An exciting news coming from Japan and Super GT. Audi Team Hitotsuyama announced that Audi works driver Christopher Haase will join them at Suzuka.
Christopher Haase will share the #21 Audi R8 LMS ultra with regular drivers Richard Lyons and Tomonobu Fujii. The Suzuka race is a 1000km event and the stellar event of the Super GT series.
Christopher Haase has won this year the Nürburgring 24 Hours overall with Phoenix Racing and doing the full TUDOR United SportsCar Championship season with Paul Miller Racing.
At Suzuka the three drivers will have to fight hard in a very demanding GT300 field with many factory supported teams.
The popular and very fast Fuji Speedway is hosting the fifth round of the 2014 Super GT season. Audi Team Hitotsuyama once again fielding the only R8 LMS ultra in the field.
Audi Team Hitotsuyama performed very well last time out at Sugo taking a breathtaking third place and very deserved podium finish. For the Fuji round the Japanese Audi team was aiming high with their R8 LMS ultra in a very demanding GT300 field.
Unfortunately the qualifying session turned to be an extremely hard one for Hitotsuyama squad. Richard Lyons Tomonobu Fujii who are sharing the #21 Audi qualified twenty-third within the GT300 class with a best time of 1'42.066.
Richard Lyons Tomonobu Fujii will try to bounce back tomorrow in the 300km endurance race against strong teams from various brands.
The qualifying session was dominated by Honda with two CR-Z cars locking the front row. Third place went to a McLaren MP4-12C.
GT300 qualifying session results can be seen here.
Sportsland Sugo hosted today the fourth round of the 2014 Super GT season. Audi Team Hitotsuyama in the only Audi team in the field performed very well.
The #21 Audi R8 LMS ultra driven by Richard Lyons Tomonobu Fujii finished the race in a very strong third place. A great result and deserved podium for the whole Audi Team Hitotsuyama after an eventful 79-lap race.
The two drivers who qualified seventh within the GT300 class, improved a lot and were able to pass several of the thier rivals in front. The third place in the end is a right award after a lot of bad luck since the start of the season and how the Balance of Performance is penalizing the Audi R8 LMS ultra.
Race victory went to the #88 Lamborghini Gallardo from team Manepa. The #65 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3 from team Leon was second.
The Japanese Super GT hosted another set of official test days this weekend. This time Sportsland Sugo was the scene for the official testing, the second official test this year.
Audi Team Hitotsuyama was present with their GT300 classed #21 Audi R8 LMS ultra. The car was driven by their regular duo of Richard Lyons and Tomonobu Fujii.
The Japanese Audi Sport customer racing squad showed good pace during the four test sessions. They placed sixth in GT300 during the Saturday morning session and fourth during the afternoon.
They rounded out a good weekend with fifth and eighth positions during the morning and afternoon sessions on Sunday.
Round three of the Super GT will be heading to Autopolis, 31 May - 1 June.
Round two of the Japanese Super GT headed to Fuji Speedway this weekend. Audi Team Hitotsuyama entered their Audi R8 LMS ultra at the event.
The #21 Audi R8 LMS ultra was driven by Carlo van Dam and Tomonobu Fujii. Carlo van Dam substituted for Richard Lyons this weekend, as he was competing in the British GT Championship at Rockingham.
The Hitotsuyama duo qualified twenty-first in the GT300 class and finished the 500 km race in fourteenth, two laps down.
Round three of the Super GT will be held at Autopolis, 31 May -1 June.
The Japanese Super GT hosted its official test days at Okayama this weekend. Audi Sport Team Hitotsuyama took part in the event with their #21 Audi R8 LMS ultra.
Richard Lyons and Tomonobu Fujii were behind the wheel of the newly liveried Audi R8 LMS ultra and took part in the four test sessions, two each on Saturday and Sunday.
The Audi Sport Team Hitotsuyama placed fourth within the GT300 class during the first session on Saturday and was third fastest during the second session.
