Heavy rain was just about the worst conditions imaginable for the start of Bronze Driver Practice at 8:45 AM local time. In fact, for the first half-hour, the rain was so bad that only a handful of installation laps were run.
Once the rain eased off, significant laps were run. In the end, it was two-time Suzuka 1000km winner Shigekazu Wakisaka who led the way in Bronze Practice, driving the #60 LM Corsa Porsche 911 GT3-R, while Kenny Habul in the #75 SunEnergy1 Mercedes-AMG GT3 was second-quickest, despite a spin.
They were the only two drivers to get into the sub-2’20 range, but a productive session with no significant accidents was the main takeaway of the session.
And then the rain came again!
Porsche People
Saturday’s Porsche Sprint Challenge Japan round features a 14-car grid, but the stars are in the GT4 category, including long-time Super GT veteran and race winner Yuji Ide, GT World Challenge Asia driver Naoya Yamano, and Super Taikyu standout Mizuki Ishizaka.
Awards Season
14 cars in the field will be eligible for the Asia Award, given to the top teams with two or more drivers from Asia (excluding Australia and New Zealand). 15 cars will be eligible for the Spa-Suzuka Award, given to the team that completes the most laps between this race and the previous Spa 24 Hours.
