View source for Sepang 12 Hours

{{Infobox motor race
|Race title = Sepang 12 Hours
|Logo =
|Track map = Sepang.svg
|Series long = 
|Series short = 
|Venue = [[Sepang International Circuit]]
|Sponsor =
|First race = 2000
|First series race = 
|Last race = 
|Distance = 
|Laps =
|Duration = 12 Hours
|Previous names =
|Most wins driver =
|Most wins team = 
|Most wins manufacturer = [[Porsche]] (5)
}}
The '''Sepang 12 Hours''' (formerly known as the '''Malaysia Merdeka Endurance Race''' and '''Merdeka Millennium Endurance Race'''), was a 12 Hours [[Endurance racing (motorsport)|endurance racing]] event held annually between 2000 and 2016 at the [[Sepang International Circuit]] on December in [[Malaysia]].

It was organised by the [[Stephane Ratel Organisation]], responsible for global GT3 standards in international sportscar racing. 

The race was part of the inaugural [[Intercontinental GT Challenge]] in [[2016 Intercontinental GT Challenge|2016]].

==Schedule==
Historically part of the Merdeka holiday, the race was moved to December by Ratel to make the race as the first of four major endurance races held in the Northern Hemisphere winter, the traditional off-season of motorsport, with the others the [[Dubai 24 Hour]] (Creventic 24H Series) and the [[24 Hours of Daytona|Rolex 24 at Daytona]] (IMSA [[WeatherTech SportsCar Championship]] in January, and the [[Bathurst 12 Hour|Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour]] in February are the others.

==History==

===1990–2000===
In the late 1990s, Malaysian auto manufacturer [[Proton (automobile)|Proton]] used to organize a 300&nbsp;km race at Shah Alam circuit for local racers racing with Protons, to celebrate Merdeka in Malaysia. When Sepang International Circuit was built the race was shifted to the F1 circuit, with the winners of the race entitled to a new Proton road car.

But after the 1999 race, a dispute happened between Proton and Sepang International Circuit, resulting in Proton's sponsorship withdrawal. Sepang therefore decided to host a replacement race by itself and started the Merdeka Millennium 12 Hours Endurance Race in 2000. The race also opened up for non-Proton entries.

The inaugural race was won by the Proton EON Racing Team (PERT) with Jimmy Low, [[Karamjit Singh]] and Tommy Lee driving, beating off the challenge from TVR Racing who ran Malaysian F1 driver [[Alex Yoong]].

===2001–2017===
[[Image:MMER logo.png|thumb|right|300px|2006 Merdeka Millennium Endurance Race logo]]
In 2001, TVR Racing won the race with Jeffery Wong, Tommy Lee and Admi Shahrul in a [[TVR Chimaera]].

In 2002, Amprex Motorsport entered the Japan GT300 spec Mazda RX-7 machine, with crack Hong Kong driver [[Charles Kwan]] and Kevin Wong as its drivers. But the car failed to finish the race. [[Nigel Albon]], Tommy Lee and T. Hamman won in their [[Porsche 911 GT3]].

In 2003, the race got more serious with BSA Racing entering a Radical SR3 and a Porsche 911 GT3 Cup with Wolf Henzler as its lead driver, while Amprex Motorsport entered the BMW M3 GT for Charles Kwan, [[Matthew Marsh (racing driver)|Matthew Marsh]] and [[Genji Hashimoto]]. Alex Yoong was also back with Jaseri Racing. But in the end unfancied G1-Meritus won the race after outlasting its rivals, with Eric Yeo, Firhat Mohkzani and Chin Tzer-Jinn driving their Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car serenely to victory after completing 268 laps.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.radicalextremesportscars.com/news_folder/mme/index.php |publisher=radicalextremesportscars.com |title=BSA racing debut at MME |date=30 August 2003 |accessdate=30 July 2008 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071206044730/http://www.radicalextremesportscars.com/news_folder/mme/index.php |archivedate=6 December 2007 }}</ref>

In 2004, Amprex Motorsport, armed with the latest [[Automobile Club de l'Ouest|ACO]]/[[Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile|FIA]] [[Sports car racing#Grand Touring|GT1]] spec [[Lamborghini Murcielago]] R-GT racer, totally dominated proceedings as its drivers set laps of 2:09s around the circuit. But the car broke down and [[Honda Malaysia Racing Team]], with Eddie Lew, Farriz Fauzy and [[Super GT]] driver Hiroki Katoh, took the top step of the podium, despite running in class A.

The 2005 edition was dominated by a joint effort between Amprex Motorsport and Proton R3 Racing, together they operated the team and their [[Lotus Exige]] 300RR won outright, completing 279 laps.

