Mixed emotions as D'Station Racing AMR leave Thailand empty handed

After a significant amount of investment by the team and its stakeholders looking into every aspect of their racing performances so far, D'Station Racing AMR were hopeful of a good points finish as the Japanese Super GT Series made its way over to Thailand for the Chang Super GT Race from Buriram at the weekend.

For the team of the #7 Aston Martin Racing V8 Vantage GT3, everything was looking promising as drivers JP de Oliveira and Tmonobu Fuji brought the car back second fastest in Free Practice before Qualifying on the second row (P3) of the GT300 grid ahead of Sundays sixty six lap race.


With de Oliveira taking the start for the team, it was clear that the car had the pace to at least maintain its track position in class in the opening laps of the race with the passing GT500 cars giving rise for opportunist moves. Not being able to make any head way against the class leading Realize GT-R car, Oliveira was at least able to take the Hoppy Racing car for P2 by lap twenty and that extended to an overall class lead by the time the leading #56 car pitted ahead of the halfway point.

A Safety Car for the effects of three tangling GT500 cars temporally delayed the stop for the #7 car before Fujii re-emerged P5 in class by the time all the GT300 cars had made their stop after the race went back to green on lap forty three.


Pushing between P4 and P5, Fujii remained in racing contact with three of the cars ahead giving the potential of an exciting last few laps but that was all dashed on lap 60 when debris on track left the #7 car with a rear right puncture right at the worst position of the lap - in the first sector leaving the Japanese driver a slow and painful return to the pits for repairs. By the time he had reached pit lane the car had already dropped to P15 and that dropped again to P19 by the time it re-joined the track for the last couple of laps.



Utterly devastating for the team to have come so far in performance improvement only for a stray piece of track debris to let it all come crashing back down to zero again. They do however take confidence from their performances on track and will be ready again as the Series returns to the Japanese mainland for round five at Fuji - the endurance round in early August.


Photo credits - D'Station Racing AMR