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This is another work of fiction, but based on my current running in the Suzuka 1000km. I will be updating this post as the race goes along.
Have I got a story to tell you. It all started when I was in the garage, changing the oil on my dad's Acura RSX Type S. When suddenly, my mom came out in and yelled forme for the phone. When I got on the line, all I could hear was japanese, so we couldn't communicate. Eventually, a translator got on and told me the man who was speaking was Naosuke Ohshawa, the owner of Toyota Team Cerumo. He eventully told me he wanted me to drive their au CERUMO Supra in the upcoming Suzuka 1000km endurance race. I agreed on driving, so he told me to get packed for a trip to Japan.
I arrived in Osaka, Japan to be greeted by the team waiting at the baggage claim. I got my stuff and before I knew it we on the team trailer heading to Suzuka. On the ride, I met Mr. Ohshawa and the othe drivers, Tora Takagi and our pit crew. Unfortunately, none of them spoke a lick of english and I only knew one Japanese word, so I didn't know how we were going to communicate during practice and the race. Fortunately, we got a translator to help us so the time at the track would be way easier.
We arrived at Suzuka Circuit for our first practice and saw the possible lineup in Saturday's race.
1. Nissan Calsonic Skyline '93
2. ABT Audi TT-R Touring Car '02
3. Mercedes CLK Touring Car '00
4. 2000 Ford Falcon XR8
5. Mazda RX-8 Concept LM '01
6. Toyota au CERUMO Supra '01
We were fastest in practice, with a lap time of 1:55.09. With that, we thought we could get the pole in Saturday's qualifying. We went to bed that night with that in mind.
Qualifying / Race Day
This was it, it was time to get pole position for today's race. Unfortunately, there were earthequake tremors recorded throughout the Suzuka area, so we didn't get to qualify and many of the teams left to be filled with new teams. So there was a whole new lineup set out for us for today's race.
THE LINEUP
1. Ford Credit Racing - 2000 Ford Falcon XR8#5 - Glenn Seton, Steve Johnson
2. Alfa Romeo DTM team - Alfa Romeo 155 touring car '93#8 - Heinz Harald Frentzen, Renoldo Capello
3. Honda Team Mugen - Honda LOCTITE Mugen NSX '01#1 - Seiji Ara, Takuma Sato
4. Opel Team Phoenix - Opel Astra Touring Car '00#7 - Klaus Ludwig, Tom Kristensen
5. Mazda Gran Turismo Racing - Mazda RX-7 LM Race Car '01#10 - Shinichi Yamaji, Hiroyuki Iiri
6. Toyota Team Cerumo - Toyota au CERUMO Supra '01#38 - Tom G., Tora Takagi
3...2...1...GO! The race was underway with me behind the wheel of the Supra. I slowly worked my up to the front, finally passing the V8 Supercar Falcon at the hairpin after the crossover. I went until lap 11, which would turn out to be my personal pit window. Eventually, Takagi got in the car around lap 21, and he was able to stretch out our pit window to 13 laps, pitting again at lap 35. He soon put the second place RX-7 a lap down and put everyone behind 2 to three laps down. He pitted again on lap 48 and remained in the car, when I thought I was getting back in. This upset me, but Mr. Ohshawa's translator told me I would be getting back in at Takagi's next pitstop. Takagi came in at lap 62 and I was back in the car. First thing I noticed was the horsepower was decreasing hence my laptimes being slower than at the beginning. Despite that, I managed to put Iiri and Yamaji 3 laps down, put Frentzen and Capello 7 laps down, and put the other 3 cars 4 laps down during my stint. I came in for my next driver change at lap 84, with Takagi getting back in. On his way out, Glenn Seton managed to regain a lap. It wasn't until lap 89 at the casio triangle that Takagi managed to put Seton back down to 5 laps, and on lap 96, Takagi put Kristensen's Astra 5 laps down as well. Takagi headed to the pits on lap 98 and I was told to get ready , for the next time Takagi heads to the pits, I would be getting back in the car. In the meantime, Takagi put Seton and Jackson 6 laps down, and was on the brink of putting Ara and Sato 5 laps down. He eventually did on lap 111. Takagi came into the pits at lap 113, which was supposed to be a driver change. However, he was told to stay in the car, as I was not feeling well at that point. It was probably too much sushi and eggrolls at dinner at that Asian resturaunt last night. Despite this, I told Mr. Ohshawa I would be ready at Takagi's next pitstop. In the meantime, Takagi contiuned to extend our lead, lapping the Alfa twice, first