By Marlynda Meraw

Copyright dayakdaily

THE roar of engines, the smell of burning rubber, the intricate choreography at pit stops, and the electrifying atmosphere of the British Grand Prix at Silverstone Circuit—experiences most motorsport enthusiasts can only dream of.

But for 22-year-old Mohammad Izzat Faiq Lau from Sibu and fellow Sarawakian Eddry Haqimi from Kuching, this dream became a reality through PETRONAS’ seven-month Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS Formula One Internship Programme.

Meticulously selected, these bright young Sarawakians were among seven interns thrust into the epicentre of motorsport excellence at the Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 team’s headquarters in Brackley, United Kingdom —home of the iconic Silver Arrows, famed for their speed and racing legacy.

Beyond the excitement of being part of the F1 environment, the internship programme which ended in July, placed them alongside world-class engineers and elite technical specialists. They saw firsthand how cutting-edge technology, data precision and human brilliance merge to power a championship-winning team, while gaining insider knowledge of how a multi-million-dollar racing operation functions at the highest level.

Through this initiative, PETRONAS is not merely sponsoring talent but shaping it; equipping young talents with rare, behind-the-scenes exposure to F1’s technological frontier and arming them with future-ready skills that will return to fuel Malaysia’s engineering and innovation ecosystem.

More than a dream come true

For Izzat, the youngest of three siblings and a Mechanical Engineering student at Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS (UTP), his passion for all things mechanical had led him to pursue engineering studies, which eventually landed him a place in this internship.

“I’m interested in all kinds of machinery. Any kind of engine. Whatever that’s mechanical, not just motorsports,” he told DayakDaily during an exclusive interview recently.

His internship, which concluded recently in July 2025, became a transformative platform for him to put theory into practice in a world-class engineering environment.

He was entrusted with substantial technical responsibilities, including the complete redesign of the gear pair rig, a specialised test rig used to analyse oil effectiveness. The project challenged him to create an improved rig for future oil analyses, providing invaluable hands-on experience in engineering problem-solving.

“I was given the task to redesign it (the gear pair rig) from scratch,” he said.

The internship also provided Izzat with career inspiration through his interactions with PETRONAS trackside fluid engineers – Emil Bernstern and Wan Mohd Saifullah Wan Saudi. Their unconventional roles, analysing oils across different racing circuits across the globe, sparked his professional ambitions. Izzat hopes to someday become a trackside fluid engineer just like them.

Among the many wisdom-filled encounters with the team there, one conversation stood out: a conversation with Toto Wolff, the chief executive officer (CEO) and co-owner of Mercedes in F1.

“Toto told me to always be curious, because when you are curious, you will be eager to learn something new. That’s how we can keep learning throughout our lives,” Izzat recalled.

His time in Brackley also granted him access to the paddock during the 2025 British Grand Prix, where he witnessed firsthand the precision and intensity that define F1 racing.

When asked about his most memorable moment, Izzat recalled a go-karting session with fellow PETRONAS interns where he placed third, just behind British F1 racer George Russell. Izzat was more thrilled than surprised to find himself having raced alongside a professional driver.

As one of the two Sarawakians selected for this prestigious programme this year, Izzat acknowledged the rarity of this opportunity. With humility, he attributed his selection to “being at the right place at the right time,” though his technical aptitude and genuine passion for engineering clearly played an important role.

The experience taught him far more than he had anticipated, providing not just technical knowledge but also invaluable life lessons and professional inspiration.

For Izzat, those months represented the perfect fusion of passion and profession. It was more than a dream come true.

A net positive chapter of life

Growing up in Petra Jaya, Kuching, as the son of general practitioners, Eddry Haqimi never imagined Formula One would become part of his professional development. Yet it was precisely this unfamiliarity that made his seven-month internship with Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 all the more unforgettable.

This opportunity would prove transformative to this Electrical and Electronics Engineering student at UTP.

Assigned to the cost analyst department, Eddry spent seven months learning how the financial and technical aspects of F1 racing co-exist. His first three weeks were dedicated to understanding the company’s complex database systems, which include working with inventory and budget data.

He was responsible for creating solutions using Power Business Intelligence (Power BI), helping manufacturing departments track their costs with greater precision. Despite the financial focus of his role, the technical aspects of motorsports remained central to his learning.

“I had to study the parts of a Formula One car. I needed to know the wings, chassis, transmission carrier, the engines and everything else.”

While meeting F1 icons certainly provided memorable moments, Eddry’s most meaningful experiences centred on the relationships he built with his colleagues. He attributes much of his growth to his manager, Rishab Vudathu, whose hands-on approach made a lasting impression.

It was the one-to-one sessions Eddry particularly appreciated, which proved both educational and satisfying. Perhaps more importantly, these interactions opened Eddry’s eyes to career possibilities he hadn’t previously considered.

“He (Rishab) told me that maybe my speciality is not engineering. It could be in data,” Eddry noted, describing how this observation genuinely broadened his perspective on potential future paths, encouraging him not to confine himself strictly to his engineering background.

Moving on, his immediate focus remains on completing his degree at UTP, after which he hopes to work with PETRONAS, a natural progression given his positive internship experience.

“I left better than when I first came in during the internship, so it was net positive,” he said—and that simple truth speaks volumes. For Eddry, this experience wasn’t just about the glamour; it was about finding direction in the unexpected and growing into a future he hadn’t yet imagined.

Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Internship Programme

First started in 2011, the Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Internship Programme offers a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for select UTP students to step into the fast-paced world of F1 engineering. Interns work shoulder to shoulder with some of the world’s top engineers, gaining hands-on experience at the cutting edge of motorsport innovation.

The programme reflects PETRONAS’ deep commitment in nurturing young Malaysian talent, offering far more than traditional classroom learning. It empowers students to showcase their technical expertise, contribute meaningfully to a world-class racing team, and gain invaluable global exposure.

Since its inception in 2011, more than 80 UTP students have walked the halls of Brackley, each carrying the hopes of a nation and returning with the experience of a lifetime.

Their journeys were only made possible through PETRONAS Powering Knowledge education sponsorships, which have empowered over 40,000 Malaysian students to pursue excellence and unlock their potential. —DayakDaily