"SUGO GT 300km RACE", the 5th round of 2021 AUTOBACS SUPER GT, is taking place on September 11th (Sat) and 12th (Sun) at Sportsland SUGO in Miyagi Prefecture. Sportsland SUGO is hosting SUPER GT after a 2-year blank since the venue was excluded from the revised calendar last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. SUGO is considered as a very challenging mid-/high-speed circuit with restless ups and downs connected with numerous riskful corners which is also known for showcasing tension-filled, dramatic race. With the round being held in the middle phase of the season, many teams are already loading a heavy success weight (SW), and, in that sense, the race may not spare even a second to take the eyes away until the checkered flag, whether at front or the back of the field.

 

※Please follow the measures put in place to avoid the spread of COVID-19 by the regional government and/or the circuit while you are at as well traveling to/from the circuit.

 

 

　SUPER GT returns to SUGO after 2 years. In 2018 and 2019, the SUGO rounds were held during the last phase of the season where the interest was focused mainly on who can survive in the championship contention, however, the race is set in the middle phase this season as the Round 5. Teams who could not reach podium in earlier races as well as who want to score a big point here can be opting to gamble in their race strategy. Also, with the point leaders having a heavy SW, accumulated through up to the midpoint of the season, there could be close battles breaking out everywhere on the field, besides the top contention, fighting to score even 1 point more than the rival. This SUGO race can be ever more intense than any other races the circuit has hosted before. Speaking of a change, SUGO had undergone renovation of the track and facility before the start of this season. With the pit road 2 meters wider now, the congestion seen at SUPER GT races when the cars came into the pit in a chain is expected to be mitigated.

　Historically, Toyota GT500 race cars have been successful at SUGO. Previous model Supra was especially strong at the circuit, recording 7 wins overall, which is the most among all car models competed in the series. Of course, the current GR Supra GT500 is completely different from the Supra from the time, but the expectation remains high on the GR Supra squad despite being the first SUGO race. The team to watch would be No.38 ZENT CERUMO GR Supra (Yuji Tachikawa / Hiroaki Ishiura). The current situation is not where they would have wanted to be, but, in return, SW is rather light at 22kg. Their ace driver Tachikawa has been strong at the track with 3 SUGO wins, a tied record for most win. 2017 SUGO winner No.39 DENSO KOBELCO SARD GR Supra (Heikki Kovalainen / Yuichi Nakayama) is also with a light 28kg SW, thus, their chance for the win is quite high.

 

 

 

 

　Mid-/high-speed track of SUGO is also favorable to Honda NSX-GT that performs well around the corners. The car has been especially dominant over the rivals in the qualifying, holding an all-time record of 10 pole positions, and the success is also seen in the race with 6 wins. However, NSX-GT has gone through a major transformation to a front-engine layout since last year and this will be the first challenge on SUGO for the current NSX-GT. Nonetheless, the current NSX-GT continues to be outstanding around the corners like the mid-engined NSX-GT that it won't be surprising to see the car showing off the speed. Number one pick for the win among the squad would be No.8 ARTA NSX-GT (Tomoki Nojiri / Nirei Fukuzumi). Considering the strong performance shown at the previous Suzuka race, No.64 Modulo NSX-GT (Takuya Izawa / Hiroki Otsu) and No.16 Red Bull MOTUL MUGEN NSX-GT (Ukyo Sasahara / Toshiki Oyu) could be breaking into the fight for the top position.

