2014 Japanese Super GT

[J Jay]

Congratulations to Quintarelli/Matsuda and Taniguchi/Katoaka!

Edit - GT500 was something of a rout once J.P. de Crashiveira had had his way (is it just me, or is this guy a bit too aggressive? He seems to be punting himself & others off every time I watch him), but GT300 was a very tight affair for the championship, The Hatsune Miku Z4 just holding off the #21 R8 to finish 3rd and win the title from the Gainer SLS on countback, despite the Gainer running away with it.

[divxx]

Wow, I think Quintarelli is now in a 4-way tie for most SGT championships isn't he? With Motoyama/Wakisaka/Tachikawa. Kind of came out of nowhere, and those other guys are coming to the end of their careers.

[MagVanisher]

I'm surprised that the GAINER SLS lead the class with just a lap. Still, it's not enough to beat Goodsmile Racing Z4!

[divxx]

The leading #23 Nissan had lapped all the GT300 except the #11, hence it completed one lap more than the rest; the SLS did not lap all its competitors. This happens a lot in SGT, and the RLM guys didn't catch it either.

[J Jay]

Originally Posted by divxx

Wow, I think Quintarelli is now in a 4-way tie for most SGT championships isn't he? With Motoyama/Wakisaka/Tachikawa. Kind of came out of nowhere, and those other guys are coming to the end of their careers.

First non-Japanese driver to do it, yeah you're right. The fact he's won 3 in four years makes it more remarkable. IMO it's this guy that should be first in the LMP1 car (definitely ahead of J.P. anyway), although with the importance of SGT to the domestic market perhaps he's just too vital to shift for now.

[Beryl]

Originally Posted by divxx

The leading #23 Nissan had lapped all the GT300 except the #11, hence it completed one lap more than the rest; the SLS did not lap all its competitors. This happens a lot in SGT, and the RLM guys didn't catch it either.

Indeed the #23 was between the Gainer and the Prius at the end. The gap between the two GT300 leaders was around 30 seconds.

Good race, fairly ho hum overall with dominant victories from pole, but the Wakisaka-Krumm-Izawa scrap was a real highlight.

The commentary was much improved too. RLM was a little confused at the start (pre-race procedure/misidentifying the support pits as the actual pits), but once the race started, they were good.

If they do cover the entire season next year (which I hope they do!), one thing I hope they add to their broadcasts would be to present background information and history on the teams and drivers to the English speaking audience, particularly for those that are new to the championship. For example, if the camera is on Daisuke Ito, things worth mentioning would be his 2007 GT500 championship alongside Firman at ARTA (the year of the dominant Honda NSX, the good old days) and how he piloted the Dome P1 at LM in 2008. Something to let the newcomers appreciate what the championship is and where it came from.

[divxx]

I wonder if the JAF officials were even aware of RLM doing this English broadcast, or was it all NISMO? They've improved a lot, but if they could get in touch with the fellow who does the text translations and posts it to YT things could get better.

[MagVanisher]

I'm hoping that the JAF/GTA would noticed RLM and Nismo's efforts as well, which will lead a full coverage of next year's Super GT season with live timing and stream by JSports.

[TheNo1F1Fan]

This is the Top 5 driver ranking so far in GT500...
1: Matsuda / Quintarelli (81 pts)
2: Ito / Caldarelli (79 pts)
3: Rossiter (69 pts)
4: Yamamoto (64 pts)
5: either Yasuda / Oliveira or Nakajima (60 pts)

[Beryl]

Hear hear. I think it goes without saying how much better such a broadcast could be with a clean audio track without the Japanese commentary. It's probably the best NISMO could acquire for now, but it would be great to have English commentary without sacrificing properly hearing the sound of the cars.

Originally Posted by divxx

They've improved a lot, but if they could get in touch with the fellow who does the text translations and posts it to YT things could get better.

Those translations are fantastic. It's the little things they add that make the whole experience better. For instance, they explained that the GTA implemented a warm-up/parade lap before the formation lap this year so that the Gt500 cars would have ample opportunity to warm up their carbon brakes, which require more heat (600-1000C) than the previous steel units. It's something I never would have picked up without them. Also, knowing about penalty details and understanding pit reports about mechanical troubles was greatly appreciated. They're great. Despite watching that fantastic wet Fuji race this year live, I just had to rewatch the race with subtitles and unsurprisingly the experience was considerably better.

[Japanese Samurai]

GTA and SRO have agreed to establish BoP original with GT300 class.
SRO determines three kinds of tables according to the characteristic of the Japanese circuit.
http://supergt.net/news/single/14856

[AkioAsakura95]

Originally Posted by MagVanisher

I'm surprised that the GAINER SLS lead the class with just a lap. Still, it's not enough to beat Goodsmile Racing Z4!

Then which team do they get the number (#0) for the next year of SUPER GT

[AkioAsakura95]

Originally Posted by Japanese Samurai

GTA and SRO have agreed to establish BoP original with GT300 class.
SRO determines three kinds of tables according to the characteristic of the Japanese circuit.
http://supergt.net/news/single/14856

Which three kinds of tables do SRO have according to the characteristic of the Japanese circuit ??

[TheNo1F1Fan]

Originally Posted by AkioAsakura95

Then which team do they get the number (#0) for the next year of SUPER GT

Goodsmile Racing should get it because they're the series champion.

