The fifth visit to Malaysia for the machines of SUPER GT was as exciting as
it was hot. Amid tropical temperatures and suffocating humidity that had hovered
over the circuit all weekend, 42 of the most highly-developed HAKO racing cars
on the planet put on a show that kept the Malaysian audience on their feet,
despite the sweltering heat and blazing sunshine.
130 Images
3 Pages
Photographers:
Tom
Ldragon
MyD70
Andy Goh
The race got underway a little later than usual, the 4:00pm start adopted in an
effort to alleviate some of the factors associated with the sky-high
temperatures.
Immediately after the lights went out, the screaming wail of the two separate
packs of cars; the GT500 machines followed by the GT300 cars, reverberated off
the grandstands down to the first corner. The customary rolling start, one of
the many features SUPER GT is known for, was a fitting was to start what is
easily the hottest race on the SUPER GT calendar. Fifty four laps around the
5.542-kilometer circuit was to test the mettle of all the drivers; and it would
be kinder to some competitors than it was to others.
Pole-sitter Ralph Firman was dominant right from the moment the lights went out;
building a steadily-growing gap over the chasing pack. By lap 5, it was over 5
seconds; and there would remain a healthy cushion to the nearest rival, the #1
Xanavi Nismo Z machine in the hands of Satoshi Motoyama, who had jumped from
fourth at the start. In the strongest performance for the Honda NSX in recent
memory, Firman's lead was proof positive that the new NA engine, being used in
the car for the first time this weekend, is the way to go for the pair of Honda
Racing machines - as well as for the other two NSXs competing in GT500.
Second-placed starter Andre Lotterer had a less inspired start, the blue and
white machine falling to fifth on the opening lap as the Dunlop tires took a
little longer to come into their own. He and driver partner Tsugio Matsuda ran a
solid race without any mistakes to finish fifth. The team called the car in for
the driver switch relatively early, Lotterer handing over to Matsuda on lap 24,
directly behind the leading #8 ARTA NSX. The pair had to work hard for their
points, running fifth for most of the afternoon, and providing plenty of
entertainment in a fierce duel with the 4th-placed #6 Esso Ultraflo Supra in the
latter stages.
In his typically hard-charging style, Andre Couto in the#39 DENSO SARD SUPRA GT
rocketed up the order from 17th to 10th position by lap 20.
After the front-runners had all made their mandatory driver switches, the order
saw the #8 ARTA NSX leading the #1 Xanavi Nismo Z followed by the #36 Dynacity
TOM'S SUPRA and the hard-charging #3 G'ZOX Hasemi Z. Behind this group, the #32
EPSON NSX led the second of the NISMO machines, the #22 Motul Keyvalue Z, itself
just ahead of the other Honda Racing NSX, the #18 Takata Dome machine, which had
fallen down the order after being tapped from behind at the last corner on lap
20 by the quicker G'ZOX machine.
On lap 32, the #3 Z made an unscheduled stop; and this was to be a forbearer of
troubles to come as driver Erik Comas was sidelined on lap 35 with rear
suspension failure.
The conditions were catching out more than a few of the drivers, and as
concentration waned due to the oppressive heat, one after another - particularly
among the GT300 field - spun out of contention into the gravel traps.
The GT300 traffic made for a few scary moments for the far-quicker GT500 cars;
causing delays and a few terse words after the flag. The class was running a
tight battle of its own, with the pole-sitting #43 ARTA Garaiya maintaining the
top spot ahead of a raging battle among the two MR-S machines and the #13
ENDLESS ADVAN Z behind. This pack ran ahead of the Tetsuya Tanaka/Paulo Montin
GPH Ferrari Dunlop F360 Modena and the #46 Dream Cube's ADVAN Z, the freshman
car having one of its best runs yet.
Unfortunately for the #7 Amemiya Aspara Drink RX-7, its previous success at
Sepang International circuit didn't seem to be with the team today, the bright
yellow machine having an uneventful run to 8th in class at the flag.
As the race got to its later stages, Juichi Wakisaka in the #6 Esso Ultraflo
Supra was hounded by Tsugio Matsuda in the #32 EPSON NSX in an evenly-matched
battle that saw the pair fight closely for a dozen or more laps in their battle
for fifth.
Eleven laps from the end, Richard Lyons made his move on the leading #8 ARTA NSX,
getting by at turn 9 and quickly pulling out a one-second gap. It was to prove
one of the most exciting fights all day. Honda driver Daisuke Ito pushed hard to
regain the position, and eventually he did with only two laps to go after a rare
error by a heat-exhausted Lyons. The heat affected everybody today, and it could
be said, rather evenly. Richard had the silver and red Nissan back into the top
spot half a lap later as Ito faded from the same exhaustion, and was never
headed as he cruised to his first victory of the season.
