Nick Cassidy and team-mate Ryo Hirakawa will compete this weekend at the Fuji GT 300km race, the latest round of the 2017 Autobacs Super GT Series. Driving for the Lexus factory team, the Toyota luxury brand has dominated the season so far, winning all four rounds.
Heading into the second half of the series, Cassidy’s team is second on the points table after having led most of the season. The Super GT Series seeks to have an even playing field and therefore ‘penalises’ those who have success.
Cassidy’s Lexus carried a significant weight penalty heading into the last round that inhibited both their qualifying and race performances.
Still, they are just four points behind current leaders Kazuya Oshima and Andrea Caldarelli, also driving a Lexus RC500. The top four teams, all Lexus, will carry both physical ballast and restrictions on fuel flow that will deprive them of horsepower and give an advantage, or fair playing field, to the rest of the field.
Fuji Speedway is the home circuit for Toyota Motor Corporation and may become the venue where Lexus could make Super GT history with a fifth straight win. Their major threat comes from both the Honda NSX-GTs that have had a 15 kg weight reduction and the Nissan GT-Rs that now have an engine update.
Fellow Kiwi Jono Lester is competing in the GT300 class driving with Kyosuke Mineo for the Porsche Gulf Racing team. They are lying 12th on the points table.
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