2023.12.03

NISMO FESTIVAL is held! Nissan teams and Nissan fans gather at Fuji Speedway for an exciting day. GTA’s Chairman Bandoh is also on hand to give a speech

　On December 3rd, the NISMO FESTIVAL was held at Fuji Speedway, which hosted the 2nd and 4th rounds of the AUTOBACS SUPER GT 2023 series this season. The event brought together NISSAN machines, managers, drivers that compete in SUPER GT and other categories to recreate the excitement of the intense battles that played out on the racetracks this year in front of the fans. The NISMO FESTIVAL boasts a long history that reached a total of 24 holdings this time, and for Nissan fans it has earned a well-established place as an event that brings each race season to an end. On this day blessed with good weather, an eventual total of 27,000 fans began flocking to the circuit from the morning. On the track were held, demonstration runs and racing car passenger rides, circuit runs and simulated races that the SUPER GT drivers participate in to the fullest. The fans also loved the talk shows that took place at the event venue.

 

 

【GT500 Class Drivers Talk Show】

 

　Until last year, the talk shows had to be held remotely on-line as a measure to prevent spread of the Covid-19 pandemic. But this time they were held outdoors under the blue sky on a stage in front many delighted fans, beginning from the event’s opening talk. The first to go on stage for a talk show were eight drivers from four teams competing the SUPER GT GT500 class, including car No. 1’s Kazuki Hiramine and Bertrand Baguette, the No. 3 Niterra MOTUL Z drivers Katsumasa Chiyo and Mitsunori Takaboshi, the No. 23 MOTUL AUTECH Z drivers Tsugio Matsuda and Ronnie Quintarelli, and the No. 24 REALIZE CORPORATION ADVAN Z drivers Daiki Sasaki and Kohei Hirate. In the talk show, the jokes made by the drivers kept the audience laughing constantly. Like when looking back over this year’s season, Sasaki (car No. 24) said that if it were a ranking for the number of times you were passed, I would have been No. 1. And it was Matsuda (car No. 23) who said that during the two-month period after the crash in Round 2 when Ronnie had taken the opportunity to go back to Italy, he kept calling me to ask if I was doing my rehabilitation seriously until it began to scare me. And it was Chiyo (car No. 3) who said that the teru teru bozu (a cloth image made to keep rain away) he made for the last round turned out to backfire on us. More interesting talk followed such as when the drivers were asked about their intentions for the “NISMO GP” simulation race that was to be held later in the afternoon. And finally, the eight drivers all took on serious expressions when they thanked the fans for cheering them on during this year’s series and when they talked about their intentions for getting back the title in next season’s title race.

 

 

 

 

 

 

【Sustainable Motor Sports Talk Show】

 

　The speakers for the “Sustainable Motor Sports Talk Show” based on the theme of Nissan’s measures in the field of sustainability the director of Nissan’s SUPER GT teams, Executive Director Motohiro Matsumura and Chairman Masaaki Bandoh of GTA, which has begun the use of carbon-neutral fuel in SUPER GT from this season. In his first appearance at the NISMO FESTIVAL, Chairman Bandoh showed his surprise at the Nissan fans passion for motor sports by asking how it is possible to attract so many people to this festival in the off-season? Then he said that GTA has taken its first steps this year toward the goal of contributing to the reduction of CO2 emissions by 2030 though its SUPER GT Green Project 2030. Going forward, he said that the aim is to domestically produce “E-fuel” in Japan from hydrogen and carbon dioxide. Then the overall director of the Nissan teams, Matsumura, said that there are still some weaknesses in the synthetic fuel that was adopted in the GT500 class this year and how to overcome these was a new challenge for the carmakers. He went on to say that Nissan is also dedicated to becoming carbon-neutral and that he wants to use SUPER GT as a platform to research ways that carbon-neutral fuel can be used in common production cars. In this way they discussed future sustainability and carbon neutral fuel measures from their respective positions.

