asset techno Z34 wins ST-3 Class - Super Taikyu Series Opening Round Race Report
March 25, Fuji Speedway (Shizuoka Prefecture)
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The opening round of the Super Taikyu Series (S-Tai) was held in Shizuoka Prefecture, with the #34 asset techno Z34 (Masahiro Sasaki/Shuji Maejima) winning in the ST-3 Class. Meanwhile, the #3 ENDLESS ADVAN 380RS-C (Kyosuke Mineo/Yukinori Taniguchi/Shinichi Takagi) took second place on the victory stand in the series' ST-1 Class.
Super Taikyu is the first of the major motorsports competitions in Japan to hold its opening race this year. This event was a four-hour endurance race. Having the opening race set on the stage of Fuji Speedway was a first for Super Taikyu, and the curtain was raised on the season in a different atmosphere than in previous years. Within the seven different classes, there was one car in ST-1 and four in ST-3, making for a total of five Fairlady Z machines contesting the season-opener.
In the ST-3 Class, the #34 Z (Z34) showed off its speed starting from the qualifying session. They took pole position in qualifying, and opened up a massive lead in the race. The team completed both required pit stops more than a full lap ahead of the second-placed team. However, in the final stages of the race where they seemed assured of a crushing victory, they passed under a yellow flag and were given a pit stop penalty. The car then running in second place used this opportunity to close the gap, but in the final stint, lead driver Sasaki was able to protect his margin and get the checkered flag in the top spot.
The ST-1 Class is a competition between the Fairlady Z, Porsche and BMW Z4. Starting this year, the #3 Z (Z33 380RS-C) features a sequential transmission, improving the car's competitive performance. Having taken 2nd in qualifying, the race got underway. Start driver Mineo soon found an opening and took over the lead. From there, he began to quickly develop a steadily increasing gap. As he had said during the practice session the day before, "Winning boils down to the set-up of the car, which is what brings good lap times." However, during the second stint, trouble occurred in the drive system, and he had to make an emergency pit stop. He fell back in position, but subsequently made good progress and seized second place on the victory stand.
In addition, third place on the victory stand was taken by the #15 Okabe Jidosha DIXCEL Team Tetsuya Z34 (Masaaki Nagashima/Toru Tanaka/Tetsuya Tanaka), while fourth went to the #35 asset techno Z33 (Kazuhiro Koizumi/Hiroki Yoshida/Makoto Hotta), and fifth place was won by the #5 Okabe Jidosha Makers Z34 (Daisuke Imamura/Mitsunori Atake/Tsuyoshi Shirai). The results show that all Fairlady Z entries scored points in the season's opening race.
Masahiro Sasaki (ST-3 Class winner); "Last night the team was up late changing the setup for me, and that really improved the car's performance. It was unfortunate that we got a penalty at the end, but since they had given me a good car and our tyre management was excellent, , I was sure that no one would be able to overtake me. I've been racing with Maejima as my partner for a long time, but since we haven't won for recent years, I'm very happy with this result.
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