【SUPER GT Round 3 / Suzuka】

Third round at Suzuka sees UpGarage NSX GT3 taking second.
Syntium Apple Lotus gets on podium for second race running.

SUPER GT Round 3

Date	2020/08/22-23
Venue	Suzuka Circuit
Weather	Fine
Surface	Dry
Race Lap	52Laps (1Lap = 5,807m)

• |
• >>Report |
• >>Result |
• >>2020 Index (Calendar) |

The 2020 Super GT series came to Suzuka Circuit for its third round, soon after running two races at Fuji Speedway within just three weeks. It has been boiling everywhere in Japan these days, and Suzuka was no exception. The teams and the drivers had fierce battles in brutal heat.

The GT300 cars were divided into two groups for the qualifying session again this time, and each group’s eight fastest cars were allowed to go on to Q2. With the air/track temperatures at 33/48 degrees Celsius, which were really high as expected, nine Yokohama Tire shoed cars – five from Group A and four from Group B – ended Q1 in the top eight.

Joao Paulo de Oliveira behind the wheel of Realize Nissan Automobile Technical College GT-R once set the fastest time in Q2, but it was deleted because he exceeded the track limit at the exit of Spoon Curve. However, his second-best time was good enough to secure the third grid, which was the best starting grid among the Yokohama Tire users. So, for the Brazilian and his partner, Kiyoto Fujinami, a podium finish looked to be well within their reach.

Rintaro Kubo in Takanoko-no-yu RC F GT3 came in fourth, taking over his rookie partner’s excellent result in Q1 – Atsushi Miyake set the second fastest time in Group B. The Kazuki Hoshino / Keishi Ishikawa pair in Tanax Itochu Enex with Impul GT-R ended the session in sixth. Then Shintaro Kawabata and Tsubasa Kondo at the wheel of Hitotsuyama Audi R8 LMS took the eighth grid, followed by Takashi Kobayashi and Kosuke Matsuura in UpGrage NSX GT3 in ninth.

In the GT500 class, WedsSport ADVAN GR Supra with Ritomo Miyata at the wheel made its way into Q2 for the first time this season, by setting the fifth fastest time in Q1. Ukyo Sasahara in Red Bull Motul Mugen NSX-GT showed a similar performance and ended Q1 in sixth, which allowed the car to come into the second section of the qualifying, as well.

And their teammates kept the momentum in Q2. Hideki Muto bettered the position of the Red Bull backed car to fifth, while Yuji Kunimoto driving the WedsSport liveried GR Supra followed Muto to finish Q2 in sixth. If one starts a race from these starting grids, a podium finish would be a real possibility. Meanwhile, Realize Corporation ADVAN GT-R with Mitsunori Takaboshi and Jann Mardenborough took the 12th grid.

The forecast said that it would rain on the race day, but the actual weather was no different from the day before, which meant it was still sweltering, and the track surfaces were dry. Although the air temperature slightly decreased to 32 degrees, the track temperatures rose to 49.

The race didn’t get underway as usual because of a GT300 car’s crash during the opening lap, which required the Safety Car to come out from Lap 1. Then, at the restart on Lap 5, Red Bull Motul Mugen NSX-GT with Muto at the wheel was hit by another car and went off the track at Final Corner. The contact caused a wheel nut failure on the Red Bull car’s left rear wheel, and he lost the wheel on the spot, resulting in premature retirement. It was a shame, especially considering their good performance on Saturday.

Miyata was appointed the starting driver of WedsSport GR Supra, as he was in the previous round. But he lost a position during the first lap and struggled to keep a good pace. The team tried to get a better track position and let him stay out until Lap 26, but it didn’t improve the situation so much. Simultaneously with the driver change, they put a fresh set of tires that have different specifications to the car. Even after that, all Kunimoto could do was keeping his position, and he eventually earned championship points by finishing in tenth.

Realize Corporation ADVAN GT-R became the cause of the second Safety Car period. With Mardenborough behind the wheel, the car suddenly lost a large part of its front bodywork on the back straight on Lap 16, and the wreck was left on the track. Fortunately, the GT-R didn’t suffer any severe damage on the other parts, and it could continue after repair work during the pit stop on Lap 26 after the SC period ended. Takaboshi, who drove the car for its second stint, however, had to settle for finishing 11th because a significant time was lost at the stop for repair.

With Fujinami in the driving seat at the start, Realize Nissan Automobile Technical College GT-R brought some excitement to the GT300 class race. He fought for the second from the early laps until he came into the pit to change to Oliveira, immediately after the second SC period was terminated. Helped by perfect pit work, the veteran from Brazil found himself running in second after the stop.

Then there was the third SC period, which compressed the whole field. Thanks to this, Oliveira was involved in a battle with a few cars, including the race leader. While the leader could pull away because the fight between Oliveira and the driver behind him cost them a fraction of a second each lap, the Brazilian’s defensive drive was almost perfect.

After a while, Matsuura in UpGarage NSX GT3 joined the battle for second, and he was the fastest among the three drivers there. So the driver who was sandwiched between Oliveira and Matsuura must have felt sheer pressure. He tried to overtake Oliveira at Degner Curve on Lap 47 and ended up with a collision with the Brazilian’s GT-R, which handed second to Matsuura, who was behind them.

Realize NATC GT-R still stayed in the group fighting for third, but Oliveira seemed to use up everything he had until then. This time, Masataka Yanagida at the wheel of Syntium Apple Lotus came close to them from behind and overtook them in one move at Spoon Curve. The Lotus moved up to third, even though it started from the 11th grid, with a 60kg weight handicap on board!

Oliveira had a slight collision again on the final lap, but he managed to finish the race in ninth, bringing valuable championship points to the team.

The Kobayashi / Matsuura pair in UpGarage NSX GT3 finished the race in second, followed by Yanagida and Hiroki Kato driving Syntium Apple Lotus in third. The result suggests a realistic chance of Yokohama Tire users’ podium sweep in the next round.