[AkioAsakura95]

Originally Posted by TheNo1F1Fan

Goodsmile Racing should get it because they're the series champion.

Which one is the most important one Driver Championship or Team Championship for the Series Champion??

Can I get the suitable reason of it??

[J Jay]

Originally Posted by divxx

They've improved a lot, but if they could get in touch with the fellow who does the text translations and posts it to YT things could get better.

You mean dbagtbag, who posts here quite a bit? Perhaps you could send the message on behalf of RLM

I think it's a case of familiarity, on which point the J-Sport commentators have RLM beat obviously. The superb translations also bring out the humour that would otherwise have been lost. I remember one overtake at Fuji that went something like:

"He [the driver] is probably thinking, "There's no way he's going round the outside," then he sees the car on his right and he's like, "Wait, wtf...""

Unfortunately I wouldn't be surprised to find out that JAF know nothing about this. It looks like Nissan's own doing, with a bit of a push from Hindhaugh & Collins who have both expressed previous interest in covering SGT.

[MagVanisher]

I have the same sentiments as you, J Jay. Even so, I think the JAF (as well as Mr. Bandoh and GTA) should realize that their series is being shown around the world thanks to Nismo and Radio Le Mans. Instead of closing it down, they should open up to the global market.

With that said, a good finale to the 2014 Super GT series with #23 MOTUL AUTECH GT-R and #4 Hatsune Miku Z4 winning the championship!

[Deleted]

Bit surprising champs. But enjoyable race, particularly the NSX / RC-F / GT-R scrap for the final podium position towards the end was fantastic.

Superb from Nissan & RLM to organize this, like many really hoping for continuation next year. Even if in current format. I doubt JSports would have anything to do with it (as MagVanisher suggests above) as there's no reason for them to do that. It's still very domestic championship to the core, and that includes PR...

[AkioAsakura95]

Originally Posted by MagVanisher

I have the same sentiments as you, J Jay. Even so, I think the JAF (as well as Mr. Bandoh and GTA) should realize that their series is being shown around the world thanks to Nismo and Radio Le Mans. Instead of closing it down, they should open up to the global market.

With that said, a good finale to the 2014 Super GT series with #23 MOTUL AUTECH GT-R and #4 Hatsune Miku Z4 winning the championship!

@MagVanisher

Can I ask you which team do they get the number (#0) for the next year of SUPER GT and which one is the most important one Driver Championship or Team Championship for the Series Champion??

Can I get the suitable reason of it??

[MagVanisher]

@AkioAsakura95

Sorry for not answering that question as I have little knowledge about the series regarding machine numbers. However, TheNo1F1Fan has an idea on the 2015 Super GT thread.

It's either GAINER or Goodsmile Racing that will have the #0, but I think the former will get it.

[AkioAsakura95]

Originally Posted by MagVanisher

@AkioAsakura95

Sorry for not answering that question as I have little knowledge about the series regarding machine numbers. However, TheNo1F1Fan has an idea on the 2015 Super GT thread.

It's either GAINER or Goodsmile Racing that will have the #0, but I think the former will get it.

Thanks., But I have the idea of it.
In my opinion, GSR (Goodsmile Racing) would be get the number #0 due to the driver championship.

See in 2008 SUPER GT GT500 champion is (#23) Nismo but the Team Champion is (#36) Petronas Tom's

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_GT
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2008_Super_GT_season
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2009_Super_GT_season

[Deleted]

Personally I never really cared for driver championships in sportscars and manufacturer / team standings are the only things that truly matter, but I don't know which one gets the biggest PR in this series.

[J Jay]

Originally Posted by Chiana

I doubt JSports would have anything to do with it (as MagVanisher suggests above) as there's no reason for them to do that. It's still very domestic championship to the core, and that includes PR...

Yeah, despite the moves towards collaboration with DTM (but even this was driven by a need for cost reduction) it is all rather too insular, an observation that can be made about a lot of things Japanese.

It's a bit disappointing to see that the videogame-based interest hasn't been passed on to JAF either - surely they would have realized by now that because of the success of the likes of Gran Turismo there is growing interest outside of Japan.

[Deleted]

Originally Posted by J Jay

Yeah, despite the moves towards collaboration with DTM (but even this was driven by a need for cost reduction) it is all rather too insular, an observation that can be made about a lot of things Japanese.

It's a bit disappointing to see that the videogame-based interest hasn't been passed on to JAF either - surely they would have realized by now that because of the success of the likes of Gran Turismo there is growing interest outside of Japan.

Indeedy. But then again I'm sure if the demand is sufficient enough to increase international PR too heavily, apart from these kind of cheap streaming-RLM tricks.

Think this interview piece with GTA's CEO from September tells something about it as well

“The culture between the two countries is different. Germans work a lot on the marketing side and promotion, which is not the case in Japan. GTA has proposed to use Super GT as a marketing tool but manufacturers want to spend their resources in the development of the cars.

[ss_collins]

Unfortunately I wouldn't be surprised to find out that JAF know nothing about this. It looks like Nissan's own doing, with a bit of a push from Hindhaugh & Collins who have both expressed previous interest in covering SGT.

I wish I could take credit but its NISMO's doing. Though GTA are fully aware of it, I was talking about it with Bandoh last month at Fuji.