 

 

  

 

 

 

【Welcoming Ceremony】

 

　In the Welcoming Ceremony where all of the drivers and team managers gathered at the NISMO FESTIVAL lined up along the home straight to greet the fans, the first to address the crowd was Takao Katagiri, President and Chief Executive Officer of Nissan Motorsports & Customizing Co., Ltd. He began by thanking the many people who had come to this day’s event. And then asked that they all enjoy watching the great driving that all of the drivers were capable of. After this, Makoto Uchida, Director, Representative Executive Officer, President and CEO of Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. and Ivan Espinosa, Senior Vice President of Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. Rose to express their thanks as well. Finally, as the driver representative, Tsugio Matsuda rose to say that he was grateful for the support they received again this season from so many. He then faced the stands and said that this is an opportunity for exchanges with all of you, so let’s have a great time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

【Nissan Motorsport Heritage Run】

 

　Participating this time in the “Nissan Motorsport Heritage Run” that looks back on Nissan’s motorsport history were a historical lineup of models of Nissan’s representative sportscar, the Skyline. Seven legendary machines, including the “prince” of the series, the Skyline GT, were driven by legendary drivers including Kazuyoshi Hoshino, Executive director of Team IMPUL. This gave the fans in the stands a rare chance to look back over the illustrious history of this model.

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

【NISMO GP 2023】

 

　The last event on the track for this festival was the “NISMO GP” competed by Nissan race machines from different categories. A total of 18 machines ranging from the Z machines that have competed in the GT500 class of SUPER GT to the GT-R NISMO GT3 competing in the GT300 class, as well as Nissan machines that have competed in the GT World Challenge Asia and Super Taikyu. As handicaps, the GT500 class Z machines had to do a driver change and jacking up and down pit work, while the GT300 class GT-R cars had to do drive-throughs once each

 

 

  

 

 

　Due to machine trouble, the No. 1 MARELLI IMPUL Z (Kazuki Hiramine/Bertrand Baguette) could not compete. The race saw fierce battles from the start, with the No. 23 MOTUL AUTECH Z (Tsugio Matsuda/Ronnie Quintarelli) starting from the 2nd grid position passing the pole-starting No. 3 Niterra MOTUL Z (Katsumasa Chiyo/Mitsunori Takaboshi) at the start to take the lead. Eventually, No. 3 regained the lead, however, and went on to take the checkered flag first. Finishing 2nd was the No. 24 REALIZE CORPORATION ADVAN Z (Daiki Sasaki/Kohei Hirate), while No. 23 finished in 3rd place. The 4th-place finisher was the GT300 class No. 56 REALIZE NISSAN MECHANIC CHALLENGE GT-R (Joao Paulo de Oliveira/Teppei Natori). This result reflected the strength of this season’s GT300 class winning Nissan machine.

 

 

 

 

 

 

【Finale】

 

　After the NISMO GP race, came the NISMO FESTIVAL finale. Once again, the participating stars lined up on the home straight and waved to express their gratitude to the fans that had filled the stands since the morning.

 

 

 

 

 

　There was also a moment when gratitude was expressed to Michelin, which ends its participation as a tire supplier for the GT500 class this season, when Kataoka CEO said that it had been so good to work together with them over the past 15 years. During that period there had been many victories and many losses, but through it all it had mostly been a great partnership. And saying that he hoped that someday they will be able to work together again, he presented a bouquet of flowers to Hiroaki Odashima, Motorsport Director of NIHON MICHELIN TIRE Co., Ltd. who in response said that the participation in GT500 was a big challenge for us and we learned a lot in these 15 years. And then he thanked the NISMO fans for their strong support.

 

 

  

 

 

　Finally, the 2024 machines for the GT500 class and the Formula E were unveiled, bringing a great response from the stands that showed everyone’s big hopes for the 2024 season.

 

 

  

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