The Motorsport Development Program (MSDP) of the Automobile Association Philippines (AAP) is set to come back this year with a grant from the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA).
MSDP events had been halted since the pandemic started in 2020. But in 2021, some MSDP locations in the southern part of the country were able to organize motor sport activities due to the region’s more relaxed quarantine restrictions. By strictly abiding with the protocols of AAP’s Return to Motor Sport Manual plus online guidelines from the AAP-MSDP, organizers in Cebu, Misamis Oriental and Iloilo were able to develop their own independent motor sport communities.
AAP is confident that the MSDP can be revived in 2022 given the successful implementation of the AAP Return to Motor Sport Manual last year and the government’s continuous anti-COVID-19 vaccination program.
AAP Motorsports Manager Ivan Isada said that the main agenda is to empower organizers, instructors and drivers, to strengthen them through new ways of teaching and coaching, and to give them confidence in running their own local race competitions.
“It’s going to be an exciting year for AAP-MSDP since it is envisioned as a new phase,” Isada said. “The theme of MSDP this year is revival, which is defined as not only bringing back something into action, but also bringing it back with strengthening. We don’t just want to make motor sport bigger and have more unity here in the Philippines, we also want the people behind and in the frontlines to become better sportsmen.”
Isada added that he looks forward to collaborating with new organizers in Luzon and have them affiliated with AAP.
The MSDP is a grassroots racing program launched by AAP seven years ago, in 2015, to promote participation in motor sport among young driving enthusiasts across the country. With training modules, practices on track, and a national Gymkhana, MSDP and its team of race-instructor organizers have made motor sport more accessible and safer in the Philippines.
To know more and stay updated about the AAP-MSDP revival, follow @aapmotorsports on Facebook or visit the AAP Motor Sport website page http://motorsports.aap.org.ph.