on lap 116, then again on lap 124, and was close to putting Yamaji and Iiri 4 laps down. Alas, he would not be able to put them down by the time he got to the pits on lap 139. At that time, I got back in the car, somewhat recovered from my upset stomach. during my stint I was able to lap the entire field at least once, but I lapped the Alfa tiwce in one stint. However, I still felt queasy, so I opted for Takagi to get back in on my next pitstop on lap 140. On that pitstop, Takagi got more fuel than he asked for, so Mr. Ohshawa gave the pit crew an earful for that. Despite getting a heavy fuel load, Takagi stayed cool, lapping Seton's XR8 for the seventh time, lapping the Alfa for the eleventh time, and eventually lapped him a twelveth time on lap 150. Takagi made his next pitstop on lap 155. This time, the crew didn't give him too much fuel, and he went back out, still maintaing his lead over the RX-7. 155 laps done, 18 laps to go. We all hoped nothing would happen as Takagi continued to extend his lead. Would he hold on for the win? Lap 159, he continues to lead the way, driving smoothly and steadily, but we can only pray that something wouldn't break or he wouldn't get caught in an accident or anything that could danger our chances of winning. At this point I was fully recovered from my upset stomach, but it was Takagi's job to bring home the win. I recognized this and stayed out of the car for the remainder of the race. 8 laps to go. The light at the end of tunnel is getting close. We were about to win the Suzuka 1000km and I was about to make history as the youngest driver ever to win at this event. I had butterflies in my stomach thinking about how big this would be to my family. On lap 169, Takagi came in for the final pitstop of the race. He got a splash of fuel, four tires, and he was on his way to bring home the win. At this point, we could all exhale a deep breath, but I was too excited to relax, as I was about to be the youngest driver ever to win this event. 2 laps to go for us and the celebration was about to begin. White Flag...FINAL LAP! It was getting loud inside the pits. The whole team was about to celebrate. Into the Casio Triangle goes Takagi! Victory is ours! One victory lap later and the podium celebration began. My family came up to me during the celebration and congratulated me. There would be a huge celebration for the team back at the hotel. In conclusion, this was an amazing race. The celebration was awesome. It all just adds up.
FINAL STANDINGS
1. Toyota au CERUMO Supra '01
2. Mazda RX-7 LM Race Car '01
3. Honda LOCTITE Mugen NSX '01
4. Opel Astra Touring Car '00
5. 2000 Ford Falcon XR8
6. Alfa Romeo 155 Touring Car '93
Have I got a story to tell you. It all started when I was in the garage, changing the oil on my dad's Acura RSX Type S. When suddenly, my mom came out in and yelled forme for the phone. When I got on the line, all I could hear was japanese, so we couldn't communicate. Eventually, a translator got on and told me the man who was speaking was Naosuke Ohshawa, the owner of Toyota Team Cerumo. He eventully told me he wanted me to drive their au CERUMO Supra in the upcoming Suzuka 1000km endurance race. I agreed on driving, so he told me to get packed for a trip to Japan.
I arrived in Osaka, Japan to be greeted by the team waiting at the baggage claim. I got my stuff and before I knew it we on the team trailer heading to Suzuka. On the ride, I met Mr. Ohshawa and the othe drivers, Tora Takagi and our pit crew. Unfortunately, none of them spoke a lick of english and I only knew one Japanese word, so I didn't know how we were going to communicate during practice and the race. Fortunately, we got a translator to help us so the time at the track would be way easier.
We arrived at Suzuka Circuit for our first practice and saw the possible lineup in Saturday's race.
1. Nissan Calsonic Skyline '93
2. ABT Audi TT-R Touring Car '02
3. Mercedes CLK Touring Car '00
4. 2000 Ford Falcon XR8
5. Mazda RX-8 Concept LM '01
6. Toyota au CERUMO Supra '01
We were fastest in practice, with a lap time of 1:55.09. With that, we thought we could get the pole in Saturday's qualifying. We went to bed that night with that in mind.
Qualifying / Race Day
This was it, it was time to get pole position for today's race. Unfortunately, there were earthequake tremors recorded throughout the Suzuka area, so we didn't get to qualify and many of the teams left to be filled with new teams. So there was a whole new lineup set out for us for today's race.
