Watanabe goes for No. 5 in Petronas series

MANILA, Philippines - The chase for top honors in the Petronas Philippine Motorsports Championships Season heats up when the Bridgestone Philippine Superbikes Series, the FDR Philippine Scooter Racing Championships and the Philippine Underbone King Championships hold their penultimate legs tomorrow at the Batangas Racing Circuit in Batangas.

Dashi Watanabe of Aprilia tries to move a win away from sweeping the series as he guns for his fifth straight win in the superbikes series sanctioned by the Superbikes Racing Association while John Lery Enriquez and Niño Fabian of Castrol-Dudshop go for follow-up to their earlier victories in the scooter and underbone championships, both held under the auspices of the Underbone and Scooters Racing Association and backed by FDR as the official tires.

With two legs to go, Watanabe leads the pack with 100 points after a sweep of the first four stages with defending champion Raniel Resuello of Ducati RAR Castrol Motolite Racing Team and Aprilia-HGM teammate Marvin Mangulabnan in joint second with 78 points.

Joining the hunt in the event, sponsored by Petronas, Bridgestone as the official Superbikes tires and media partners Racing Beat @ Wave 89.1, Inside Motoring @ DZRJ810khz and Motorsiklo Xklusibo @ DZME 1530, are Benjo Mendoza, Rizaldy Canare, and Team Ducati Philippines riders Miko Mannerkorpi, John Defensor, Toti Alberto and Peter Cotter.