2019.03.02

SUPER GT's new 2019-season machines and drivers come together for MO-SPO Festival Suzuka! Three new legends go head-to-head!!

Pre-season big event "MO-SPO Festival 2019 SUZUKA" started at Suzuka Circuit on March 2 under a pleasant weather. "MO-SPO Festival" is renovation of "Suzuka Fan Thanks Day" inaugurated in 1988 ramped up by co-endorsement by Honda and TOYOTA GAZOOO Racing from this year.
Many cars and drivers that will be competing in the 2019-season of SUPER GT gathered for the day in Suzuka and took part in demonstration runs, vehicle displays, talk shows, and many other programs offered to the fans.
From SUPER GT, seven GT500 cars and five GT300 cars showed up in a warm-up session from 9:30AM on the day. With new 2019-model appearing on the track, the session caught the eyes of many fans who reached the circuit in early morning.

 

One of the highlighting programs of Suzuka Fan Thanks Day, titled "Battle of forever-rivals", showcased by TEAM IMPUL team manager Kazuyoshi Hoshino and NAKAJIMA RACING team manager Satoru Nakajima, was re-presented as a new program. This year, three former GT500 champions who had been competing in the series as the face of their respective manufacturer moved their battlefield to "New battle of forever-rivals Satoshi Motoyama vs Juichi Wakisaka vs Ryo Michigami".

 

New leading actors of the battle of the legends, Satoshi Motoyama, who is assuming the role of Nissan's Executive adviser this season, Juichi Wakisaka, TOYOTA GAZOO Racing ambassador and the team manager of LEXUS TEAM LEMANS WAKO'S, and Ryo Michigami, owner-driver of Modulo Drago CORSE from GT300 class, appeared on a special stage set up at behind the grandstand before the battle for a talk show and interacted with the fans. After the talk show, the three then appeared in front of the grandstand together with Kazuyoshi Hoshino and Satoru Nakajima, who were the key players of the "Battle of rivals" until last year, and greeted the spectators that nearly filled up the whole stand.
 

 

The "new" legendary drivers then stepped in to their respective machine which they captured the GT500 title together, 2008 XANAVI NISMO GT-R (Motoyama), 2002 ESSO Ultraflow SUPRA (Wakisaka), and 2000 Castrol Mugen NSX (Michigami). Starting grid was decided by rock-paper-scissors to an order of Motoyama, Michigami, and Wakisaka. Though they have retired from GT500, the racer spirit is sure still burning inside of them and the 3-lap battle around East Course turned into a no-mercy fight. Motoyama allowed the other two to run ahead at one point, but he overtook both of them in the last lap and went on to take the crown of the inaugurating battle as the GT-R fans sent a huge cheer to the winner. Of course, the crowd gave a warm round of applauses to Wakisaka and Michigami for showcasing an exciting battle too.

Demonstration run by SUPER GT cars, titled "SUPER GT -- World-class premier competition series --", started with a huge crowd of spectators watching. Six GT500 cars lined up in front of other five GT300 cars on the grid. And then RAYBRIG NSX-GT proudly wearing the No.1 marched through the middle of the pack to the pole position like seen in a real SUPER GT race. Subsequent start procedure also looked similar to the real race, and the fans enjoyed the atmosphere as if the season has already started.
 

SUPER GT machines lined up again on the grid after the demonstration to set the stage for the Grid-walk & Pit-walk. Fans looked excited and thrilled as the track turned into like a museum of motorsports from around the world with not only SUPER GT cars but also F1 cars, Le Mans winner TOYOTA TS050 HYBRID, Takuma Sato's Indy 500 winning car, Le Mans 24-hour winning motorcycle, MotoGP champion motorcycle, and also World Rally Championship (WRC) car. GT drivers proactively interacted with fans in autographing and picture shooting.
 

Taking on new challenge in GT500 from this season,
Yuichi Nakayama (No.39 DENSO KOBELCO SARD LC500) was quick to join the club to give autographs.

Icons of Honda and TOYOTA GAZOO Racing, No.1 RAYBRIG NSX-GT and No.39 DENSO KOBELCO SARD LC500, respectively, formed a parade in the MoSpo ceremony. Then, suddenly, Toyota president Akio Toyoda in WRC race car Yaris WRC and Honda president Takahiro Hachigo on Le Mans 24 Heures Moto winning motorcycle dashed through the main straight!　Two presidents received huge cheer no less than the drivers or race cars as they came back to the grandstand.
 

Surprise appearance by Honda president Hachigo, Mobilityland president Susumu Yamashita,
and Toyota president Toyoda (from left).

SUBARU solely showcased a demonstration run, titled "The challenging spirit of SUBARU STI WR blue". No.61 SUBARU BRZ R&D SPORT as well as race car fielded in Nurburgring 24 Hour race and a rally car that captured WRC championship crown in the past took part in the demo run.

 

A talk show held towards the end of the day gathered all GT500 drivers from LEXUS, Honda, and NISSAN who participated in the event the day to the special event stage.
 

MO-SPO Festival closed with a final program, "Suzuka 8 Hour x SUZUKA 10H Twilight Demo Run". Before the demo run, Nobuteru Taniguchi (driving No.4 GOODSMILE HATSUNE MIKU AMG in GT300) and Takashi Kobayashi (driving No.18 UPGARAGE NSX GT3), who are expected to compete in the SUZUKA 10H in August this year, held a talk-session with two riders who are expected to compete in the endurance motorcycle race, "Suzuka 8 Hour". When the clock ticked a little past 6PM as the track darkened after the sun went down, two 8-Hour endurance race bikes entered and ran on the track with the grandstand lid up with penlights held in the hands of the fans. Then the GT300 cars that will be competing in the SUZUKA 10H came into the track as the race bikes finished their part in the demo. With more penlights lighting up, the cars ran fast through the straight with thundering exhaust sound.

 

 

MO-SPO Festival 2019 SUZUKA Motorsports Fan Thanks Day will be held until tomorrow. SUPER GT will open its season on April 13 and 14 at Okayama International Circuit after holding official tests at Okayama (3/16-17) and Fuji (3/30-31).

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