THE LINEUP
1. Ford Credit Racing - 2000 Ford Falcon XR8#5 - Glenn Seton, Steve Johnson
2. Alfa Romeo DTM team - Alfa Romeo 155 touring car '93#8 - Heinz Harald Frentzen, Renoldo Capello
3. Honda Team Mugen - Honda LOCTITE Mugen NSX '01#1 - Seiji Ara, Takuma Sato
4. Opel Team Phoenix - Opel Astra Touring Car '00#7 - Klaus Ludwig, Tom Kristensen
5. Mazda Gran Turismo Racing - Mazda RX-7 LM Race Car '01#10 - Shinichi Yamaji, Hiroyuki Iiri
6. Toyota Team Cerumo - Toyota au CERUMO Supra '01#38 - Tom G., Tora Takagi
3...2...1...GO! The race was underway with me behind the wheel of the Supra. I slowly worked my up to the front, finally passing the V8 Supercar Falcon at the hairpin after the crossover. I went until lap 11, which would turn out to be my personal pit window. Eventually, Takagi got in the car around lap 21, and he was able to stretch out our pit window to 13 laps, pitting again at lap 35. He soon put the second place RX-7 a lap down and put everyone behind 2 to three laps down. He pitted again on lap 48 and remained in the car, when I thought I was getting back in. This upset me, but Mr. Ohshawa's translator told me I would be getting back in at Takagi's next pitstop. Takagi came in at lap 62 and I was back in the car. First thing I noticed was the horsepower was decreasing hence my laptimes being slower than at the beginning. Despite that, I managed to put Iiri and Yamaji 3 laps down, put Frentzen and Capello 7 laps down, and put the other 3 cars 4 laps down during my stint. I came in for my next driver change at lap 84, with Takagi getting back in. On his way out, Glenn Seton managed to regain a lap. It wasn't until lap 89 at the casio triangle that Takagi managed to put Seton back down to 5 laps, and on lap 96, Takagi put Kristensen's Astra 5 laps down as well. Takagi headed to the pits on lap 98 and I was told to get ready , for the next time Takagi heads to the pits, I would be getting back in the car. In the meantime, Takagi put Seton and Jackson 6 laps down, and was on the brink of putting Ara and Sato 5 laps down. He eventually did on lap 111. Takagi came into the pits at lap 113, which was supposed to be a driver change. However, he was told to stay in the car, as I was not feeling well at that point. It was probably too much sushi and eggrolls at dinner at that Asian resturaunt last night. Despite this, I told Mr. Ohshawa I would be ready at Takagi's next pitstop. In the meantime, Takagi contiuned to extend our lead, lapping the Alfa twice, first on lap 116, then again on lap 124, and was close to putting Yamaji and Iiri 4 laps down. Alas, he would not be able to put them down by the time he got to the pits on lap 139. At that time, I got back in the car, somewhat recovered from my upset stomach. during my stint I was able to lap the entire field at least once, but I lapped the Alfa tiwce in one stint. However, I still felt queasy, so I opted for Takagi to get back in on my next pitstop on lap 140. On that pitstop, Takagi got more fuel than he asked for, so Mr. Ohshawa gave the pit crew an earful for that. Despite getting a heavy fuel load, Takagi stayed cool, lapping Seton's XR8 for the seventh time, lapping the Alfa for the eleventh time, and eventually lapped him a twelveth time on lap 150. Takagi made his next pitstop on lap 155. This time, the crew didn't give him too much fuel, and he went back out, still maintaing his lead over the RX-7. 155 laps done, 18 laps to go. We all hoped nothing would happen as Takagi continued to extend his lead. Would he hold on for the win? Lap 159, he continues to lead the way, driving smoothly and steadily, but we can only pray that something wouldn't break or he wouldn't get caught in an accident or anything that could danger our chances of winning. At this point I was fully recovered from my upset stomach, but it was Takagi's job to bring home the win. I recognized this and stayed out of the car for the remainder of the race. 8 laps to go. The light at the end of tunnel is getting close. We were about to win the Suzuka 1000km and I was about to make history as the youngest driver ever to win at this event. I had butterflies in my stomach thinking about how big this would be to my family. On lap 169, Takagi came in for the final pitstop of the race. He got a splash of fuel, four tires, and he was on his way to bring home the win. At this point, we could all exhale a deep breath, but I was too excited to relax, as I was about to be the youngest driver ever to win this event. 2 laps to go for us and the celebration was about to begin. White Flag...FINAL LAP! It was getting loud inside the pits. The whole team was about to celebrate. Into the Casio Triangle goes Takagi! Victory is ours! One victory lap later and the podium celebration began. My family came up to me during the celebration and congratulated me. There would be a huge celebration for the team back at the hotel. In conclusion, this was an amazing race. The celebration was awesome. It all just adds up.
FINAL STANDINGS
1. Toyota au CERUMO Supra '01
2. Mazda RX-7 LM Race Car '01
3. Honda LOCTITE Mugen NSX '01
4. Opel Astra Touring Car '00
5. 2000 Ford Falcon XR8
6. Alfa Romeo 155 Touring Car '93
