When you think of royalty, visions of opulent palaces and regal ceremonies come to mind.
However, there is one prince who resides on the Gold Coast and is making his mark
in the world of motorsports, where crowns and checked flags collide.
His Highness Prince Jefri Ibrahim adds a touch a regal flair to the world of motorsports, balancing horsepower, Mercedes-AMGs and royal duties with style and finesse.
Life down under for the Prince of Johor—a southern Malaysian state neighbouring Singapore—is low key and laid back, except when it comes to the racetrack.
With a lifelong passion for motorsports, Prince Jefri’s interest piqued when he travelled to Australia in 2016 and experienced the iconic Bathurst 1000.
“Racing is something I always wanted to do since a young age and seeing the Supercars at Mount Panorama truly cemented that,” he says.
“I was given the opportunity to work alongside Triple Eight Race Engineering a few years ago when they had just created the GT program, and that’s how the dream started.”
Teaming up with the Australian-based racing squad in 2019, it wasn’t until the pandemic prompted a strategic shift that the Prince considered relocating.
“Restrictions in Asia made racing a challenge in 2020, and that’s when the team suggested I move to the Gold Coast,” he says.
“It’s a terrific location, and it’s easy to fly under the radar here and blend in.
“I love life on the Gold Coast—the weather is amazing and it’s a great place to be, particularly for drivers.”
Despite the chaos of racing, and the weight of royal obligations, Prince Jefri’s focus is wholeheartedly on the track.
“My priority right now is racing, so I am putting 100 percent into it,” he says.
“Whenever I have free time, I’m fulfilling my royal duties, but for now racing is my passion and priority, so I’ve been getting as much seat-time as possible.
“On the track, the adrenaline is different, but I’m at peace when in the car.
“I forget about everything else, and even on a race weekend, you tend to focus on the track and live in that moment—it’s a rewarding feeling.”
Having taken out the GT World Challenge Pro-Am Championship in Asia for the first time in 2022, as well as the Team Championship in the same series alongside Triple Eight, Prince Jefri is a familiar face on the GT circuit.
His Highness has once again teamed Johor Racing up with Triple Eight Race Engineering for the 2023 GT World Challenge series in both Australia and Asia.
“It’s shaping up to be a big year for us—we are running two Mercedes-AMG GT3s in Australia and another two in Asia,” he says.
The Prince’s family has a long-standing love affair with the Mercedes-Benz brand, especially since his grandfather, the late Sultan Iskandar, raced a Mercedes-Benz 540K Special in the sixties.
“I love the brand, my family has been driving Mercedes-Benz for a long time,” he says.
“They make amazing cars, and they are fantastic to race.
“I’ve certainly got an admiration for the rich and iconic history that is Mercedes-Benz.”
In the adrenaline-fuelled whirlwind of racing, where every second counts, the unpredictable and unforeseen can unleash havoc – such as a broken manifold, a formidable challenge that Prince Jefri once encountered during a race.
“I was racing in Japan when the manifold suffered a slight fracture,” he says.
“We had a race the next day and could not find a replacement part, no matter where we looked, there was nothing available.”
However, determined to get back on the track, the Prince resorted to a rather unconventional solution.
“My brother has the same model Mercedes-AMG GT3, so I phoned him up and asked him if he could lend me his,” he says.
“We don’t make any mechanical modifications to the car, except for running restrictors on the motors which makes sure all cars are equal in the race, so it was a simple matter of needing that part.”
Ten hours later, the borrowed manifold made its way from Johor to Japan via plane and found its way under the hood of the Prince’s Mercedes-AMG.
“It’s a testament to the fact that you can rely on Mercedes-Benz and genuine parts, even at the height of a race,” he says.
“As with any racing endeavour, setbacks are a part of the journey but it’s all about finding a way to move forward.”
Amidst his incredible racing experience and his team’s success in both Australia and Asia, Prince Jefri has developed a fondness for one track in particular.
“My favourite place to race is Bathurst,” he says.
“It’s the first place I competed when I arrived in Australia in 2021, and I’ve had a few wins there, so it’s always been a special place for me.
“Hopefully, there are more memories and wins to come at Mount Panorama.”
Surprisingly, when it comes to ordinary traffic, Prince Jefri says he enjoys a more leisurely approach.
“To be honest, because we are going at our maximum speed on the racetrack and always pushing the limits, when I’m driving on the road, I just want to drive the speed limit and enjoy a leisurely drive,” he says.
“I don’t have the urge to go fast because I’m already going those speeds and pushing those boundaries on the track.”
Under the Triple Eight and JMR flag, Prince Jefri will return to Australia in July to race at Sydney Motorsport Park for Round 4 of the GT World Challenge Australia.
“The next thing I am focusing on is more,” he says.
“More wins and more time on the track.”