Nissan and NMC (Nissan Motorsports & Customising Co.) announced on Thursday that they will enter two race-developed versions of the new Fairlady Z sports car in this year’s Fuji SUPER TEC 24 Hours, the crown jewel of the Eneos Super Taikyu Series powered by Hankook which takes place on 4-5 June.
These prototype vehicles, based on the latest “RZ34” generation Z-Car, will compete in the ST-Q class, a non-competitive category for manufacturer-developed vehicles which do not belong to any of the other eight classes in Super Taikyu.
Nissan states in their press release that, “We will train the car through the tough 24-hour race and aim to develop an exciting race car worthy of the Z.”
The flagship NISMO racing team will enter one of these prototype Z racers, with an all-pro lineup in their #230 car.
The ensemble will feature Nissan SUPER GT GT500 drivers Tsugio Matsuda (2x GT500 and Super Formula Champion, all-time GT500 wins leader), Ronnie Quintarelli (4x GT500 Champion), Kohei Hirate (2x GT500 Champion), and Daiki Sasaki (3x GT500 race winner and past All-Japan F3 National Class Champion). Joining them is second-generation driver Kazuki Hoshino, a two-time overall winner of the Fuji SUPER TEC 24 Hours, who retired from full-time driving at the end of 2021.
The second car will be entered by Max Racing, who have years of experience fielding the previous Fairlady Z34 (370Z in the west) in the ST-3 class.
The #244 Max Racing entry will be driven by clubman racer Toru Tanaka, team manager Tetsuya Tanaka (former Nissan GT500 driver, 5x Tokachi 24 Hour race winner), Atsushi Miyake (Max Racing GT300 driver and Super Formula rookie), Mitsunori Takaboshi (Nissan GT500 driver, Formula E reserve driver, and 2017 All-Japan F3 Champion), and Hironobu Yasuda (2008 GT300 Champion and 4x GT500 race winner).
Images © Nissan
