From what I heard, it was an atypically hot weekend for Hokkaido, the northern part of Japan famous for decent, mid-70-degree summers. But considering that it was atypical for me to even experience that type of weather, heat wasn't much of a factor. Before this trip, my last international flight was in 1992, the same year my uncle took me to my first-ever strip club back in the Philippines. Add that with being the low man on the Super Street totem pole, which means I rarely get to see the more interesting side of the Pacific Ocean, and Hokkaido's blazing heat was a welcoming experience.The world-famous JGTC series race that came with the heat wasn't bad either. Witnessing NSXs, Supras, Celicas, and the rest of the JGTC field rocket past me and battle it out for the first time on the 2.1-mile Tokachi International Speedway while I stood trackside, and then partying with the same teams afterward amid a horde of drunkards in Hokkaido's seediest red-light district, the whole weekend undoubtedly ranks as number one on my list of Best Trips That I Have Very Little Recollection Of.Practice, qualifying, and the race itself were mnemonically blurred with photographer Boyd's rendition of "Sweet Child O' Mine" in high-definition karaoke; my near-overdose experience as a result of consuming raw whale, sake, and countless obscure drinks the hostess at the hostess bar was pouring me; and aimlessly walking the streets five hours before the start of the race with a forty of Pocari Sweat in my hands. And, all of a sudden, here I am expected to write everything about Round 4 of the JGTC. So please bear with me as I tap into the part of my brain that has memory duty and give you Round 4 as I remember it best, which may or may not include anything factual.
GT500
During Saturday qualifying, Erik Comas and Toshiro Kaneishi, drivers of the number 3 G'Zox SSR Fairlady Z, raced their way to the pole position with a 1:14.136 quick lap, an amazing feat seeing that Comas hasn't achieved a pole position since 1995 at Fuji. Said Comas, "I dedicate this pole to my girlfriend because today is her birthday." I assumed she was expecting something more shiny and tangible, but who was I to talk when the best gift I've ever given my girl was New Edition's Heartbreak LP.Close behind and sharing front row with the G'Zox SSR Fairlady Z was Benoit Treluyer and Yuji Ide, the team behind the number 12 Impul Z with a close 1:14.190 lap time. Nissan, not the type of manufacturer to disappoint, rounded out the top three with Michael Krumm and Masami Kageyama, drivers of the number 22 Motul Pitwork Z.Race day started out with a blistering 86-degree heat that didn't help my hangover go away. Thankfully, the race matured into 89 laps of pure rubber-to-rubber frenzy that helped me from throwing up the libations from the previous night. From the start, Comas, who drove the first 43 laps after giving it to his partner in crime, built a comfortable gap between him and the rest of the field. In fact, the fastest lap of the day (1:15.517) came from Comas and the G'Zox SSR Fairlady Z during lap 5. And while he was sprinting away and building a 10-second gap, the field behind him was in complete disarray, as the number 25 Eclipse Advan Supra collided with the number 39 Denso Supra, sending it to the last spot.
However, Comas and the team lost crucial time in the pits during lap 44 as he had problems switching seats with Kaneishi, forcing them to Second place as they rolled out of pit lane. This costly error also allowed the Motul Pitwork Z driven by Krumm to take over the First place spot, which he didn't let go of until he was raising the champagne bottle and the victory cup.