In GT300, the #43 ARTA Garaiya may have made up for its GT500 sister car's
missed opportunity, the car taking a commanding victory in the class.
GT500 :
1st place - #1 Xanavi Nismo Z
Richard Lyons : "Yeah, it was a very hot race! The car was perfect al day -
there were no problems at all, I just got in and drove! My stint was interesting
because after about 10 laps, the air intake which had been attached to keep the
cabin cool broke free and was hitting me in the head on every right hand turn!
In the closing laps it was particularly difficult as my concentration was
starting to fade because of the heat. I just focused on keeping the car on the
road and not making any mistakes al the way to the flag. It would have been too
great a loss to go off after all the effort of the team. I'm thrilled to have
finished first as I know it was tough for everyone out there. This heat is
really hard on the cars - and the drivers!"
2nd place - #8 ARTA NSX
Ralph Firman : "The car overall was great. I had a really good start and was
able to pull out a gap right away, but the car was suffering from major
oversteer and by the end of the run the tires were finished. Also, I had some
unlucky breaks with some backmarkers - especially the WedsSport car. I lost at
least three or four seconds behind him at one point. It was a good weekend, but
very disappointing as we had been quickest in most of the sessions. We're
looking forward to the next race, the car is strong and we should go well at
Sugo.
3rd place - #36 Dynacity TOM'S Supra
James Courtney : "Takeshi handed over to me quite early so my stint was pretty
long. With the heat - it was about 60 degrees in the cabin - I just concentrated
on keeping up a good pace and making sure I didn't lose focus. Towards the end
of the race, it was really difficult to maintain a quick pace - it was just so
hot! Also, I wasn't chasing anyone for most of my time in the car so I really
had to keep focused.
I'm happy with the result considering the conditions. Takeshi handed over the
car in 7th, so getting to third feels pretty good. We weren't that far behind
(the leaders), so if we had started higher up, we might have been able to
challenge the lead pair. I'm looking forward to the next race - hopefully it
won't be this hot!
GT300 :
1st place - #43 ARTA Garaiya
Morio Nitta : "It was a really tough race, and I don't remember most of it. I
couldn't get any liquid from my water bottle so had to endure most of my stint
without. I was determined to make it to the end, but don't remember a thing
until I woke up in the pool at the back of the pit garage afterwards."
Shinichi Takagi : "I feel fine after that. I could do another race! When I got
in the car, there was a 3-second gap. I wanted to maintain that while also
keeping the tires. Following the Team Director's instructions, I still had half
the compound remaining at the end of my stint. We're fighting for the
championship so must always fight for the win whenever possible. We'll be doing
everything in our power to beat M-TEC to the championship
2nd place - #30 RECKLESS MR-S
Kota Sasaki : "I knew the Garaiya was faster than us so the race would start in
the second half of my stint. At the beginning, I couldn't keep up with the
Garaiya so decided to save my tires. After ten laps, the balance improved so I
pushed a little harder. I managed to catch Nitta once, but he didn't see me and
we touched. I spun, losing us a few seconds. For the next round, we have to find
a good set-up as the Garaiya is still quicker than us. I closed the gap once,
but I'm still not completely satisfied.
Tetsuya Yamano : "After the driver switch, I went out in 2nd place, 5 or 6
seconds behind the Garaiya so I concentrated on saving my tires, much the way
Kota had done. After 20 laps, gravel flung up by other cars smashed my
windshield, and actually caught me in the face! The pain slowed my pace, and
after that it was difficult to get near the Garaiya. I hadn't expected us to go
well here so 2nd place is good enough. Ts' my th podium in four races, so I'm
pretty pleased with my results in the team so far.
3rd place - #13 ENDLESS ADVAN Z
Mitsuhiro Kinoshita : "We chose a medium soft tire for the race because it was
very hot. Therefore, we needed to get the set-up just right as we knew it would
be a tough event. We pushed for as many points as possible. At the start, I
gained a few places after an accident at the first corner - a lucky break for me
as I could move up the order. When I finished my stint, my tires were completely
gone! All I all, it was a very comfortable race.
Masami Kageyama : "This was a real killer of a race! We followed our strategy,
using our heads. We knew we couldn't be quickest, but really went for it and
ended up on the podium amid the intense heat. The whole team; the engineers, the
drivers, everybody worked hard for this result. There's a possibility we can
fight for championship honors. We'll be pushing tenaciously for the rest of the
season.
Photography: MyD70
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Photography: AndyGoh
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