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30 JunCorse Clienti, Ferrari Challenge Japan, Suzuka 2024

Kim and Hiwatashi triumph in Race 2 at Suzuka

Suzuka 30 June 2024

In the second race held at Suzuka, in the fourth round of the Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli Japan, a total of 31 Ferrari 488 Challenge Evo cars participated. The race began under overcast skies and there were still some spots of water on the track from earlier rain during qualifying.

However, on the first lap's final turn, Tatsuya Minowa (Ferrari Japan) crashed, despite qualifying 3rd. This led to a red flag being waved and a lengthy break in the race, Yudai Uchida (Rosso Scuderia) of Trofeo Pirelli won pole-to-win.

When the race finally resumed with 16 minutes remaining, Motohiro Kotani (Cornes Osaka) emerged as the victor in Trofeo Pirelli Am. Phil Kim (Nicole Competizione) of Coppa Shell and Masafumi Hiwatashi (European Version) of Coppa Shell Am both claimed the win in their respective classes after starting from fourth place on the grid.

Trofeo Pirelli. In the rain-soaked qualifying session for Trofeo Pirelli class, Uchida claimed pole position while Akihiro Tsuzuki (Auto Speciale), a seasoned Super GT racer in a Ferrari, took second place. As the race began, Uchida and Tsuzuki started off strongly and engaged in a fierce battle from the first lap. However, Minowa in 3rd place, suffered a single crash on the final corner of the first lap, causing a red flag. When the race resumed, Uchida and Tsuzuki continued to fight closely, but Uchida crashed on the Spoon Curve on lap 10, ending the race with a red flag. The results were determined based on positions on the 9th lap, resulting in Uchida being crowned the class champion for the 6th consecutive time since round 2.

In the Trofeo Pirelli Am class, seven cars were entered. Kanji Yagura (Cornes Osaka) qualified on pole position for the first time this season, with Kotani in second place. This was a chance for Kotani to redeem himself after his qualifying performance in Race 1, where a red flag prevented him from setting a fast time. In the race, Kotani successfully overtook Yagura on the opening lap. Unfortunately, Yagura had to retire early due to a red flag. At the chequered flag Kotani took hist first win since last year's round 4 at Suzuka Circuit.

Coppa Shell. Eight cars competed in the Coppa Shell, with Tsutomu Shimoyama (Cornes Shiba) securing pole position for the third time this season. However, Kazutaka Miura (Auto Cavallino) made an impressive start from 2nd place and quickly took the lead. Kim, who qualified 4th in class, aggressively closed in on Miura and eventually overtook him to claim his second win in his debut season. Championship contender Yasutaka Shirasaki (Rosso Scuderia), who was leading the points standings, started from 3rd place but retired due to technical troubles after the first red flag.

In the Coppa Shell Am class Hiwatashi took his fourth win of the season.

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