The final day of testing on Sunday concluded with the #21 Audi R8 LMS ultra in third place during the morning and in seventh during the afternoon.
The 2014 Super GT will be getting underway at Okayama from 5-6 April.
Audi Sport Team Hitotsuyama revealed their 2014 Super GT livery on Thursday.
The Japanese team will be fielding the #21 Audi R8 LMS ultra in the Super GT GT300 class this year. Their car will be driven by Richard Lyons and Tomonobu Fujii.
Audi Sport Team Hitotsuyama will be at the official Okayama Super GT test days this coming weekend, 15-16 March.
The Japanese Super GT season will be getting underway at Okayama, 5-6 April.
Official Japanese Super GT test days were held at Suzuka on Thursday and Friday this week. Audi Sport Team Hitotsuyama was present with one Audi R8 LMS ultra and performed very well amongst the GT300 competitors.
Audi Sport Team Hitotsuyama’s one all-black carbon-fiber #21 Audi R8 LMS ultra was driven by Richard Lyons and Tomonobu Fujii.
Two test sessions were held on Thursday and Friday. Audi Sport Team Hitotsuyama topped the first session during the morning, setting the fastest time within the GT300 class, a lap time of 2:09.842. The team did not take part in the second session during Thursday afternoon.
Friday saw the final day of testing at Suzuka. Audi Sport Team Hitotsuyama again set the fastest time within GT300 during the morning session, setting a lap time of 2:00.558.
The final session on Friday saw the Audi R8 LMS ultra as the fourth fastest GT300 runner with a lap time of 2'00"853, versus the fastest time of 1:59.870, set by the #55 ARTA Mugen CR-Z GT.
The Japanese Super GT season will be getting underway at Okayama, 5-6 April.
Earlier this week Hitotsuyama Racing mentioned that they would be announcing their 2014 plans on Saturday. The announcement today has included a new team name for 2014, Audi Sport Team Hitotsuyama, as the team has been upgraded to Audi works status in Japan.
The team will be returning to the Japanese Super GT this year. Currently their press release includes details of one Audi R8 LMS ultra entry in the GT300 class. The #21 Audi Sport Team Hitotsuyama entry will be driven by Richard Lyons and Tomonobu Fujii.
It is very exciting news that Hitotsuyama Racing has been upgraded to Audi works status and it will greatly boost their program for the 2014 Super GT season. The team will be making more announcements ahead of the 2014 season.
During 2013 the team fielded their brand new 2013 Audi R8 LMS ultra in the Super GT. Their second Audi R8 LMS ultra is the 2012 specification car that was used in the 2012 and part of the 2013 Super GT seasons by äpr racing. The car has been for sale since the middle of 2013 and has now finally found a home with Hitotsuyama Racing.
The car has arrived at the Hitotsuyama Racing workshop and is busy being prepared for the 2014 Super GT.
Hitotsuyama Racing has also mentioned that they will be announcing their 2014 plans on Saturday, 22 February.
Hitotsuyama Racing will be remaining loyal to Audi Sport customer racing for yet another season in Japan, despite what was a very tough 2013 season.
The team, who has spearheaded the Audi R8 LMS participation in Japan since 2011, has always remained loyal to the Audi R8 LMS. 2013 was a very difficult year for the team in Japan, as the R8 LMS ultra was heavily hit by the imposed Balance of Performance. Hitotsuyama Racing was the sole Audi entrant in the Super GT during the bulk of the 2013 season.
Many rumours circulated that Hitotsuyama Racing might be moving away from Audi for 2014. After the Fuji Sprint Cup the team posted on their Facebook page: “Thanks to our drivers Akihiro and Richard, mechanics, and everyone who supported us this season. We will be back with a new package next year. Please stay tuned.”
Great news emerged today, as Hitotsuyama Racing, via their website and Facebook page, announced that they will once again be fielding their Audi R8 LMS ultra in the GT300 class of the Japanese Super GT.
