Malaysia retained their OCBC Cycle Southeast Asia Speedway Championship title after edging past finalists Brunei and Philippines on 1 October.
The defending champions raced past the finish line in 18:05.283s to win the S$6,000 champions cheque in the race that featured new-look teams at the Singapore Sports Hub on Saturday, ihe Straits Times reported.
While Brunei took the $4,000 after finishing second with a timing of 20:07.523s, their Group 2 counterparts Philippines bagged the $2,000 cheque for coming third in 20:17.583s in the final.
On Saturday, four cyclists from each team were expected to complete 10 laps in pairs around a 1km circuit. The first pair completed five laps and the second pair finished the race.
2013 SEA Games 100km team time-trial bronze medallist Fauzan Ahmad Lutfi lead a new-look Malaysian side, which qualified for the final after being drawn alongside Myanmar and Cambodia in Group 1.
Singapore, who finished runners-up in the 2015 edition, failed to even make the final. Captain Ho Jun Rong's hopes of going one-better than last year's performance were crashed when they finished behind Phillipines (18:21.920s) and Brunei (18:24.060s) with a timing of 18:31.837s in the group stages.
An elated Brunei captain Azmi Abdul Hadzid said the experience of having competed last year helped him pass on crucial tips to his teammates, who were not part of the 2015 championship.
"I am the only one in my team who competed last year, so I helped to give my team-mates tips and advice on the format of the event. We just supported one another," Hadzid was quoted as saying The Straits Times.
