Finally, the moment we all have been waiting for - Japan Grand Touring Championship (JGTC) makes the debut in the U.S.
December 18, 2004. We're in Fontana, CA. The infield of California Speedway is packed with estimated 44,000 people. If you're an import fan, a car tuner, or just a plain and simple car enthusiast there's no place you'd rather be on this sunny, mid-seventies winter day. The first impression is that of a fair, or of a traveling circus. But the reality is far more pleasant. After-market companies from all over the country are putting their products on display. The infield is packed with rarities like STI's, GT-R's, and Sylvia's. You don't have to be enrolled in a racing school to compete in go-carts. You don't have to pay to try yourself in autocross. As long as you have a driver's license you can do any of those things while your kinds get an autograph and a smooching hung from Import Tuner models, attend the Super Street Car Show or the Car Audio and Electronics Audio Challenge. Of course, if this is all you came to Fontana for, you're a chode. Take a turn toward the garages and you will hear roaring engines of JGTC cars and that anime talk, yes, Japanese.
SCCA Pro Racing partnered up with JGTC to bring an exhibition event of the world's most advanced GT cars. JGTC features two classes, GT500 and GT300, based on horsepower. 10 out of 15 top GT500 and all but 3 of 15 top GT300 cars were in Fontana this weekend. Cars competing in JGTC are production cars such as Honda NSX's, Toyota Supra's, and Mazda RX-7's. 2004 also witnessed the arrival of Nissan 350Z as the company's flagship, replacing R34 Skyline GT-R. Another peculiar addition to the race is CUSCO Subaru ADVAN Impreza, a vehicle previously featured on the cover of Sport Compact Car Magazine. GT500 competitors included Xanavi NISMO 350Z, 2004 GT500 champion car of Satoshi Motoyama and Richard Lyons and Dynacity Tom's Supra V-8 of James Courtney and Tatsuya Kataoka, ranked 3rd after 2004 season. A move from N/A to forced induction also allowed three NSX's to move into top 7 in the GT500 class this year. A special feature from GT300 class was a custom production car ARTA Garaiya of Morio Nitta and Shinichi Takagi. Regardless of the class, all JGTC vehicles are super cars. At $1.5 million a pop, they feature full carbon fiber bodies, titanium frames, retractable jack-stands, etc., costing about three times as much as a WRC car.
The schedule for December 18th was rigorous. The 200-mile race was to take place only two hours after qualifying. In the GT500 class, NISMO 350Z qualified first, as expected, with best time of 1 min. 23.124 sec., averaging the speed of 158.927 km/h. It was followed by IMPUL 350Z and Dynacity Tom's V-8 Supra. In the GT300 class, ARTA Garaiya qualified first with lap time of 1 min. 29.190 sec. M-TEC NSX and C-WEST Z followed in second and thirst with 0.7 sec. intervals.
The Race
At 6:30 PM JGTC monsters lunched into 87 laps around a 2.3-mile track (the number of laps was increased from 75 due to last minute changes in the course). Each car had to take two mandatory pit stops, refuel and change all four tires each time. However, pit stops taken before lap 15 would not count toward satisfying this requirement. After two rolling laps the pace car cleared the way for a liftoff. Any fears of uneventful race were cleared by lap 10, as GT300 leader ARTA Garaiya suddenly came to a stop right in front of infield east stands. Garaiya suffered a drive-train problem and was towed to the pits during lap 14. Meanwhile, during lap 12, James Courtney in IMPUL 350Z attempted to overtake the leading NISMO 350Z, but bumped Dynacity Tom's V-8 Supra, sending it into a spin. In confusion, Takada DOME NSX running in fourth position collided with NISMO Z, destroying the Z's suspension and ending the race for both cars.
Exacerbating problems for those left unscathed during lap 12 was the appearance of the safety car on lap 14 due to Garaiya's tow. This signaled to many drivers a good time to pit. When the now lead IMPUL 350Z crossed the line on lap 15, many cars chose to pit, not realizing they were a lap short of completing mandatory 15 laps before the first stop stipulated by JGTC rules. These included PIAA NSX and Direzza Dunlop Supra.
For the remainder of GT500 race, PIAA NSX, HASEMI 350Z, and Dunlop Supra battled vigorously for first place. Thanks to yellow flag on lap 68, the 350Z driver Toshihiro Kaneishi managed to skillfully pit stop without losing his position. The three cars crossed the finish line with PIAA NSX in first, HASEMI 350Z in second, and Dunlop Supra Running in third. However, both NSX and Supra got penalized for pitting before the completion of lap 15, yielding 1st place to HASEMI 350Z.
After the breakdown of ARTA Garaiya, the battle for the podium in GT300 class was left up to C-West 350Z, AMEMIYA Mazda Rx7, and M-TEC NSX. The 350Z committed the same mistake as PIAA NSX and Direzza Dunlop Supra of GT500, not only losing the lead to the Rx7, but also earning a 60 sec. penalty. However, the triumph of the AMEMIYA Mazda was short lived, as on lap 55 it was ran off the road by ADVAN Viper, slamming into the concrete divider. With the Rx7 gone, the victory went to M-TEC NSX. C-West 350Z finished second and CUSCO Subaru ADVAN Impreza finished third.
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