2022 SUPER GT Round 7 Report

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The seventh and penultimate round of the 2022 Super GT series took place at Autopolis in Kyusyu. In this round, the accumulated Success Weights of all cars were reduced by half. However, many didn’t anticipate the unexpected outcomes since the leading cars in both classes had collected massive weights until then, and the situation didn’t seem to change much even after their weights were halved.

The qualifying session on Saturday, October 1st, was favored by fine and warm weather. In the GT300 class, eight Yokohama Tire user teams made their way to Q2. And the fastest Yokohama-shoed driver in Q2 was Takashi Kogure, who shared Weibo Primez Lamborghini GT3 with Yuya Motojima from the Kyusyu area. Kogure secured the fourth grid, and Nobuteru Taniguchi, paired with Tatsuya Kataoka, behind the wheel of GoodSmile Hatsune Miku AMG came in seventh.

The Success Weight of Realize Nissan Mechanic Challenge GT-R was reduced to 69kg for this event, but it was still incredible that Kiyoto Fujinami, in a car with such a heavy weight, set the eighth fastest time in Q2. Joao Paolo de Oliveira, Fujinami’s partner, has gotten through Q1 in all races this year, which should also be appreciated.

WedsSport ADVAN GR Supra passed through Q1 of the GT500 class in the fifth by the hands of Sena Sakaguchi, who was in charge of Q1 for the first time this year. Having been the team’s Q1 attacker since the previous round, Kohei Hirate in Realize Corporation ADVAN Z also survived the fight for Q2 by setting the third fastest time.

Kimiya Sato, paired with Takamitsu Matsui, Hoppy Schatz GR Supra on the sixth grid. Once again, it was terrific that Kiyoto Fujinami ended the session in eighth, driving Realize Nissan Mechanic Challenge GT-R with a 100kg Success Weight. Even though the car had to serve a four-grid penalty because of Joao Paolo de Oliveira’s accumulated Moral Hazzard Penalty points, many were interested in how they would perform in the race, starting from the 12th grid.

These two cars tried to make their final qualifying attempt as late as possible, and Sasaki did what they aimed for. He became the last driver to complete a timed lap in the session and marked his best time faster than anyone else on that lap. It was his first-ever pole position in Super GT. As Yuji Kunimoto at the wheel of WedsSport ADVAN GR Supra ended the session in third, both GT500 cars from the Yokohama Tire camp sat on advantageous grid positions for the race.

The balmy weather continued on Sunday, October 2nd, and the race began under the blue sky with the air/track temperatures at 26/46 degrees centigrade. The changes in these temps were only one and four degrees from those the day before, respectively, so they were well within the operating temperature range of the tires two Yokohama-equipped cars chose.

Doing a perfect job warming up his tires on the formation lap, Sasaki, behind the wheel of Realize Corporation ADVAN Z, led the field at the first corner, which has been the first hurdle for Yokohama-shoed cars. Then he also cleared the second hurdle by completing the opening lap in the lead position. Moreover, he started pulling away from the rest of the field.

Similarly, Kunimoto in WedsSport ADVAN GR Supra remained in third until he faced an unfortunate incident. On Lap 16, a GT300 car halted in Sector 3, which caused a brief FCY (Full Course Yellow). It lasted only about three minutes, and when the racing resumed, Kunimoto couldn’t hear the radio message from the team that the FCY was ending. Poor reception was to blame, but it resulted in his losing a position for him.

Soon after the first third of the race had passed, the early stoppers began to head to the pit lane from Lap 23. Kunimoto in WedsSport ADVAN GR Supra waited a few laps before coming into the pit to change to Sakaguchi on Lap 26. Sasaki driving Realize Corporation ADVAN Z did the same and stopped on the next lap, handing the car to Hirate.

However, they seemed to miss the right time. When most cars were done with their stops, Hirate found himself running in third and Sakaguchi in sixth. But, whereas the early stoppers struggled with the worn tires whose grip level badly deteriorated in the race’s closing stage, Hirate and Sakaguchi could push hard toward the end.

Although Hirate failed to improve his position, Sakaguchi came up to fifth with only two laps to go by making a successful overtaking move. Thus, Realize Corporation ADVAN Z grabbed their second podium finish of the season by finishing in third. With WedsSport ADVAN Z coming in fifth, Yokohama-shoed cars delivered double-point-finishes for the fifth time this season.

In the GT300 class, Motojima, at the wheel of Weibo Primz Lamborghini GT3, gained a position during the opening lap and remained in third, fending off the attacks from behind. And when the first third had passed and the pit stop window opened, his opponents opted for early stops. But Motojima extended his stint to Lap 27 and changed to Kogure. While the team changed only two rear tires to save the time spent during the stop, in the first place, the decision to stay out a few more laps than rivals didn’t seem the best. Consequently, they lost a position but still finished the race in fourth, which was their season’s best.

Realize Nissan Mechanic Challenge GT-R ended the race in fifth. After passing two cars before completing the first lap, Fujinami moved up to fifth on Lap 12 by a clever overtaking when he and his opponent were being lapped by a GT500 car. Then Oliveira was running in sixth after their driver change on Lap 26 but emerged to fifth again with ten laps to go because a car ahead of him dropped out. With this result, they kept the slot of championship leader by 2.5 points. The GT300 title recapture by the 2020 champion pair, Fujinami and Oliveira became more and more likely.

GoodSmile Hatsune Miku AMG finished in sixth, which meant they lost the mathematical chance to win the championship. But the car and crew have looked upbeat so that might bring a lot of excitement into the season’s finale.