The blog post on their website also mentions the possibility of upping their team from one car, up to possibly two or three Audi R8 LMS ultra vehicles.
Hitotsuyama Racing’s 2014 Audi participation blog/website post can be seen HERE.
The team has been with Audi Sport customer racing for a number of seasons. They started with a single Audi R8 LMS in 2011 and took the Super Taikyu ST-X (GT3) title that year. 2011 also saw the team competing in the GTC class of the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup Six Hours of Zhuhai and the Macau GT Cup. By 2012 the team had upped its arsenal to two Audi R8 LMS cars and entered the Japanese Super GT. The team sold their two R8 LMS cars ahead of and during the 2013 season and upgraded to a brand new 2013 Audi R8 LMS ultra for their Super GT campaign. The Balance of Performance regulations had not been kind to the Audi GT3 vehicles in Japan, but Hitotsuyama Racing never gave up and always pushed hard for the best possible results.
Hitotsuyama Racing was also seen in select events of the GT Asia Series from 2011 to 2013.
It is very exciting news to hear that Hitotsuyama Racing will be remaining with Audi Sport customer racing. They are one of the most loyal R8 LMS customer teams around the world and we wish them the best of luck as they take on the 2014 Japanese Super GT season.
The 2013 Japanese Super GT Series was a difficult season for the Audi teams, but Hitotsuyama Racing never gave up and continued to push with their Audi R8 LMS ultra. Two Audi teams committed to the series at the beginning of the year. Hitotsuyama Racing entered a 2013 Audi R8 LMS ultra, along with äpr racing who entered one 2012 Audi R8 LMS ultra. Hitotsuyama Racing competed at all of the rounds this season, however äpr racing made a mid-season change to run with a Nissan GTR GT3 vehicle.
The season review has been compiled from the 2013 Audi Motorsport Blog Weekend Round Up posts. Each round has been added as was seen in the individual Weekend Round Up posts during 2013, which can be accessed via the links throughout the review below:
Super GT Test: Okayama
The official Super GT test days were hosted at Okayama in Japan. Hitotsuyama Racing and äpr racing each had one Audi R8 LMS ultra at the test, with the former being a brand new 2013 car. The latest generation car proved to be very competitive at the tests.
The Japanese Super GT got underway at Okayama. Two Audi R8 LMS ultra cars were entered. A 2013 spec car from Hitotsuyama Racing and a 2012 spec car for äpr racing. The organisers added a 40kg penalty to the 2013 car during the week leading up to the event. It proved to be a difficult weekend as the cars qualified in the lower half of the field and finished fourteenth (äpr) and sixteenth (Hitotsuyama).
Round two of Japanese Super GT Championship took place at the Fuji Speedway. The two regular Audi R8 LMS ultra teams took part. Hitotsuyama Racing with a 2013 R8 LMS ultra and äpr racing with a 2012 R8 LMS ultra. Both teams qualified outside of the top ten for the race held on the Monday following the weekend.
Sepang in Malaysia hosted the third Japanese Super GT round. Two Audi R8 LMS ultra cars took part, one Audi R8 LMS ultra each from Hitotsuyama Racing (2013 spec) and äpr racing (2012 spec). The Audis again struggled in this round, Hitotsuyama were unable to qualify after suffering clutch problems and äpr qualified twenty-second. During the races the difficult weekend continued, but the Hitotsuyama Racing entry was able to improve to fourteenth and the äpr racing car up to seventeenth.
The Japanese Super GT held a two-day test at Suzuka this week. Hitotsuyama Racing took part in the test, fielding their 2013 Audi R8 LMS ultra. This was also the first event where the äpr racing team fielded their new Nissan GT3 car, having switched from their 2012 R8 LMS ultra which they fielded during 2012 and the beginning of 2013. Hitotsuyama Racing did well during the test, placing within the top ten during some of the sessions.
