Nissan Z NISMO GT500s shine in qualifying, secure point finishes at SUPER GT Round 7 Autopolis

• Nissan Z NISMO GT500s took first and second place in qualifying for SUPER GT Round 7 Autopolis

• Leading early on, they finished in sixth and seventh in what proved to be a tough race

• The team is fully committed to delivering their best at the final round next month

The seventh round of the 2025 SUPER GT Series was held at Autopolis in Oita Prefecture on Oct. 18-19. In qualifying, the #3 Niterra MOTUL Z (Daiki Sasaki/Atsushi Miyake) secured pole position, while the #23 MOTUL AUTECH Z (Katsumasa Chiyo/Mitsunori Takaboshi) took second place. Both cars started strongly in Sunday’s race, initially leading in a 1-2 formation. But their strategies did not align with the race developments and they fell behind, with the #23 Z ultimately finishing in 6th place and the #3 Z in 7th.

Detailed Race report

The three-hour race began beneath a blanket of heavy clouds. Starting in 1st and 2nd place respectively, Sasaki in the #3 Z and Takaboshi in the #23 Z initially maintained their positions and pulled away from the field. Starting in 5th place, Bertrand Baguette in the #12 Z made contact with another car at the first corner, causing it to spin out and allowing Baguette to take 4th. However, the #12 Z received a drive-through penalty for the contact. Meanwhile, Tsugio Matsuda in the #24 Z went from 9th place to 8th. On lap 12, the #24 Z made contact with a car and went off the track, sustaining damage that forced it to retire. This incident triggered a Full Course Yellow (FCY) and the safety car’s deployment. The #3 Z and #23 Z lost their gaps on the rest of the field, but when the race resumed on lap 17 they quickly regained their 1-2 formation.

On lap 25, as light rain began to fall in patches, the #23 Z dropped to third after being overtaken by a fast-charging competitor. On lap 28, the #3 Z relinquished its lead. Because it was a long race, the GT500 teams made their first pit stops strategically with a wider range of timing. On lap 29, the #23 Z went off track during a battle and pitted for repairs and a tire change. The #12 Z pitted at the end of lap 32 and the #3 Z at the end of lap 35, with both changing drivers. By the end of lap 41 — after all GT500 cars had completed their first routine pit stops — Miyake in the #3 Z was in 8th place, Takaboshi in the #23 Z held 9th and Kazuki Hiramine in the #12 Z was 13th.

After lap 50, the #3 Z and the #23 Z became embroiled in a four-way battle. On lap 51, three of the cars were side by side on the straight before the #23 Z moved up to 7th and the #3 Z to 8th. The #3 Z made its second pit stop at the end of lap 58, followed by the #23 Z at the end of lap 59, when Chiyo took over driving duties. By the end of lap 69, after all GT500 cars had completed their second routine pit stops, the #23 Z was in 6th place, the #3 Z in 7th and the #12 Z in 12th.

In the closing stages, the Nissan Z NISMO GT500 cars pushed hard to improve their positions, but struggled with tires and navigating GT300 traffic. Although they were aiming for victory, ultimately the #23 Z finished in 6th place, the #3 Z in 7th and the #12 Z in 11th, with two Nissan Z NISMO GT500s finishing in the points. Aiming to showcase their true potential and speed, the Nissan Z NISMO GT500s will give it their all two weeks later in the season finale — where they will compete without success ballast.

Driver comments

Katsumasa Chiyo (#23 MOTUL AUTECH Z):
“During my stint, the Full Course Yellow came out before I could get the tires up to temperature and unfortunately I lost a position at the restart. However, I was able to later regain my position, which was a plus. We came into this race aiming for victory, so the result is disappointing, but I will work hard with the team to secure a win in the final round.”

Mitsunori Takaboshi (#23 MOTUL AUTECH Z):
“I had a steering issue and limited engine map control during parts of the race, which made fuel and tire management a bit tough. After the steering was replaced in the second stint, our pace improved and I was able to catch up to the lead pack, so we made up for lost time. With no weight handicap in the next race and car improvements, I’ll push for a strong result.”

GT300 class

Four Nissan GT-R NISMO GT3s competed in the GT300 class. The #56 Realize Nissan Mechanic Challenge GT-R (Joao Paulo de Oliveira/Kohei Hirate), pushed hard and went from 14th place to 4th. The #62 HELM MOTORSPORTS GT-R (Yuya Hiraki/Reiji Hiraki) also finished in the points, taking 13th place.