 

 

   

 

 

　SUGO was so unfavorable to Nissan race cars in the past that some referred to as 'bad luck location'. Things changed after the R35 model of NISSAN GT-R was deployed, marking 4 wins and 5 pole positions in 12 races, and it was no longer a difficulty. Current GT-R NISMO GT500, which debuted last year, is said to be strong at mid-/high-speed circuit, and the previous round held on an iconic circuit of such characteristics, Suzuka Circuit, was won and had the podium dominated by the Nissan cars. Considering SUGO is also a mid-/high-speed circuit, it must be a 'lock-on' track of the Nissan squad. Despite having the SW increased to 44kg from winning the previous race, No.23 MOTUL AUTECH GT-R (Tsugio Matsuda / Ronnie Quintarelli) still has a chance to win the upcoming race. 2016 SUGO winner No.24 Realize Corporation ADVAN GT-R (Mitsunori Takaboshi / Daiki Sasaki) is also a team to watch. No.12 CALSONIC IMPUL GT-R (Kazuki Hiramine / Nobuharu Matsushita), falling short of the podium at the last race, could be hyped up with 'must-win' mindset with their light 16kg SW.

 

 

   

 

 

　The story is the same for the GT300 class at the mid-/high-speed track of SUGO that the cars that are fast around the corners are advantageous. The top candidate to keep eyes on among the favorable group would be No.61 SUBARU BRZ R&D SPORT (Takuto Iguchi / Hideki Yamauchi) who captured the pole position in 2017 and 2018 consecutively. BRZ has clinched the pole positions 3 times, the most among the current car models, with its lightweight, low center of gravity Boxer 4 engine. Although the team only has 1 win, unfortunately, they have been putting enormous effort in connecting the car's speed to the victory and must be keen to see the effort bear fruit at the SUGO race.
　In terms of other cars with good cornering performance, NSX GT3 is certainly one to be called. 2019 winner No.55 ARTA NSX GT3 still has the speed despite having a change in the driver lineup, which has become Shinichi Takagi / Ren Sato combination with Sato joining the team from this season, and, considering the 2019 win was achieved with a 42kg SW, the chance is high enough even with SW at 45kg. Light SW can give a boost for No.18 UPGARAGE NSX GT3 (Takashi Kobayashi / Teppei Natori) as well as No.34 Yogibo NSX GT3 (Ryo Michigami / Shogo Mitsuyama) to be in the top group.
　No.88 JLOC Lamborghini GT3 (Takashi Kogure / Yuya Motojima) has been strong at SUGO, but the 66kg SW could make it difficult for the team to contend for the leading position. Similarly, the teams in the upper positions in the point standing with SW of 66kg or more, from the leader No.244 TAKANOKONOYU GR Supra GT (Atsushi Miyake / Yuui Tsutsumi) down to No.52 SAITAMATOYOPET GB GR Supra GT (Hiroki Yoshida / Kohta Kawaai), could be required to focus on picking up as many points as possible. With AMG GT3 that has been well-fit to SUGO, there seems to be still a chance for No.4 GOODSMILE HATSUNE MIKU AMG (Nobuteru Taniguchi / Tatsuya Kataoka) to fight in the upper group even with a 60kg SW.
　Chance for the win could also be high for No.5 MACHSYAKEN GTNET MC86 MACH GO (Yuya Hiraki / Reiji Hiraki), which is fast when it has a right setting, and the teams fielding NISSAN GT-R NISMO GT3 that boasts a number of a top group finish at SUGO, like No.11 GAINER TANAX GT-R (Katsuyuki Hiranaka / Hironobu Yasuda) and No.10 GAINER TANAX with IMPUL GT-R (Kazuki Hoshino / Keishi Ishikawa).

 

   

 

   

 

 

　It's been a while since the SUPER GT last visited Sportsland SUGO. There must be many SUPER GT fans who longed for seeing the series coming back to SUGO especially since the circuit has been the stage of great battles multiple times, which later given reputations of 'dramatic SUGO' or 'bad luck of SUGO' for unexpected ending. Upcoming race will continue to be broadcast by J SPORTS on live, recorded, and on demand, and, also, SUPER GT Plus, a TV program broadcast via the network of TV Tokyo, will bring many backstage stories of the race to the fans. Don't miss the thrill and excitement brought straight from the circuit to you (both broadcast only in Japan. For overseas, Motorsport.tv distributes qualifying and race live).