Practice got underway for the penultimate round of the 2005 SUPER GT season this morning, the cars taking to the track in bright sunshine while there was dense fog all around the circuit. Conditions on track were generally dry, though many damp patches remained, resulting in a 'semi-wet' classification.

Topping the times after the first Official Practice session had been run were the pair of Team Honda Racing NSX entries, the #8 ARTA machine leading the #18 Takata Dome car. Following hot on their heels was the #3 G'ZOX Hasemi Z, the Nissan showing its pace in recent testing here was no fluke. The #12 CALSONIC IMPUL Z was fourth, ahead of the points' leaders in the Driver's Championship, James Courtney and Takeshi Tsuchiya in the #36 TOM'S Open Interface SUPRA. The first of the factory NISMO Z cars, the #22 Motul Pitwork machine, took sixth.

In GT300, it was newcomer (and GP2 hotshot) Haruki Yoshimoto who asserted himself in the #27 direxiv ADVAN Vemac RD320R, taking the top time in the category ahead of the #13 Endless ADVAN Z machine at the hands of GT stalwart Masami Kageyama.
Continuing on its recent strong form, the #2 Privee Zurich Apple RD320R was third, with the #11 Jim Gainer Ferrari DUNLOP taking fourth.
Making it three Vemac machines in the top five, the #62 Willcom ADVAN R&D VEMAC 350R ended the session one spot ahead of the Cusco Subaru ADVAN Impreza, which took a well-deserved sixth.

As lunchtime approached and passed, the weather deteriorated so that by the 2:00pm start time for the day's Second Official Practice session, the track was well and truly soaked, meaning times were, on average, about 10 seconds off those set in the day's first session.

Running with 60kgs of success ballast, it was remarkable to see the #100 Raybrig NSX top the timesheets - and stay there - throughout the middle part of the 2-hour afternoon session. The car would eventually fall down the order; with another NSX occupying the headlines at 4:00pm - the #18 Takata Dome entry from Team Honda Racing. Considering the car has 40kgs on board, being quickest was no mean feat - though not entirely surprising either, as the green machine had been second in the morning.

Second in the afternoon went to the #12 CALSONIC IMPUL Z, moving up from fourth in the day's first session. The #35 Yellow Hat YMS SUPRA took a very impressive third, Peter Dumbreck wresting every last inch of speed out of the car, which had spent most of the session languishing in the lower ranks.

Ralph Firman, back from his debut in the A1GP series at the Lautizsring last weekend, secured fourth-best in the #8 ARTA NSX, ahead of Andre Couto in the #39 DENSO SARD SUPRA GT; with the #25 Eclipse ADVAN SUPRA taking sixth.

The #43 ARTA Garaiya improved from seventh-best in the morning - to post the class-leading time in GT300 in the afternoon. The bright orange car was chased by the #11 Jim Gainer Ferrari DUNLOP (F360) and winners last time out, the #0 EBBRO M-TEC NSX.
The sister #10 Mach-Go Ferrari DUNLOP was fourth; with two consistently strong - and always in contention on raceday - entrants next up. The #46 Dream Cube's ADVAN Z (fifth) and the #30 RECKLESS MR-S in sixth.

So, another NSX-friendly circuit - or, much as they did last year, will the Z cars prevail on Sunday? It's hard to say at this early point in the weekend - particularly as the brace of SUPRAs (winners here also) should provide plenty of threat to any front-runners.
GT300 will also be full of surprises, no doubt a few of the teams opting to play their strongest suit as late in the day as possible.

Tomorrow's Official Qualifying sessions will be very interesting depending on the weather. As evidenced by this morning's opening session, the circuit lies in its own little microcosm, nestled in the cradle of a mountainside. Apart from providing added excitement and unpredictability, the changing conditions afforded by the surroundings mean raceday afternoons have often been glorious affairs with blazing sunshine streaking across the track and through the glass-encased twin grandstands.

With a bright forecast for Qualifying, we could see very rapid lap times in the Super Lap, meaning a jostling of the order right down to the wire.