SUPER GT Round 7: Astemo HRC PRELUDE-GT frontrunner at Autopolis, but stops short on final lap
Round 7 of the SUPER GT series was held at Autopolis in Oita Prefecture on October 17 and 18.
Entering the event second in overall standings, the No. 17 Astemo HRC PRELUDE-GT was saddled with the challenging handicaps of 90 kg of success weight, along with adjustments to the fuel-flow restrictor and refueling restrictor.
In Saturday’s qualifying, Koudai Tsukakoshi advanced through Q1. Yuto Nomura then aggressively strong attacked Q2 to secure second place.
The following day’s race was held over three hours. Starting from second, Nomura moved into the lead on lap seven. Despite an unscheduled pit stop caused by a tire puncture and two Safety Car periods, which made the race particularly challenging, the team continued fighting for points until the very end.
However, with just 50 seconds remaining, the No. 17 car was forced to pull over at the side of the track while running 10th and within reach of earning points. A technical issue prevented the car from taking the checkered flag. Although classified as a finisher in 14th, the No. 17 car demonstrated its strong competitiveness by qualifying second and leading the race.
October 17 (Sat.): Official Qualifying / Weather: Sunny / Track: Dry
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The Astemo HRC PRELUDE-GT had shown promising performance from the outset in recent rounds, but at Autopolis the team facing some challenges with the car’s balance in practice. A red flag interrupted the GT500 session, leaving Nomura without sufficient opportunity to complete an attack lap before qualifying.
Tsukakoshi took on Q1 and produced a strong attack that put the difficulties of the morning behind him, securing a place in Q2. Nomura in Q2 then heeded advice from Tsukakoshi and showed impressive speed, setting the overall fastest times in Sectors 1 and 2. Although he narrowly missed out on pole position, his second-place result secured a front-row start for the No. 17 car.
October 20 (Sun.): Final / Weather: Sunny / Track: Dry
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In the three-hour-plus race, each car required to complete two refueling pit stops. Nomura started the race and calmly maintained second place off the line. Once the GT500 cars began encountering GT300 traffic, he skillfully managed the timing of passing the GT300 cars to control the gap to the car behind. On lap seven, he overtook the No. 64 Modulo HRC PRELUDE-GT to take the lead.
Nomura continued to set a strong pace and had extended his advantage to 2.7 seconds by lap 10.
However, a tire puncture on lap 15 forced the No. 17 car to make its first pit stop earlier than planned. The team responded quickly and sent Nomura back onto the track to begin the recovery.
A Safety Car was deployed on lap 24, with the race restarting on lap 28. By lap 45, once all the cars had completed their first pit stops, the Astemo HRC PRELUDE-GT had returned to the lead and extended its advantage to 4.5 seconds.
However, a second Safety Car was deployed on lap 50, and with the field bunched together the lead that the No. 17 car had built up was erased.
The team made its second pit stop immediately after the restart on lap 55, with Tsukakoshi taking over from Nomura.
With just over an hour remaining, Tsukakoshi returned to the track but was passed by the No. 14 ENEOS X PRIME GR Supra during the pit-stop. He then found himself chasing the cars ahead. By lap 72, after every car had completed its second pit stop, the No. 17 car had dropped to 10th.
With pieces of rubber adhering to the tires and preventing him from increasing his pace as he wanted, Tsukakoshi continued to put in determined laps in pursuit of every possible championship point.
Unfortunately, with just 50 seconds remaining and the checkered flag nearly in sight, the Astemo HRC PRELUDE-GT developed a technical issue that prematurely ended the race.
The car was classified as a finisher in 14th place. Despite showing the speed to qualify second and take the lead, tire trouble, two Safety Car periods and the stoppage in the closing stages made Round 7 a challenging race. Nevertheless, the team continued fighting for every possible position until the very end.
■Comments from Team Director and Drivers
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- Team Director: Katsutomo Kaneishi
We struggled with understeer during practice and tried a range of setup changes, but were unable to resolve the issue. Yuto drove the car during the GT500-only session, but due to the session being red-flagged while warming up the tires, he was unable to complete an attack lap, and we finished free practice at the bottom of the timesheets.
Given how difficult free practice had been, we were quite concerned going into qualifying. Koudai took on Q1, and the setup changes improved the car. He also put together a strong attack lap and advanced to Q2 in seventh place.
Yuto then delivered an excellent attack in Q2 and secured second place on the grid.
From the start of the race Yuto had a strong pace, and continued to pull away from the cars behind. However, we received a radio message indicating that the tire had a slow puncture, forcing us to make an emergency pit stop. His pace remained very strong afterward, so we extended his stint as far as possible within the fuel window before handing the car over to Koudai with just over an hour remaining.
From the beginning of his stint, Koudai struggled with tire pickup and was unable to increase his pace. While running in 10th, contact with another car caused a technical issue, and we were forced to retire with two laps remaining. We had the speed to win, which made the emergency pit stop from the puncture all the more frustrating.
With two races remaining, we want to finish the season with two consecutive victories, so we appreciate your continued support.
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- Driver: Koudai Tsukakoshi
At the start of practice, it was difficult to get a clean lap, and the car’s balance didn’t quite suit the conditions.
That took us a little time to find the right setup. However, the adjustments ahead of qualifying enabled me to advance through Q1. Thanks to the team’s setup work and Yuto’s excellent attack, we secured second place in Q2.
Yuto started the race from second, moved into the lead and was running at a strong pace. However, the tire trouble forced an unscheduled pit stop and took us off from our original race plan.
Despite that, the race was progressing well. After I took over, however, the timing of our pit stop meant that we could not rejoin ahead of our rivals, and it took time to make progress through the field. As a result, I couldn’t race as effectively as I had hoped.
There was also contact while battling the No. 16 car toward the end, and we ultimately had to stop the car. We were unable to put together a complete result in such an important race, and I feel deeply sorry for the team that I could not bring the car to the finish line.
We now face a difficult situation heading into the final round, but I will give everything I have as we continue pursuing the championship.
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- Driver: Yuto Nomura
I started the race from second and followed the No. 64 car during the opening stages while managing my pace. Once we began encountering GT300 traffic, I was able to use the situation effectively and move into the lead.
We were beginning to extend the gap behind us, but the puncture early in the race disrupted our original plan.
Although it became a challenging race, the timing of the first Safety Car worked in our favor and enabled us to return to the lead. The timing of the second Safety Car, however, was unfavorable for us, and we lost a significant number of positions as a result.
We were still running in the points toward the end, but a technical issue prevented us from taking the checkered flag. Considering how strong we had been in the opening stages, it was a very disappointing result.
We still have two races remaining and remain in contention for the championship, so we will work hard to achieve strong results in both races at Motegi and secure the series title.
