Three Nissan Z NISMO GT500 cars secure valuable points at Motegi

The 8th round of the 2024 SUPER GT series took place at Mobility Resort Motegi on November 3.

Heavy rain hampered efforts by the teams to find a good rhythm during official practice and qualifying; however, the Nissan Z NISMO GT500 teams fought valiantly throughout the 300 km race, with three cars securing positions inside the top ten.

The #3 Niterra Motul Z (Mitsunori Takaboshi/Atsushi Miyake) finished in 7th place, the #24 Realize Corporation Advan Z (Tsugio Matsuda/Teppei Natori) secured 8th, and the #23 Motul Autech Z (Katsumasa Chiyo/ Ronnie Quintarelli) took 9th.

Detailed race report

After two formation laps, the 300 km race got underway with the #12 Z in 10th position, the #3 Z in 11th, the #23 Z in 13th, and the #24 Z in 14th. By lap 11, the #24 Z had climbed to 9th, escaping a crowded field following trouble among the leading cars. As the race reached its midpoint, the #3 Z was in 10th, the #12 Z in 11th, and the #23 Z in 13th position.

After 21 laps, the minimum required laps each driver must compete, the GT500 class pit stops began. Both the #3 Z and #24 Z pitted on lap 22, completing the routine tasks of driver changes, refueling and tire changes. On the following lap (lap 23), the #12 Z and #23 Z also pitted and rejoined the race.

By lap 25, all GT500 cars had finished their pit stops, with Miyake in the #3 Z in 8th place, Hiramine in the #12 Z in 10th, Matsuda in the #24 Z in 11th, and Chiyo in the #23 Z in 13th, as they began their quest for higher positions. The #12 Z advanced swiftly, overtaking cars on laps 37 and 38 to move up to 8th.

Towards the end of the race, the battle for 6th place intensified among seven cars, with all four Z cars engaged in a close contest. In the fierce competition, with some of the leading cars falling back, the standings by lap 53 saw the #12 Z in 7th, the #3 Z in 8th, the #24 Z in 9th and the #23 Z in 10th, placing all four Nissan Z NISMO GT500s in the points as the race neared its end. However, on lap 60, just four laps before the checkered flag, the #12 Z made an emergency pit stop for refueling. The race concluded with the #3 Z finishing in 7th, the #24 Z in 8th, the #23 Z in 9th and the #12 Z in 11th.

Despite challenging conditions, with a dry race following a rainy qualifying, the teams turned in a solid performance, and three cars finished in the top 10, securing valuable points.

The Nissan/NISMO teams now turn their focus to victory at the final round scheduled for Suzuka Circuit, a track where they have previously achieved success.

Mitsunori Takaboshi (#3 Niterra Motul Z)
"To be honest, I think we lacked speed. We’ll analyze the data closely and identify the issues as a team. For the final round at Suzuka, we have data from winter testing, so we can go in with confidence. Please keep cheering us on!"

Atsushi Miyake (#3 Niterra Motul Z)
"Motegi is a difficult circuit for overtaking, and starting from the back due to the results of the qualifiers made it a tough race week. I tried my best to secure points during my long stint, but it was hard to climb up in position. Suzuka will be a fair fight without any weight handicap, and since it’s my home track, I want to give a strong performance and wrap up the season on a positive note."

GT300 Class
In the GT300 class, four Nissan GT-R NISMO GT3 cars and one GTA GT300 regulation Fairlady Z competed. Starting from 21st in qualifying, the #56 Realize Nissan Mechanic Challenge GT-R (Daiki Sasaki/Joao Paulo de Oliveira) put up a strong fight and finished in 8th place.