Round four of the Japanese Super GT was at Sugo for a 300 km event. Only one Audi was entered, the 2013 Audi R8 LMS ultra from Hitotsuyama Racing. It has proven to be a difficult year in Super GT. The Hitotsuyama R8 LMS ultra qualified in nineteenth. The race itself saw the team progressing steadily. A good call on strategy, which saw them running on slicks in difficult weather, netted them a good top ten result by finishing in eighth (within the GT300 class). A very positive result for the team in a very testing season.
The Suzuka 1000 km was round five of the Japanese Super GT Series this weekend. The Audi R8 LMS ultra of Hitotsuyama Racing was entered with their two regular drivers: Akihiro Tsuzuki and Richard Lyons. They qualified twelfth and finished the grueling endurance event in eleventh place within the GT300 class.
The Japanese Super GT hosted round six at Fuji Speedway. The single 2013 Audi R8 LMS ultra from Hitotsuyama Racing was on the grid. Their regular drivers were back in the car this weekend: Akihiro Tsuzuki and Richard Lyons. It has proven to be a difficult 2013 season for the team and this continued in qualifying, as they qualified in twenty-fourth place within the GT300 class. Despite coming from twenty-fourth on the grid, the team was able to move up through the field. They stormed into the top ten and got as high as eighth. Unfortunately lady luck did not smile upon the team, as a gearbox issue lost them time with only four laps to go. They ultimately finished thirteenth in GT300.
The Japanese Super GT held an official test sessions at Twin Ring Motegi this week. The tests took place on Monday and Tuesday. Hitotsuyama Racing was present and took part with their 2013 Audi R8 LMS ultra. The team’s regular two drivers, Akihiro Tsuzuki and Richard Lyons, were joined by Oliver Jarvis for the test day. The first day was cancelled due to severe weather conditions. The #21 Hitotsuyama Racing Audi R8 LMS ultra placed seventh during the morning session and eleventh during the afternoon session. Jarvis, who has competed in Japan for many years, was included in the test to assist Hitotsuyama Racing. Audi Japan and Audi Sport customer racing made the decision to add Jarvis to the test day line-up, however it has been mentioned that Jarvis will not be competing in any of the Super GT races.
Round 7: Autopolis Autopolis hosted round seven of the Japanese Super GT. Hitotsuyama Racing was entered with their 2013 Audi R8 LMS ultra and their regular two drivers: Akihiro Tsuzuki and Richard Lyons. They qualified very well by taking seventh place within the GT300 class. The final race result was twenty-first position and five laps down, after a race with many incidents.
The finale of the Japanese Super GT was held at Twin Ring Motegi this weekend, the eighth round of the year. Once again Hitotsuyama Racing was the only Audi R8 LMS ultra entrant with their 2013 Audi R8 LMS ultra entry. The #21 Audi was driven by their regular driver line-up of Akihiro Tsuzuki and Richard Lyons. It has been a difficult year for the team. They placed twenty-first during practice and qualified fifteenth within the GT300 class. The race itself saw the Hitotsuyama Racing team coming home for a twenty-first place finish. This event concluded the 2013 Super GT season, but many of the teams will be competing at the special non-championship event in November, the Fuji Sprint Cup.
