SUPER GT Round 5 Suzuka: Retired early due to crash
On August 23 (Sat) and 24 (Sun), the SUPER GT Round 5 SUZUKA GT 300km Race was held at Suzuka Circuit in Mie Prefecture.
The only race to be held at the famed circuit for the season, this round returned to the standard format with success ballasts, unlike the previous sprint-format with no added weight. Car No. 17, Astemo CIVIC TYPE R-GT, entered the race carrying 24kg of success ballast.
During Saturday’s practice session, driver feedback was not favorable, and the team struggled with car setup. In GT500’s exclusive session, Koide attacked but only managed the 15th fastest time, leaving concerns lingering heading into qualifying.
In Q1 of official qualifying, Koide aggressively pushed from the start but couldn’t improve his time enough to advance. As a result, the team started the finals from 14th on the grid.
On Sunday during the warm-up session, the car felt better than the previous day, raising hopes for a comeback. The parade and formation laps began at 15:30, followed by the 52-lap final race.
Starting driver Koide overtook car No. 24 (Realize Corporation ADVAN Z) before the Astemo chicane on lap 2, moving up to 13th. However, he was re-passed the next lap. When attempting another pass at the chicane entrance, he was blocked, resulting in contact and an off-track excursion into the sponge barrier. Due to severe sustained damage, our car No. 17 was forced to retire before completing lap 4. Car No. 24 later received a drive-through penalty.