In 2006, Amprex Motorsport decided to bring back the Lamborghini Murcielago R-GT for the race but it was crippled in a practice accident, allowing Proton R3 Racing's Lotus Exige 300RR a clear run to victory number 2, completing 271 laps in the process. Faidzil Alang, Australian Damien French and Tengku Djan Ley shared the driving duties.

The 2007 race has been made more interesting with more participation from foreign teams racing teams, namely J's Racing Lab with a [[Honda S2000]] and Juniper Racing with a 911 GT3 RSR. Famous racing drivers such as former [[Formula One|F1]] and [[24 Hours of Le Mans]] driver [[Hans-Joachim Stuck]] also participated in the race. Year 2007 also record the highest participation so far with 103 cars signing up for the race but only 77 makes it to the starting grid in accordance to the FIA circuit license granted to Sepang International Circuit.

In 2008, the race was won by [[Darryl O'Young]], Mok Wing Sun and Alexander Nicholas Davison of Porsche Club Singapore. Their Porsche 997 RSR completed 308 laps.<ref name=pcs>{{cite web |url=http://malaysiangp.com.my/news/sepang-circuits-porsche-club-singapore-wins-m |title=Porsche Club Singapore Wins Merdeka Millennium Endurance Race |publisher=Sepang International Circuit |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120218184734/http://malaysiangp.com.my/news/sepang-circuits-porsche-club-singapore-wins-m |archivedate=18 February 2012 |accessdate=18 January 2016}}</ref>

The race was renamed the Sepang 12 Hours in 2014, and in 2015 was run under the organisation of international sportscar racing authority the Stephane Ratel Organisation.<ref name=tp12>{{cite web |url=http://www.talontv.net/tp12-racing-team-sepang-12-hours-race-2015/ |title=Sepang 12 Hours Race 2015 |publisher=Sepang International Circuit |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160203220448/http://www.talontv.net/tp12-racing-team-sepang-12-hours-race-2015/ |archivedate=3 February 2016 |accessdate=26 January 2016 }}</ref>

The race in 2017 was cancelled due to a lack of entries, and has not been held since.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nst.com.my/sports/motor-sports/2017/11/299107/end-road-sepang-12-hours-race|title=End of the road for Sepang 12 Hours race|last=Sports|first=N. S. T.|date=2017-11-04|website=NST Online|language=en|access-date=2020-02-26}}</ref>

=== 2018–2022 ===
After a break of 5 years, in 2022 it was announced race was returning for 2023 - the revival of the race is going to be organized by a partnership between Top Speed and Sepang International Circuit.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sepang 12 Hours Set To Return In 2023 |url=https://www.dailysportscar.com/2022/10/13/sepang-12-hours-set-to-return-in-2023.html |website=dailysportscar.com}}</ref>