Hitotsuyama Racing concluded their 2013 season at the JAF Grand Prix Fuji Sprint Cup this weekend, a special non-championship event for the Japanese Super GT and Super Formula. It has been a long and difficult season, but the team never gave up and that was the case again this weekend. As was the case during the bulk of the 2013 Super GT season, the sole Audi entry in the GT300 class this weekend was the #21 Audi R8 LMS ultra from Hitotsuyama Racing. Their regular two-man driver line-up of Akihiro Tsuzuki and Richard Lyons were behind the wheel. They had a season of ups and downs as they worked against bad luck and a negative Balance of Performance, but they never gave up and worked hard all season long, despite the setbacks. The Fuji Sprint Cup was split into two sprint races per category. Each car had two drivers and each driver took part in one of the two sprint races individually. The two Super GT classes were also split for the races, running GT500 and GT300 separately in the sprints. Qualifying was held on Friday, with each driver qualifying for his own respective race. In the Hitotsuyama Racing camp it was Richard Lyons in the R8 LMS ultra for the first race and Akihiro Tsuzuki took the wheel for race two. It was a difficult qualifying session which saw the R8 LMS ultra relegated to the rear of the field, as has been the case in Super GT all season long. Richard Lyons qualified nineteenth for the first race and Akihiro Tsuzuki qualified twenty-first for the second race. The first GT300 race got underway on Saturday morning. Hitotsuyama Racing pushed hard with Richard Lyons and the race concluded with the #21 Audi R8 LMS ultra having recovered up to thirteenth place by the finish, up from the nineteenth starting position. The second and final GT300 race concluded the JAF Grand Prix Fuji Sprint Cup weekend and the 2013 season for Hitotsuyama Racing. Akihiro Tsuzuki piloted the #21 R8 LMS ultra to nineteenth position.
2013 was a long and difficult season for Hitotsuyama Racing, but they never gave up and continued to give their all at every single event. It remains to be seen what the team’s plans are for 2014, following a post on their Facebook page on 4 November: “Thanks to our drivers Akihiro and Richard, mechanics, and everyone who supported us this season. We will be back with a new package next year. Please stay tuned.”
Hitotsuyama Racing concluded their 2013 season at the JAF Grand Prix Fuji Sprint Cup this weekend, a special non-championship event for the Japanese Super GT and Super Formula. It has been a long and difficult season, but the team never gave up and that was the case again this weekend.
As was the case during the bulk of the 2013 Super GT season, the sole Audi entry in the GT300 class this weekend was the #21 Audi R8 LMS ultra from Hitotsuyama Racing. Their regular two-man driver line-up of Akihiro Tsuzuki and Richard Lyons were behind the wheel. They had a season of ups and downs as they worked against bad luck and a negative Balance of Performance, but they never gave up and worked hard all season long, despite the setbacks.
The Fuji Sprint Cup was split into two sprint races per category. Each car had two drivers and each driver took part in one of the two sprint races individually. The two Super GT classes were also split for the races, running GT500 and GT300 separately in the sprints.
Qualifying was held on Friday, with each driver qualifying for his own respective race. In the Hitotsuyama Racing camp it was Richard Lyons in the R8 LMS ultra for the first race and Akihiro Tsuzuki took the wheel for race two.
It was a difficult qualifying session which saw the R8 LMS ultra relegated to the rear of the field, as has been the case in Super GT all season long. Richard Lyons qualified nineteenth for the first race and Akihiro Tsuzuki qualified twenty-first for the second race.
The first GT300 race got underway on Saturday morning. Hitotsuyama Racing pushed hard with Richard Lyons and the race concluded with the #21 Audi R8 LMS ultra having recovered up to thirteenth place by the finish, up from the nineteenth starting position. The first race was won by the #3 S Road Nissan GTR GT3 ahead of the #11 GAINER Mercedes-Benz SLS GT3 and the #55 ARTA Honda CR-Z.
The second and final GT300 race concluded the JAF Grand Prix Fuji Sprint Cup weekend and the 2013 season for Hitotsuyama Racing. Akihiro Tsuzuki piloted the #21 R8 LMS ultra to nineteenth position. The final race was won by the #2 Eva RT McLaren MP4-12C ahead of the #11 GAINER DIXCEL Mercedes-Benz SLS GT3 and the #4 GSR BMW Z4 GT3.
2013 was a long and difficult season for Hitotsuyama Racing, but they never gave up and continued to give their all at every single event. It remains to be seen what the team’s plans are for 2014, following a post on their Facebook page on 4 November: “Thanks to our drivers Akihiro and Richard, mechanics, and everyone who supported us this season. We will be back with a new package next year. Please stay tuned.”
