Mugello: With a never-say-die attitude as his driving force, Malaysian Moto3 rider Muhammad Hakim Danish Ramli delivered a breakthrough performance to claim his first podium of the season, finishing third at the Italian Grand Prix at Mugello on Sunday.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, the AEON Credit-MT Helmets-MSi rider was over the moon with the result, saying he gave it everything from the very start of the race and stayed locked in throughout to secure a well-earned podium finish.

"The race was very intense. The front group kept changing positions and we were racing at maximum pace from start to finish. I knew one small mistake could change everything," said Hakim Danish in a statement. Despite being a bit further back on the last lap, he maintained his composure, methodically overtaking competitors to secure third place, finishing 0.456 seconds behind race winner Brian Uriarte of the Red Bull KTM Ajo team, who clocked a winning time of 33:07.80.

Second place was claimed by Uriarte's teammate Alvaro Carpe, with a time of 33:08.219. Hakim Danish's result at Mugello marked an end to Malaysia's Moto3 podium drought, the first since Khairul Idham Pawi's victory at the 2016 Argentine Grand Prix.

Currently, the 18-year-old sits 11th in the Moto3 championship standings with 43 points, trailing leader M¡ximo Quiles of the CFMOTO Valresa Aspar Team, who leads with 145 points. Hakim Danish is set to continue his campaign at the Hungarian Grand Prix from June 5-7.