish currently sits 7th in the overall standings.

In an interview with SPEEDWEEK.com writer Manuel Pecino, Hakim Danish talks about his expectations for this season and what it takes to become world champion.

Hakim, after eleven Grand Prix races, you’ve already proved that you can fight for a podium place. Did you expect to climb so high in the standings in your first season? To be honest, no. At the start of the year, I hadn’t expected to achieve the sort of results I’m getting now. My only goal was to keep learning and to improve from race to race.

Now that I’ve seen I can compete right at the front, my motivation is even greater. There are still plenty of races to come, and I want to keep developing, but above all I want to remain consistent.

But once you start finishing on the podium, expectations change too. In the past, a ninth-place finish might have seemed like a good result; now, that might not be enough anymore. That’s normal. At the same time, it’s a source of motivation. If you want to become world champion, you have to learn to deal with that pressure. It’s part and parcel of this sport.

In Moto3, everything can change on the final lap. You can be fighting for the win and end up second… or even ninth. That’s why you have to be aggressive when it counts, but also smart. You have to find the balance between attacking and handling every situation correctly.

The final laps in Moto3 are probably the most intense of the entire World Championship. Yes. There are always loads of overtaking manoeuvres, collisions and changes of position. It’s a very competitive class, and you have to accept that situations like that are part and parcel of racing. You have to keep your cool and make the right decisions in a very short space of time.

Given your current results, are you already thinking about challenging for the championship? No. At the moment, I’m not thinking about the championship. My only goal is to keep improving as a rider. I want to get closer and closer to the leading group and regularly battle with the best. If I manage that, the results will follow naturally. My approach hasn’t changed: keep learning, keep growing and always give my best.

In your case, there’s a special situation. You’re Muslim and aren’t allowed to celebrate with champagne on the podium. ( Laughs). No, I’m not allowed to drink alcohol. My religion is Islam, and out of respect for my faith, I abstain from it.

And how do you juggle Ramadan with a World Championship season? That must be very complicated. Yes, I observe Ramadan every year. This year it coincided with the start of the season, during the Thai Grand Prix. But when a race is coming up, I don’t fast on those days. I resume fasting straight after the race.

Is that a permitted exception? Yes . When you’re taking part in competitions, you’re allowed to postpone fasting because you need to be in peak physical condition. If I were to try to compete whilst fasting, it would be very difficult to maintain my concentration and deliver the performance required for a World Championship race.

You’re becoming increasingly well-known in Malaysia. Have you noticed that people recognise you on the street yet? Yes , bit by bit. Every day there are more people who know who I am and who follow my races. I’m really pleased about that, because it means that motorcycling is growing in my country and more and more people are taking an interest in our sport.