==Overall winners==

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Year !! Team !! Drivers !! Car !! Laps
|-
! [[2000 Sepang 12 Hours|2000]]
| {{flagicon|MAS}} Proton EON Racing Team || {{flagicon|MAS}} Jimmy Low<br />{{flagicon|MAS}} [[Karamjit Singh]]<br />{{flagicon|MAS}} Tommy Lee || [[Proton (automobile)|Proton]] PERT || 253
|-
! [[2001 Sepang 12 Hours|2001]]
| {{flagicon|MAS}} Team TVR || {{flagicon|MAS}} Jeffrey Wong<br />{{flagicon|MAS}} Admi Sharhal<br />{{flagicon|MAS}} Tommy Lee || [[TVR Chimaera]] || 250
|-
! [[2002 Sepang 12 Hours|2002]]
| {{flagicon|MAS}} Jaseri Racing || {{flagicon|GBR}} [[Nigel Albon]]<br />{{flagicon|MAS}} Tunku Hammam<br />{{flagicon|MAS}} Tommy Lee || [[Porsche 911|Porsche 911 GT3 Cup]] || 262
|-
! [[2003 Sepang 12 Hours|2003]]
| {{flagicon|MAS}} [[Team Meritus|G1 Meritus]] || {{flagicon|MAS}} Eric Yeo<br />{{flagicon|MAS}} Chin Tzer-Jinn<br />{{flagicon|MAS}} Firhat Mohkzani || [[Porsche 911|Porsche 911 GT3 Cup]] || 268
|-
! [[2004 Sepang 12 Hours|2004]]
| {{flagicon|MAS}} [[Honda Malaysia Racing Team]] || {{flagicon|MAS}} Eddie Lew<br />{{flagicon|JPN}} Hiroki Katoh<br />{{flagicon|MAS}} Farriz Fauzy || [[Honda Civic|Honda Civic 2.0 i-VTEC]] || 265
|-
! [[2005 Sepang 12 Hours|2005]]
| {{flagicon|MAS}} [[Proton Motorsports|Proton R3 Amprex]] || {{flagicon|MAS}} [[Tengku Djan Ley]]<br />{{flagicon|JPN}} [[Genji Hashimoto]]<br />{{flagicon|AUS}} [[Tony Ricciardello]] || [[Lotus Exige|Lotus Exige 300RR]] || 279
|-
! [[2006 Sepang 12 Hours|2006]]
| {{flagicon|MAS}} [[Proton Motorsports|Proton R3 Team]] || {{flagicon|MAS}} [[Tengku Djan Ley]]<br />{{flagicon|AUS}} Damien French<br />{{flagicon|MAS}} Faidzil Alang || [[Lotus Exige|Lotus Exige 300RR]] || 271
|-
! [[2007 Sepang 12 Hours|2007]]
| {{flagicon|MAS}} Team Hong Leong-Kencana Racing || {{flagicon|MAS}} [[Mokhzani Mahathir]]<br />{{flagicon|GER}} Sven Herberger<br />{{flagicon|DEN}} Lars Erik Nielsen || [[Porsche 911|Porsche 911 GT3 RSR]] || 288
|-
! [[2008 Sepang 12 Hours|2008]]
| {{flagicon|SIN}} Team Porsche Club Singapore || {{flagicon|AUS}} [[Alex Davison]]<br />{{flagicon|HKG}} [[Darryl O'Young]]<br />{{flagicon|SIN}} Weng Sun Mok || [[Porsche_911_GT3#997_GT3|Porsche 997 RSR]] || 308
|-
! [[2009 Sepang 12 Hours|2009]]
| {{flagicon|JPN}} Petronas Syntium Team || {{flagicon|MAS}} Johan Adzmi<br />{{flagicon|JPN}} Tatsuya Kataoka<br />{{flagicon|JPN}} [[Manabu Orido]] || [[BMW M Roadster#Z4 M Roadster (2006–2008)|BMW Z4M Coupe]] || 306
|-
! [[2010 Sepang 12 Hours|2010]]
| {{flagicon|MAS}} Arrows Racing || {{flagicon|DEU}} [[Christopher Haase]]<br />{{flagicon|MAS}} Tunku Hammam<br />{{flagicon|NLD}} [[Peter Kox]] || [[Lamborghini Gallardo|Lamborghini LP560]] || 315
|-
! [[2011 Sepang 12 Hours|2011]]
| {{flagicon|JPN}} Petronas Syntium Team || {{flagicon|MAS}} Dominic Ang<br />{{flagicon|JPN}} [[Nobuteru Taniguchi]]<br />{{flagicon|JPN}} [[Masataka Yanagida]] || [[Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG|Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3]] || 321
|-
! [[2012 Sepang 12 Hours|2012]]
| {{flagicon|JPN}} Petronas Syntium Team || {{flagicon|MAS}} Dominic Ang<br />{{flagicon|JPN}} [[Nobuteru Taniguchi]]<br />{{flagicon|JPN}} [[Masataka Yanagida]] || [[Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG|Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3]] || 319
|-
! [[2013 Sepang 12 Hours|2013]]
| {{flagicon|SIN}} Clearwater Racing || {{flagicon|NZL}} [[Craig Baird]]<br />{{flagicon|JPN}} [[Hiroshi Hamaguchi]]<br />{{flagicon|SIN}} Weng Sun Mok || [[Ferrari 458 Italia|Ferrari 458 Italia GT3]] || 323
|-
! [[2014 Sepang 12 Hours|2014]]
| {{flagicon|SIN}} Clearwater Racing || {{flagicon|ITA}} [[Gianmaria Bruni]]<br />{{flagicon|MYS}} Alif Hamdan<br />{{flagicon|SIN}} Weng Sun Mok || [[Ferrari 458 Italia|Ferrari 458 Italia GT3]] || 325
|-
! [[2015 Sepang 12 Hours|2015]] 
| {{flagicon|BEL}} [[W Racing Team|Belgian Audi Club Team WRT]] || {{flagicon|GBR}} [[Stuart Leonard]]<br />{{flagicon|MCO}} [[Stéphane Ortelli]]<br />{{flagicon|BEL}} [[Laurens Vanthoor]] || [[Audi R8#Motorsport|Audi R8 LMS]] || 228
|-
! [[2016 Sepang 12 Hours|2016]]
| {{flagicon|DEU}} [[Phoenix Racing (German racing team)|Audi Sport Team Phoenix]] || {{flagicon|NED}} [[Robin Frijns]]<br />{{flagicon|DEU}} [[Christopher Haase]]<br />{{flagicon|BEL}} [[Laurens Vanthoor]] || [[Audi R8#Motorsport|Audi R8 LMS]] || 305
|- 
! 2017
| style="background:#dddddd" align=center colspan=5| Race Cancelled <ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.sepang12hours.com/newsitem.php?key=45|title=SRO chooses to cancel 2017 Motul Sepang 12 Hours|date=3 November 2017}}</ref>
|- 
! 2018<br />–<br />2022 
| style="background:#dddddd" align=center colspan=5| ''Not held''
|-
! [[2023 Sepang 12 Hours|2023]] 
| {{flagicon|HKG}} Absolute Racing || {{flagicon|INA}} Andrew Haryanto<br />{{flagicon|DEU}} [[Markus Winkelhock]]<br />{{flagicon|CHN}} [[Kuai Yu|James Yu]] ||  [[Audi R8 (Type 4S)#R8 LMS (GT3)|Audi R8 LMS Evo II]] || 215
|-
! [[2024 Sepang 12 Hours|2024]]
| {{flagicon|CHN}} R&B Racing || {{flagicon|CHN}} Wei Lu<br />{{flagicon|CHN}} [[Leo Ye|Leo Ye Hongli]]<br />{{flagicon|CHN}} Bo Yuan || [[Porsche 911 GT3#992 GT3 R (2023–)|Porsche 911 GT3 R (992)]] || 322
|-
! [[2025 Sepang 12 Hours|2025]]
| {{flagicon|CHN}} 33R Harmony Racing || {{flagicon|MYS}} Jason Loh<br />{{flagicon|CHN}} Chen Weian<br />{{flagicon|CHN}} Luo Kailuo<br />{{flagicon|MYS}} [[Jazeman Jaafar]] || [[Ferrari 296#296 GT3|Ferrari 296 GT3]] || 328
|-
|}

