- Nissan Z NISMO GT500s took first and second place in qualifying for SUPER GT Round 7 Autopolis
- Leading early on, they finished in sixth and seventh in what proved to be a tough race
- The team is fully committed to delivering their best at the final round next month
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YOKOHAMA, Japan - The seventh round of the 2025 SUPER GT Series was held at Autopolis in Oita Prefecture on Oct. 18-19. In qualifying, the #3 Niterra MOTUL Z (Daiki Sasaki/Atsushi Miyake) secured pole position, while the #23 MOTUL AUTECH Z (Katsumasa Chiyo/Mitsunori Takaboshi) took second place. Both cars started strongly in Sunday’s race, initially leading in a 1-2 formation. But their strategies did not align with the race developments and they fell behind, with the #23 Z ultimately finishing in 6th place and the #3 Z in 7th.
Detailed Race report
The three-hour race began beneath a blanket of heavy clouds. Starting in 1st and 2nd place respectively, Sasaki in the #3 Z and Takaboshi in the #23 Z initially maintained their positions and pulled away from the field. Starting in 5th place, Bertrand Baguette in the #12 Z made contact with another car at the first corner, causing it to spin out and allowing Baguette to take 4th. However, the #12 Z received a drive-through penalty for the contact. Meanwhile, Tsugio Matsuda in the #24 Z went from 9th place to 8th. On lap 12, the #24 Z made contact with a car and went off the track, sustaining damage that forced it to retire. This incident triggered a Full Course Yellow (FCY) and the safety car’s deployment. The #3 Z and #23 Z lost their gaps on the rest of the field, but when the race resumed on lap 17 they quickly regained their 1-2 formation.
On lap 25, as light rain began to fall in patches, the #23 Z dropped to third after being overtaken by a fast-charging competitor. On lap 28, the #3 Z relinquished its lead. Because it was a long race, the GT500 teams made their first pit stops strategically with a wider range of timing. On lap 29, the #23 Z went off track during a battle and pitted for repairs and a tire change. The #12 Z pitted at the end of lap 32 and the #3 Z at the end of lap 35, with both changing drivers. By the end of lap 41 — after all GT500 cars had completed their first routine pit stops — Miyake in the #3 Z was in 8th place, Takaboshi in the #23 Z held 9th and Kazuki Hiramine in the #12 Z was 13th.
After lap 50, the #3 Z and the #23 Z became embroiled in a four-way battle. On lap 51, three of the cars were side by side on the straight before the #23 Z moved up to 7th and the #3 Z to 8th. The #3 Z made its second pit stop at the end of lap 58, followed by the #23 Z at the end of lap 59, when Chiyo took over driving duties. By the end of lap 69, after all GT500 cars had completed their second routine pit stops, the #23 Z was in 6th place, the #3 Z in 7th and the #12 Z in 12th.
In the closing stages, the Nissan Z NISMO GT500 cars pushed hard to improve their positions, but struggled with tires and navigating GT300 traffic. Although they were aiming for victory, ultimately the #23 Z finished in 6th place, the #3 Z in 7th and the #12 Z in 11th, with two Nissan Z NISMO GT500s finishing in the points. Aiming to showcase their true potential and speed, the Nissan Z NISMO GT500s will give it their all two weeks later in the season finale — where they will compete without success ballast.
Driver comments
Katsumasa Chiyo (#23 MOTUL AUTECH Z):
“During my stint, the Full Course Yellow came out before I could get the tires up to temperature and unfortunately I lost a position at the restart. However, I was able to later regain my position, which was a plus. We came into this race aiming for victory, so the result is disappointing, but I will work hard with the team to secure a win in the final round.”
Mitsunori Takaboshi (#23 MOTUL AUTECH Z):
“I had a steering issue and limited engine map control during parts of the race, which made fuel and tire management a bit tough. After the steering was replaced in the second stint, our pace improved and I was able to catch up to the lead pack, so we made up for lost time. With no weight handicap in the next race and car improvements, I’ll push for a strong result.”
GT300 class
Four Nissan GT‑R NISMO GT3s competed in the GT300 class. The #56 Realize Nissan Mechanic Challenge GT‑R (Joao Paulo de Oliveira/Kohei Hirate), pushed hard and went from 14th place to 4th. The #62 HELM MOTORSPORTS GT‑R (Yuya Hiraki/Reiji Hiraki) also finished in the points, taking 13th place.
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