The second round of the Ferrari Challenge Asia Pacific ended today at Fuji Speedway International Circuit in Japan amidst hot and sunny weather. If the first race was dramatic, the second was equally exciting. Despite the fierce battle among the 13 drivers in the field, Nobuhiro Imada (Rosso Scuderia) repeated his win from Race 1, taking the Trofeo Pirelli AM classification while Kazuyuki Yamaguchi (Cornes Osaka) and Andrew Moon (FMK) win in their respective classes.
Trofeo Pirelli AM. Yudai Uchida of Rosso Scuderia took the pole position for Race 2 by only two hundredths on stable-mate Imada. What was poised to be a hard fought race became an easy sweep for Imada when Uchida suffered a power steering failure during lap 1. Imada’s dominant win allowed him to reopen the race for the Championship, while Uchida heroically drove without steering assistance to the checkered flag, securing second place.
Coppa Shell. Pole winner Motohiko Isozaki (Cornes Shiba) started strongly when the lights turned green. However, in the face of the chasing pack of Yamaguchi, Motohiro Kotani (Cornes Osaka) and Akita (Cornes Nagoya), Isozaki soon found himself falling behind. He tried valiantly to make his comeback but suffered a puncture at Turn 10 in the closing laps, putting him out of contention. In the meantime, Yamaguchi’s main strategy was to maintain his pace and stay behind the race leader, which worked as in the end he found himself at the top of the podium steps. Kotani could only settle for second position while AKITA came in third.
Moon finally found success in Race 2 after stepping on the third step of the podium in the first race of the Coppa Shell AM class. With a valiant race drive, he started in tenth position on the grid but managed to keep his composure to overtake two drivers and powered to victory. Shigeru Kamiue (European Version) finished second after a bold overtake on Masa Katsumata (Nicole Competizione), while Ryuichi Kunihiro (M Auto) settled for a third place finish.
Trofeo Pirelli standings. In the Trofeo Pirelli Am, Imada’s double triumph brings him just 2 points away from the table leader Uchida, with 59 points.
Coppa Shell standings. In the Coppa Shell, Kanji Yagura (Cornes Osaka) leads the standings with 60 points, following his win in Race 1. Only three points separate him from Yamaguchi with 57 points while AKITA is third with 41 points. In the Coppa Shell Am, Moon is in the lead thanks to his victory in Race 2, with 43 points, while Kunihiro is a close second with 42 points and in third place, Kamiue with 40 points.
Next Race. The third round of the Ferrari Challenge Asia Pacific takes place in Mugello Circuit from 7th to 9th October, 2022.