Craft Bamboo continues championship fight in Okayama
Friday, June 26, 2015
Okayama, Japan, will play host to the second round of the 2015 GT Asia Series this weekend, where Craft-Bamboo Racing will be focused on building on their first round double podium. Both cars will be looking to achieve consistent results to help them close the small gap in the drivers’ and teams’ championship that was opened in South Korea. The #88 car of Richard Lyons and Frank Yu will be one to look out for, as Japanese GT champion, Lyons, should be devastatingly fast, given his years of winning experience at the circuit. The #99 sister car of Darryl O’Young and Jonathan Venter will be looking to maximize their points haul this weekend by fighting hard for another race win, proving they have what it takes in South Korea. As a team, both Craft-Bamboo cars will be looking to remain consistent, with the continued collection of points paramount to claiming this year’s championship title from such a strong field of teams and drivers.
All eyes will be on the team this weekend to see if they can claim another double win at the Japanese circuit as the unfortunate events of South Korea have left them with a gap to close in the championship. With a truly competitive field this year, their podium assault will not be easy and the team will be looking to make it a consistent weekend of results to set themselves up for the next five rounds.
Craft-Bamboo Racing has a successful history at Okayama, with Frank Yu and Stefan Mücke taking a double win back in 2013, and with the team fueled on by the tantalizingly close victories from both races, each car will be focused on outright victory this weekend which is sure to create some more fantastic action for Asia’s motorsport fans.
The Okayama International Circuit is a 3.703 km (2.301-mile) race track near Mimasaka, Okayama Prefecture, Japan and makes a return to the GT Asia Series calendar this year. This is a technical circuit with two long straights and 13 corners that mix hairpin bends and angular turns. The circuit has played host to major events such as the F1, Super GT and MFJ Superbike.
Practice for the second round of the GT Asia Series will begin on Friday, June 26th. Qualifying one will be held on Saturday, June 27th, 10:50-11:05 (GMT+9), with qualifying two held from 11:15-11:30 (GMT+9). Race one will also be held on Saturday, running from 15:10-16:00 (GMT +9). Race two will be held on Sunday, June 28th, 13:00-13:50 (GMT+9). A delayed broadcast of the event will be available from the GT Asia Series YouTube page, https://www.youtube.com/user/afosTV.
The pursuit of the GT Asia Championship Title would not be possible without the support of INTERUSH, Phytter, VLT, POAD, Gravity, Tunewear and FreeM.
Quotes
#88 Interush
Richard Lyons
"Okayama Circuit is a familiar venue for me as I have raced here annually from 2002 clocking up many podiums and wins in Super GT. Hopefully with this experience it should start us off on the right foot and help bag some podium finishes for the weekend."
Frank Yu
“The last time we raced in Okayama, Stefan Mucke and I had a double win and the series has continued to develop since then, with the competition much more competitive now. I know it’s going to be a tough race this weekend but we will be doing our best to chase another double win.”
#99 VLT
Darryl O’Young
“We were quite fortunate in Korea to come away with fourth place in the standings, even though we had a DNF in the first race. The gap to the leaders is not a small margin, so we need to focus on consistent results with two solid finishes in Okayama and most importantly taking the points, we are looking ahead to the overall championship this year and we are going to have to work hard for that.”
Jonathan Venter
“After a rather successful opening round at Korea, we know that the Craft-Bamboo Aston Martin is quick, even in this year’s strong GT Asia field, so we are coming into round two at Okayama with good confidence. The Aston has been very good so far on the Michelin tyres and suits the car well, allowing for some good pace previously in Korea, so hopefully we can take what we learnt and apply it to Okayama.”
“Darryl and I have formed a good combination and worked well together at Korea with good pace between us so it will be important for us to keep improving and adapting to the conditions to get the best results.”
Richard Coleman, CEO of Craft-Bamboo Racing
“We have proven in South Korea that we have the pace to win races but we have to remain consistent if we want to close the gap and remain at the top of the championship. Everyone knows how strong the competition is and we are going to have to fight this weekend, but we are aiming to come home but we are aiming to come home with top results for both cars.”
Source material and photo credits - Craft Bamboo Racing
