6th Yokomo GT All Japan Championship Event Report

We held the Yokomo GT All-Japan Championship 2016, the final battle to decide the pinnacle of GT freaks nationwide. The venue was, of course, the sacred Yatabe Arena, where 85 elite drivers who fought their way through qualifying rounds at circuits across the country gathered to engage in heated battles across two categories: the Stock Class and the Open Class.

Concours d'Elegance

The following Open Class also had an A-Main field of 11, consisting of the top 9 from qualifying and the 2 who advanced. Although Yoshimitsu Yanagisawa was on a roll with a double entry, the person who put a stop to his TQ was none other than his older brother, Toshinobu Yanagisawa. Though the difference was slight, Toshinobu sprinted from the beginning of the final race and began to gradually pull away from second place and beyond. However, as Yoshimitsu—who displayed excellent consistency—caught up to Toshinobu, who slowed down slightly mid-race, it became a brotherly "tail-to-nose" battle. Satoshi Suzuki, Toshihiko Nimura, and Tsuyoshi Matsumoto followed, but the race became a one-on-one duel between the Yanagisawa brothers. As the race approached its final stages, Toshinobu made a costly mistake on the left-side switchback of the infield. Taking advantage of the opening, Yoshimitsu pulled into the lead and defended his position until the very end, achieving the first-ever sweep of both classes in history.

And so, the 2016 GT series concludes. At the opening ceremony, talks of holding the All-Japan Championship next season and developing new parts were already brought up, and it seems the motivation of GT freaks has been raised even further.

We would like to thank everyone who participated this season, as well as the retailers who cooperated with us. And, of course, we look forward to seeing you again next season.