Formula Nippon 2008 - Pre season news

[META4]

Seems like multi championship winner Satoshi Motoyama will leave Impul for Team LeMans in 2008

http://www.f-nippon.co.jp/cmsdesigne...ase_071226.pdf

[Mekola]

Better said: seems Motoyama will be back to Team LeMans, where he won his first F. Nippon championship exactly ten years ago.

[Monkey Head]

2007 Tom's F3 driver Hiroki Ishiura has confirmed as motoyama's teamate,a brand new line up for LeMans

and Toyota become series partner of the championship....

[META4]

Do we come back to a one make engine serie? Is Honda pulling out?

[Monkey Head]

Originally Posted by META4

Do we come back to a one make engine serie? Is Honda pulling out?

nono
Bridgestone and Honda has became series partner already
Toyota is third one

[META4]

Will IMPUL still run 4 cars? after the departure of Motoyama?

[Monkey Head]

ARTA has signed Takuya Izawa and leave Kaneshi to 5Zigen

[Mekola]

Wonder why Super Aguri (ARTA) is not running better on FN. Best days were during the late 1990s when they had Juichi Wakisaka and the other Kaneishi, Katsutomo, on their cars. Also had good times when a young Motoyama raced for them on early Nippon days (1996-97).

[Monkey Head]

TOM'S keeping their drivers:Lotterer and Ara,but title sponser changing from DHG to Petronas

[notguilty]

isnt nissan supplying engines this season? the Supergt rules changed to match the FNippon V8 engine rules. Wasnt this all done to save the manufactorers money. anyone know anything about this?

[Monkey Head]

Originally Posted by notguilty

isnt nissan supplying engines this season? the Supergt rules changed to match the FNippon V8 engine rules. Wasnt this all done to save the manufactorers money. anyone know anything about this?

It still in proposal which will happened in 2009 if it come true.

[notguilty]

awh ok my mistake thanks monkey head

[kerrmanningjarv]

Monkey Head, you seem to know quite a lot... do you know if Red Bull will still be entering a car in Formula Nippon in 2008?

I read that they offered the drive to Adrian Zaugg and Filipe Albuquerque, both of which turned it down, and I'm not sure if they will enter Formula Nippon in the end.

[Monkey Head]

IMPUL has dismissed Team B and keeping Matsuda and Treluyer in team.
title sponser changed to Lawson.

Dandelion has a all new line-up which from forigen drivers to local drivers
Kousuke Matsuura come back to Japan and Takeshi Tsuchiya signed as 2nd driver.

[Bezzen]

Originally Posted by Monkey Head

Dandelion has a all new line-up which from forigen drivers to local drivers Kousuke Matsuura come back to Japan and Takeshi Tsuchiya signed as 2nd driver.

I wonder if that means Wirdheim will be out of Nippons and will only be in Super GT this year. In the right team I think he'd do more than okay. He did score nearly all of Dandelion's points in the two years he raced for them (Björn 31.5 points - team mates 3).

[Monkey Head]

JP Olivera and Yokomizo will be the drivers of Kondo
which means INGING will change one driver at least....Streit?

[Monkey Head]

First Joint test of the year has started in Fuji.
15 cars on track and Treluyer is the fastest man of 1st day(18th Feb),Lotterer 2nd and Quintarelli 3rd.Last year champion Matsuda 6th fastest.

Other notable drives are Tachikawa switch from Cerumo to INGING,and Roberto Streit has filled his vacancy in Cerumo.Team IMPUL will operate three cars and Hirate going to drives this car.

Team LeMans 2nd driver Ishiura was sick yesterday so 41 years old Hattori(Retired) replace him in 1st day test session.All tests finished today and timing yet to be annouced....

[Alex K]

Are they all signed than?

[Valker]

There's an entry list online but only in Japanese... could someone translate names please?

[Monkey Head]

to Alex yes it is and entry list issued....

1 Tsugio Matsuda JPN LAWSON TEAM IMPUL TOYOTA
2 Benoit Treluyer FRA LAWSON TEAM IMPUL TOYOTA
3 Naoki Yokomizo JPN KONDO RACING TOYOTA
4 JP Olivera BRA KONDO RACING TOYOTA
5 Toshihiro KaneishiJPN SG team 5ZIGEN HONDA
6 Katsuyuki Hiranaka JPN SG team 5ZIGEN HONDA
7 Satoshi Motoyama JPN Team LeMans TOYOTA
8 Hiroki Ishiura JPN Team LeMans TOYOTA
20 Kohei Hirate JPN TEAM IMPUL TOYOTA
31 Loic Duval FRA PIAA NAKAJIMA HONDA
32 Takeshi Kogure JPN PIAA NAKAJIMA HONDA
36 Andre Lotterer GER PETRONAS TEAM TOM'S TOYOTA
37 Seiji Ara JPN PETRONAS TEAM TOM'S TOYOTA
40 Kosuoke Matsuura JPN DoCoMo DANDELION HONDA
41 Takashi Tschiya JPN DoCoMo DANDELION HONDA
47 Ronnie Quintarelli ITA CERUMO／INGING TOYOTA
48 Yuki Tachikawa JPN CERUMO／INGING TOYOTA
55 Yuji Ide JPN AUTOBACS RACING TEAM AGURI HONDA
56 Takuya Izawa JPN AUTOBACS RACING TEAM AGURI HONDA
67 Roberto Streit BRA STONEMARKET・BLAAK CERUMO／INGING TOYOTA

[META4]

Did TAKAGI retired from Racing?

[Monkey Head]

Originally Posted by META4

Did TAKAGI retired from Racing?

He has leave FN but still in Super GT,this year he will drive for SARD's SC430 with Macauese driver Andre Couto.

[kerrmanningjarv]

Looks like Red Bull gave up on entering a car after Adrian Zaugg and Filipe Albuquerque both said "no thanks" to the prospects of racing in Japan

[META4]

Originally Posted by kerrmanningjarv

Looks like Red Bull gave up on entering a car after Adrian Zaugg and Filipe Albuquerque both said "no thanks" to the prospects of racing in Japan

I do not think is because Zaugg and Albuquerque Denied to drive in Formula Nippon that they cancelled the project... there are plenty of drivers available to drive a Fully RedBull Backed car

[Alex K]

Did Zaugg and Albuquerque had any other options to give up on Formula Nippon, Albuquerque is looking at GT/PROTO in Europe and Zaugg does A1 GP and... no money for summer. It definitely must have been something else. Maybe that rumour with Red Bull investing in Japan was out of the blue, if though, why didn't they take one or two Japanese drivers, why didn't they invest in Super GT, which is one of the strongest, if not the strongest GT series in the world. Looking at Filipe and Adrian, they really didn't have choice other than stay with Red Bull...