Round 6 at Fuji Speedway（4.563km）

 

・16 July: Qualifying – P12（1’38.435)

Weather: Rain  Temperature: 22℃　Track Conditions: Wet, 24℃

・17 July: Race – DNF

Weather: Fine  Temperature: 27℃　Track Conditions: Dry, 37℃

TEAM GOH’s car no. 55, Atsushi Miyake, was starting from 12^th on the grid on Sunday, 17^th July, at Round 6 of the 2022 All Japan Super Formula Championship, but was forced to retire after suffering considerable damage in a multi-car accident right at the start of the race.

 

◆Atsushi Miyake, Driver

“I knew right from Saturday’s Free Practice that the car’s performance was good, but due to several yellow and red flags in the wet qualifying I was not able to attack when I needed to and finished up with a totally unsatisfactory time which placed me 12^th on the grid.

 

Needless to say I was hoping the good feeling I had in the car during Free Practice would translate to the race and I would be able to move up from my lowly 12^th place and obtain a podium finish. However, that was not to come to fruition because unfortunately just after the start of the race, at turn 1, I caused a multiple collision which sadly forced me to retire.

Our next race is at Motegi, and that is a track where it is very difficult to overtake, so I need to prepare well in order to be able start from the front of the grid.”

◆Masashi Yamamoto, Team Director

“Miyake having to start from 12^th on the grid was caught up in an incident with multiple cars just after the start which caused damage to his front wing, the front control arm and the under panel of his car which resulted in his retirement.

 

But overall things are moving in the right direction, we just need to be more aggressive in order to get a rood result in our next round at Motegi.”

◆Shintaro Okajima, Engineer

“Being confronted with a wet FP1 in Fuji, we looked at the data from our wet set-up at Round 3 in Suzuka as well as the data from our opening round in Fuji where it had been dry, but where our performance had been very good. We raised the base set-up higher than we had previously had at the wet race in Suzuka and the findings were good in FP1.

 

Unfortunately in qualifying Miyake was unable to set a good time which disappointed me because I felt his 12^th position did not reflect the real performance of the car. On Sunday morning in FP2 we took the base setting we had used in the 2022 opening rounds at Fuji and added slightly to them which provided a good balance to the car for the race, consequently it was such a shame to retire right after the race start.

 

We have a two-race event ahead of us at the next round in Motegi so we now need to focus really hard on the second half of the season.”

Round 6 at Fuji Speedway（4.563km）

 

・16 July: Qualifying – P16 (1’39.860)

Weather: Rain  Temperature: 22℃　Track Conditions: Wet, 24℃

・17 July: Race – P6

Weather: Fine  Temperature: 27℃　Track Conditions: Dry, 37℃

Having started from 16^th on the grid in TEAM GOH’s car no. 53, Ren Sato enjoyed his third points scoring race of the season at Round 6 of the 2022 All Japan Super Formula Championship held at Fuji Speedway in Shizuoka Prefecture on Sunday, 17^th July. These were Sato’s first points since Round 3 in Suzuka, so his points tally for the season so far now stands at 10.

◆Ren Sato, Driver

“I believe I had a good race pace this weekend. I started 16^th on the grid, but was able to recover to finish 6^th in the race and certainly the timing of the Safety Car helped.

 

Unfortunately I made a mistake at the beginning of the race which left me with a tyre flat spot causing me to struggle in some areas, but I believe by improving a step at a time in order to avoid such errors I will be able to get even better results.

 

I will now focus on my own improvements and work with the team to prepare for our next round in Motegi so that I can aim for the podium.”

◆Masashi Yamamoto, Team Director

“It had been tough qualifying in the rain, but having started the race from 16^th position and by making good use of the Safety Car, Ren Sato was able to improve his position.

 

He flat spotted one of the tyres right after the start of the race which meant he had a problem with the balance of the car and he lost a few positions, but as a driver I asked him to do his best so that I could delay his pit stop which gave us a better strategy.

 

We had our sights on a 5^th place finish, but despite coming very close on the final lap, the overtake just didn’t happen although it was a very close call.

However, Ren Sato was able to climb up the grid from 16^th to 6^th and get some points which is not bad.”

◆Ryan Dingle, Engineer

“Due to a series of yellow and red flags caused by the wet conditions during qualifying, Ren Sato did not get the opportunity to properly attack when it mattered the most and that resulted in him dropping down to 16^th position.

 

On Sunday in FP2, barring one or two small changes, our base set-up was similar to the one we had used at Fuji in the opening two rounds of the Championship and it was generally agreed the feeling and performance of the car were not bad.

 

However, starting from 16^th position on Sunday in the race, in order to be competitive, we had to be fast on the straights which meant we had to reduce the downforce level we had used in FP2.

 

Flat spotting the tyre at the beginning of the race was a real pity because Ren lost a lot of time, but once the tyre recovered his pace was good and he was able to improve his position. Finishing 6^th was not what we were aiming for, but considering Ren had started in 16^th, it’s not bad.

 

For our next round at Motegi we will have to try more aggressive strategies right from the get-go in FP1; we have to aim for a high performance in order to get a podium finish.”