Super Taikyu Series 2014 first round Motegi Super Taikyu

March 29-30, Twin Ring Motegi (Tochigi Prefecture)- At the opening round of the 2014 Super Taikyu Series, held at Twin Ring Motegi in Tochigi Prefecture, the #24 “ThreeBond Nissan Technical College GT-R" (Tomonobu Fujii/GAMISAN/Daiki Sasaki) took victory in the ST-X class. On top of this, the Techno First Racing Team's #35 "asset ings Z34" also came home in first place in the ST-3 class.

The #24 “ThreeBond Nissan Technical College GT-R" was started two years ago through the continued cooperation of the Nissan Technical College and this year 39 students from the Tochigi school were responsible for pit support. A further 5 students from the Yokohama school served as staff for sponsor relations while 70 high school students were invited to Twin Ring Motegi as a form of open campus.

The six races of the Super Taikyu series will be held at the six circuits of Twin Ring Motegi, Sports land SUGO, Fuji Speedway, Okayama International Circuit, Suzuka Circuit and Auto Polis. Round 5 in Suzuka will be a joint event with the World Touring Car Championship (WTCC) and will consist of a 3 heat, 40 minute race format. The other races will be endurance races lasting between 3 to 7 hours.

This year as well, the joint project of the Nissan Technical College and KONDO racing, the #24 “ThreeBond Nissan Technical College GT-R" will compete in the ST-X class. In addition to the same two drivers from last year (Tomonobu Fujii and GAMISAN), Daiki Sasaki, who began participating as C-driver from mid last year, has also been added to the roster. The #24 “ThreeBond Nissan Tech-nical College GT-R" has shown constant speed since the qualifying sessions. In the Super Taikyu Series the starting grid order is decided by calculating the sum of the A driver and B driver's best times and, after recording times far and above the competition, the #24 has took a stunning pole position. Though it must be admitted that there were a few troubles during the qualifying session, these were resolved before race day and the car entered the race in top condition. The race began at 12:15 in the afternoon and all cars within each class began the race aiming for that checkered flag to be raised in 5 hours time. Despite the fact that the weather conditions unfortunately began to shift towards rain which brought occasionally strong winds and harsh conditions, the #24 “Three Bond Nissan Technical College GT-R" displayed excellent form and this pre-eminent car easily shook off the competition to achieve a pole-to-win finish.

In addition the Techno First Racing Team's #35 "asset ings Z34" also achieved a pole-to-win finish in the ST-3 class. Maejima Shuji remarked, “It felt good in the qualifying sessions and we only changed the tires right at the end. Even when it was raining, the car ran without a hitch." The three drivers were delighted with the victory. Masahiro Sasaki reported, “The condition of the car was great right from the start, we took top position in the qualifying sessions and warm up and the car had undeniable speed. With this combination we want to take the championship." Kazuki Hirokawa also said, “although this was my first time driving this car, the setup was perfect and it almost felt like I, myself didn't really have to do that much. I want to take in as much knowledge from the more experienced drivers as I can."

Tomonobu Fujii (#24 ThreeBond Nissan Technical College GT-R / ST-X class. 1st)
“Due to the fact that there was a lot of rain which began to pool up on the track, I was driving slightly conservatively. I'm just happy we could take away a win."

• Super Taikyu Series Round 1 ST-X class
• Super Taikyu Series Round 1 ST-3 class

<Related Link>
NISSAN MOTORSPORTS Web Site

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