BARCELONA – The No. 23 Motul Team RJN Nissan GT-R NISMO GT3 squad staged a dramatic fight back in the final round of the Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup.
A tricky wet-dry qualifying at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya was a disappointment for Alex Buncombe (UK), Katsumasa Chiyo (Japan) and Spanish former GT Academy winner Lucas Ordóñez – the team only qualifying 46th fastest for the three-hour season finale. However, the Nissan GT-R NISMO GT3 went onto unleash pure speed during the race. Buncombe made a blistering start to gain 10 places on the opening lap and all three drivers made strong progress through each of their stints. By the checkered flag, Buncombe, Chiyo and Ordóñez had made up an astonishing 33 places in the race to finish 13th overall.
"It's probably the biggest comeback I've seen recently, P46 to P13," said team boss Bob Neville. "They just drove faultlessly. The pit stops went absolutely to the second, and we couldn't have done any better than that. We ended up scoring some team points, and the race was really well driven from Chiyo-san and Lucas and Al."
The No. 22 entry of GT Academy winner Matt Simmons, Matt Parry and Struan Moore wasn't so lucky in their race. Moore started the race and also made strong progress in the early stages before he was hit from behind by a rival near the Barcelona chicane.
Damage to the oil cooler and floor put the Motul Team RJN crew to work to get the car back on track. The initial damage, however, kicked off a series of problems with the team also having to replace the gearbox.
Both Matt Simmons and Matt Parry got to undertake disrupted stints in the car but, unfortunately, the team had to retire within sight of the checkered flag.
🏁 That brings the '17 @BlancpainGT season to an end. Amazing fightback by No.23 #OMGTR. @Lucas_Ordonez finishes P13. Up 33 spots from start pic.twitter.com/05OAfE4JQg
— Nissan NISMO (@NISMO) October 1, 2017
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But @Lucas_Ordonez is not the only one with support. Another great year by @KATSUMASA_CHIYO. Has been great to have him back in @BlancpainGT pic.twitter.com/NEBbUNsRQN
— Nissan NISMO (@NISMO) October 1, 2017
🏁 @mattsimmons08, @StruanMoore & @Mattparryracing finished in the garage. Not the finish we wanted for 3 guys who did a great job this year. pic.twitter.com/tz1oXTkn4a
— Nissan NISMO (@NISMO) October 1, 2017
NISMO Calendar
October 7-8
Super GT, Chang International Circuit, Thailand
IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, Petit Le Mans, Road Atlanta, Atlanta, GA, USA
Supercars Bathurst 1000, Mount Panorama, Bathurst, NSW, Australia
October 14-15
FIA WEC, Fuji International Speedway, Japan
Contact
Paul Ryan
Global Motorsport Communications
Nissan/NISMO
Marketing and PR Manager
Phone: +1 678 644 0404
paul@nismosupport.com
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