===Multiple race winners===

{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%;"
|-
! Wins
! Driver
|-
!rowspan=2 | 3
| {{flagicon|MAS}} Tommy Lee
|- 
| {{flagicon|SIN}} Weng Sun Mok
|-
!rowspan=7 | 2
| {{flagicon|MAS}} [[Tengku Djan Ley]]
|-
| {{flagicon|MAS}} Tunku Hammam Sulong
|-
| {{flagicon|JPN}} [[Nobuteru Taniguchi]]
|-
| {{flagicon|JPN}} [[Masataka Yanagida]]
|-
| {{flagicon|MAS}} Dominic Ang
|-
| {{flagicon|GER}} [[Christopher Haase]]
|-
| {{flagicon|BEL}} [[Laurens Vanthoor]]
|}

{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%;"
|-
! Wins
! Manufacturer
|-
! 5
| [[Porsche]]
|-
! rowspan=2 | 3
| [[Audi]]
|-
| [[Ferrari]]
|-
! rowspan=2 | 2
| [[Lotus Cars|Lotus]]
|-
| [[Mercedes-Benz]]
|}

==Records==
* Tommy Lee is the only driver to have won the Open class three times. He raced for three different teams for the wins: PERT, TVR and Jaseri Racing.
* The [[Honda Malaysia Racing Team]] (HMRT) has won class A five times in a row from 2003 to 2007,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.honda.com.my/corporate/press_release_details/442/Rising-to-The-Challenge-Within-won-Class-A-Championship-title-for-the-5th-consecutive-year-in-MME-20 |title=Rising to "The Challenge Within" won Class A Championship title for the 5th consecutive year in MME |publisher=Honda Malaysia |accessdate=18 January 2016}}</ref> it also won the race overall in 2004.
* Malaysian driver [[Jazeman Jaafar]] became the youngest participant of MMER in 2007, at the age of 14.
* Team Porsche Club Singapore became the first foreign team to win the Merdeka Millennium Endurance in 2008.<ref name=pcs/>

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

{{Intercontinental GT Challenge races}}
{{Automobile endurance races}}

[[Category:Sports car races]]
[[Category:Touring car races]]
[[Category:Auto races in Malaysia]]
[[Category:GT4 (sports car class)]]
[[Category:2000 establishments in Malaysia]]
[[Category:2016 disestablishments in Malaysia]]
[[Category:Recurring events established in 2000]]
[[Category:Recurring events disestablished in 2016]]