Skyline GT-R's finish
1-2
Fuji International Speedway welcomed a massive turnout
of 50,000 fans for Round 4 of the JGTC, the turning point
leading into the second half of the season. The green light
for the 57-lap race was given to a field of 39 cars under
cloudy skies. Pole sitter Ukyo Katayama got off to a disappointing
start, dropping back to third by the end of the first lap.
He fought hard to keep the car competitive, but fell back
to fifth by the time he pitted for the routine stop. Kondo
did his best as well, but the No.33 Supra bumped Sebastien
Philippe in the No.18 Honda NSX. Kondo was able to rejoin
the race but ended up running off the track again later
on. In the end, the No.33 Supra finished 14th.
It was an exciting day for Nissan, the No.23 Skyline
GT-R driven by Erik Comas moving from second on the grid
into the lead and Michael Krumm starting the
No.22 Nissan from the fourth row and working his way up
to fifth, all before the end of the first lap. Comas controlled
the race during his stint behind the wheel, clocking the
fastest lap of the race and building a 6sec gap over the
closest car before turning the car over to Masami Kageyama.
Krumm drove courageously closing in on the leaders lap by
lap, and found himself sitting comfortably in third by the
end of the eighth lap. He overtook again, moving into second
before pitting for the driver change and giving the wheel
to Tetsuya Tanaka.
Kageyama was doing well to keep the lead, but a yellow
flag late in the race allowed the field to bunch again and
the buffer for the lead was lost. Tetsuya Tanaka in the
No.22 Skyline GT-R seized the opportunity to catch him,
and
overtook his teammate with only seven laps remaining. The
two NISMO drivers held their positions and crossed the finish
line running 1-2, giving Nissan and the NISMO team their
first victory of the season.
"The car ran well compared to yesterday. The setup and
engine were fantastic. I made a good start and was able
to overtake Ukyo and the No.6 Toyota," said Krumm after
the race. "I wanted to catch up with Erik, but he was running
as quick as I was. I got a bit emotional when Tetsuya came
out in the lead."
Tetsuya Tanaka commented, "As we chose the lighter
weight and smaller air-restrictors, the car was not as quick
as the others on the straight line, but Michael put up a
good fight. Masami was really fair when I passed him. This
first victory is the result of true teamwork. All that I
can think about at the moment is the series title."
Third place went to the No.6 Supra driven by Juichi
Wakisaka/Hideki Noda. The two had their work cut out for
them and they did well, running consistently quicker and
staying in the top group in spite of a heavy 60kg handicap
weight.
The No. 12 Calsonic Skyline, driven by Kazuyoshi Hoshino
and Satoshi Motoyama
finished in 7th position.
Michelin tire users suffered setbacks due to lower than
expected temp-eratures. The No.36 Supra driven by Takuya
Kurosawa/Takeshi Tsuchiya and the No.37 Supra of Shinichi
Yamaji/ Wayne Gardner (carrying a 60kg handicap) weren't
able to push so hard, and ended up finishing eighth and
tenth, respectively.
The young French driver pair, Jeremie Dufour / Romain
Dumas, had a long, tough day behind the wheel of the No.39
Supra. Dumas started the race from 12th on the grid and
ran smoothly until he suffered a spin on lap eight. He recovered
well and was able to continue the race. Dufour drove consistently
throughout the second half of the race and finished the
day 13th.
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