The first GT300 race was held at the JAF Grand Prix Fuji Sprint Cup this morning, a special non-championship event for the Japanese Super GT and Super Formula. Richard Lyons was behind the wheel of the #21 Hitotsuyama Racing Audi R8 LMS ultra and he was able to recover following a difficult qualifying session.
As was the case during the bulk of the 2013 Super GT season, the sole Audi entry in the GT300 class this weekend is the #21 Audi R8 LMS ultra from Hitotsuyama Racing. Their regular two-man driver line-up of Akihiro Tsuzuki and Richard Lyons will be behind the wheel this weekend. They had a season of ups and downs as they worked against bad luck and a negative Balance of Performance, but they never gave up and worked hard all season long, despite the setbacks.
The Fuji Sprint Cup is split into two sprint races per category. Each car has two drivers and each driver will do one of the two sprint races individually. The two Super GT classes are also split for the races, running GT500 and GT300 separately in the sprints.
It was a difficult qualifying session which saw the R8 LMS ultra relegated to the rear of the field, as has been the case in Super GT all season long. Richard Lyons qualified nineteenth for the first race and Akihiro Tsuzuki qualified twenty-first for the second race.
The first GT300 race got underway on Saturday morning. Hitotsuyama Racing pushed hard with Richard Lyons and the race concluded with the #21 Audi R8 LMS ultra having recovered up to thirteenth place by the finish, up from the nineteenth starting position. The first race was won by the #3 S Road NDDP Nissan GTR GT3 ahead of the #11 GAINER DIXCEL Mercedes-Benz SLS GT3 and the #55 ARTA Honda CR-Z.
The second and final race is scheduled for tomorrow. We wish the best of luck to the Hitotsuyama Racing team and their drivers for the race on Sunday. Photo credit: Audi Sport Communication / Media
The JAF Grand Prix Fuji Sprint Cup is a special non-championship event for the Japanese Super GT and Super Formula. It is taking place this weekend and one Audi R8 LMS ultra team has entered the GT300 class of the Super GT.
As was the case during the bulk of the 2013 Super GT season, the sole Audi entry in the GT300 class this weekend is the #21 Audi R8 LMS ultra from Hitotsuyama Racing. Their regular two-man driver line-up of Akihiro Tsuzuki and Richard Lyons will be behind the wheel this weekend. They had a season of ups and downs as they worked against bad luck and a negative Balance of Performance, but they never gave up and worked hard all season long, despite the setbacks.
The Fuji Sprint Cup is split into two sprint races per category. Each car has two drivers and each driver will do one of the two sprint races individually. The two Super GT classes are also split for the races, running GT500 and GT300 separately in the sprints.
Qualifying was held on Friday, with each driver qualifying for his own respective race. In the Hitotsuyama Racing camp it will be Richard Lyons in the R8 LMS ultra for the first race and Akihiro Tsuzuki will take the wheel for race two.
It was a difficult qualifying session which saw the R8 LMS ultra relegated to the rear of the field, as has been the case in Super GT all season long. Richard Lyons qualified nineteenth for the first race and Akihiro Tsuzuki qualified twenty-first for the second race.
The two races are scheduled for Saturday and Sunday. We wish the best of luck to the Hitotsuyama Racing team and their drivers for the races this weekend.
Hitotsuyama Racing performed very well yesterday in Motegi qualifying. The only Audi team of the field was aiming high for this season finale. However the 250 km race today turned out to be a frustrating event.
Today's race at Twin Ring Motegi ended a very frustrating season for the team in Super GT. Bad luck but also a bad and penalizing Balance of Performance for the Audi R8 LMS ultra. Hitotsuyama Racing drivers are among the best of the field. Richard Lyons himself is clearly one the stars of Super GT combing both GT500 and GT300 classes. Yet the Japanese Audi Sport customer racing team suffred all season long and only in few times was able to fight fairly. That was the case in 2012 and nothing changed during the 2013 season. Hitotsuyama Racing finished in eighteenth place in the teams' standing. Akihiro Tsuzuki and Richard Lyons finished twenty-sixth overall in the drivers' standing.
