Eventful Race Ends
with a First Victory for Honda NSX

Round 4 JAPAN SPECIAL GT CUP
Qualify Report / 9 Aug. '98

    Anticipation filled the air from the very beginning: the start of the 56-lap race was delayed 10 minutes while the No.38 SUPRA of Toyota Team Cerumo was removed from the course-side grass where it stalled due to engine problems during the warm-up session.

    Once the race got underway, it was reminiscent of the Saturday qualifying sessions as the HONDA NSXs took their places in the lead at the green light. The No.100 NSX driven by Akira Iida moved out in front from the pole, followed by Ryo Michigami (No.16 NSX) and Tom Coronel (No.64 NSX). Tatsuya Tanigawa kept his No.39 TOYOTA SUPRA in fourth off of the grid, separating the No.18 NSX driven by Katsutomo Kaneishi from the Honda pack leading the field. The fastest Nissan, a SKYLINE GT-R driven by Kazuyoshi Hoshino (No.12), was running sixth.

    Iida pulled away from second running Michigami early on, adding a little more to the gap with each passing lap. Michigami was surely perplexed, for at the same time Coronel moved up on him from behind laying on the pressure. Meanwhile, a battle was stirring in the GT 300 class as well. Shingo Tachi moved out in front in the No.25 TOYOTA MR2, while Akihiko Nakaya in a MITSUBISHI FTO and Morio Nitta in the No.44 MR2 made him work to keep the lead. Hoshino got into rhythm with his GT-R in the early stages of the race, overtaking Tanigawa on lap 10 to the delight of a huge party of Nissan flag-waving fans in the grandstands.

    On lap 18, the day turned bad for the top running NSX. Going into the first corner, Iida's car found some oil left on the track by a back marker and went spinning off the track into the gravel. With no way to recover, he was forced to retire for the day. Marc Goossens in the No.5 TOYOTA SUPRA ended his bid for the podium in exactly the same was as Iida, sailing straight off the track. With this, the Safety Car came out for file laps to allow time for the oil to be cleared away. A number of teams took this opportunity to bring their cars in for routine stops, while others kept their cars in the field. PENNZOIL NISMO was one of the teams to follow the latter strategy. But things backfired for drivers Aguri Suzkuki / Masahiko Kageyama and Eric Comas / Masami Kageyama, with both SKYLINE GT-Rs losing positions in the second half of the race.

    Mostly veteran drivers were behind the wheels of the SUPRAs and SKYLINEs entering the last stages of the race, causing much excitement as they fought for positioning. Out in front, it was Nakako in the No.16 NSX holding a substantial lead over second placed Keiichi Tsuchiya in the No.39 SUPRA, with the No.64 NSX, driven by 20-year-old Kouji Yamanishi (Coronel's co-driver), running in third. The young Yamanishi proved his skills, holding onto his position when a heated three-way battle for third broke out with challenges from Tetsuya Tanaka in the No.3 SKYLINE and Takuya Kurosawa, Hoshino's partner, in the No.12 GT-R.

    Then the unbelievable... Second running Tsuchiya received a 30-second penalty for allegedly passing another driver during a yellow flag after lap 49. Then, top runner Nakako was given a 10-second penalty for the same reason. Reluctant to stop, Nakako finally went in for the penalty stop on lap 54, with only two laps remaining. Yamanishi maintained his pace and overtook Nakako during the penalty stop. At the checkered flag, it was Yamanashi driving the No.16 NSX to Honda's first victory in the GTC series.

    Coronel commented following the race: "We finally got the results. We had a little bit of luck, but this is motor racing. We were challenging all the time in front. This result is very important for the championship. Yamanishi did a very good job. I was going to run for 36 laps and he was to run for 20 laps, but it turned out the opposite because of the safety car situation. He ran very well under difficult circumstances. I'm very happy."

    In the GT 300 class, the driver pair of Keiichi Suzuki / Shingo Tachi drove their No.25 MR2 to its third consecutive victory. Peter Dumbreck, the 1998 All-Japan F3 champion, did well, finishing on the podium for his debut race in GT.

GT500 Class

GT300 Class