Race victory in the GT300 class went to #11 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG from GAINER DIXCEL. Second the #16 Honda CR-Z from Mugen. Third the #61 Subaru BRZ from Subaru R&D Sport. The race results can be seen here.
It is unclear if the team will return to Super GT next year and if it will again be with an Audi or not, however we at the Audi Motorsport Blog want to congratulate Hitotsuyama Racing for their fighting spirit as they never gave up during 2013.
The Super GT is at Motegi this weekend, the season finale of the most prestigious Japanese motorsport series. A single Audi R8 LMS ultra is taking part in the event from Hitotsuyama Racing.
The qualifying session held today gave Hitotsuyama Racing some satisfactions. The #21 Audi R8 LMS ultra shared by Richard Lyons and Akihiro Tsuzuki ended in fifteenth place within the demanding GT300 class. Unlike the previous events, the ZENT backed Audi was not outpaced and was a second slower to the pole setting Subaru. With an improving car, Hitotsuyama Racing is aiming to conclude the 2013 season with strong performances and results in tomorrow's 250 km sprint event. Richard Lyons and Akihiro Tsuzuki will have to fight really hard against a top quality field from FIA GT3 cars and JAF GT300 cars.
Pole position in GT300 class went to the #61 Subaru BRZ from Subaru R&D Sport. Second the #11 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3 from GAINER DIXCEL. Third the #16 Honda CR-Z from team Mugen. Qualifying results can be seen here.
The Japanese Super GT held official test sessions at Twin Ring Motegi this week. Hitotsuyama Racing and their 2013 Audi R8 LMS ultra were joined by Oliver Jarvis.
Hitotsuyama Racing has been competing with a brand new 2013 Audi R8 LMS ultra in the Japanese Super GT this season. Their #21 entry has been driven by Akihiro Tsuzuki and Richard Lyons. It has proven to be a difficult season so far for the team.
The Super GT hosted four official sets of test days during the season. The fourth and final test was held at Twin Ring Motegi this week, held on Monday and Tuesday (16-17 September). Hitotsuyama Racing was joined by Audi Sport factory driver, Oliver Jarvis.
Jarvis, who has competed in Japan in the past, was included in the test to assist Hitotsuyama Racing. Audi Japan and Audi Sport customer racing made the decision to add Jarvis to the test day line-up, however it has been mentioned that Jarvis will not be competing in any of the Super GT races.
The first day of the test was cancelled due to severe weather conditions. The #21 Hitotsuyama Racing Audi R8 LMS ultra placed seventh in GT300 during the morning session on Tuesday and eleventh during the afternoon.
The next round of the Super GT will be held at Autopolis (Round 7) in October.
The Japanese Super GT hosted round six at Fuji Speedway this weekend. A difficult weekend turned into a very good race for Hitotsuyama Racing and their Audi R8 LMS ultra, but lady luck was not on their side.
The single 2013 Audi R8 LMS ultra from Hitotsuyama Racing was on the grid at Fuji. Their regular drivers were back in the car this weekend: Akihiro Tsuzuki and Richard Lyons.
It has proven to be a difficult 2013 season for the team and this continued in qualifying, as they qualified in twenty-fourth place within the GT300 class.
Despite coming from twenty-fourth on the grid, the team was able to move up through the field. They stormed into the top ten and got as high as eighth. Unfortunately lady luck did not smile upon the team, as a gearbox issue lost them time with only four laps to go. They ultimately finished thirteenth in GT300. The race was won by the #4 GSR BMW Z4 ahead of the #31 äpr Toyota Prius and the #86 Crystal Croco Lamborghini.
Round seven of the Super GT will be held at Autopolis in October. Photo credit:Hitotsuyama Racing / RacerLink
