BRZ wins Gymkhana event in Japan

[Spaceywilly]

http://www.subaru-msm.com/global/news/2012/12015.html

SUBARU BRZ gets its first victory in the world in an official motorsport event.
Double wins for Tetsuya Yamano and his brother Naoya in Round 2 of All Japan Gymkhana.
Apr 23, 2012


Round 2 of the All Japan Gymkhana took place on 22 April at TS Takata Circuit in Akitakata, Hiroshima, Japan, with the participation of the SUBARU BRZ driven by Tetsuya Yamano receiving the biggest attention. Expectations were high for the BRZ, with many fans and onlookers packing the paddock.

Yamano entered the PN2 class, which is for vehicles that are close to their production model. This class is for 2-wheel drive cars with a displacement higher than 1600cc: top cars in this class are Nissan Fairlady Z and Honda Civic Type R. Thinking about their performance and track record, those involved predicted that the BRZ would struggle, even with Yamano's driving skills, as it was the car's first race. However, Yamano has a lot of experience in similarly impossible situations, and he brings good luck. Rough weather was expected for the weekend in western Japan, and it looked like it could rain any time at TS Takata Circuit. An early start to the day would be an advantage, as classifications of gymkhana are determined after 2 runs of the day. Yamano got started before it began to rain on a track, with dry parts and puddles. The course featured many different sections with up and down hills in a series of corners. As tension was high because a mistake could mean time loss, the BRZ faired well with a high average speed. After completing his run without slowing down, Yamano came out on top at 1 minute 22 second 296, just 0.1 seconds faster than the second-placed driver.
“The BRZ was faster at mixed corners, taking advantage of its low centre of gravity. On the other hand, it found it difficult at stop-and-go places. I'll do my best for the second run too”, said Yamano. Then, intermittent showers turned into continuous rainfall, and gradually changed the colour of track surface. Yamano started his 2nd run in such conditions and was even faster than his 1st run by 0.38 seconds whereas his rivals lost time because of mistakes. He burst with joy as the final driver finished his run. Yamano won BRZ's debut race with a 0.46 second gap over the second-placed driver.

“On this course, there were many corners with lateral G force to turn on. And I've been always good at braking using ABS. Everything went well including the weather. I think this is the first win for the 86 and BRZ together in the world in an official race. I'm very happy to be the first to enjoy a win.“ His good luck rubbed off on to his younger brother who drove the WRX STI and also won his PN3 class. Actually, they picked up a win together in an event held at the same circuit last year. This was a remarkable achievement for them as they've done it for 2 consecutive years. In addition, Masaki Nishihara drove his WRX STI in SA3, a class for tuning cars, finishing 9th in the class.

More photos and full results at tune86
http://www.tune86.com/ft-86-news/193...tetsuya-yamano

[Bristecom]

Cool, it's .1 second faster than a Honda Civic! LOL...

[brewksy]

Good job Subaru! Great results coming in from actual track races

[ichitaka05]

Dude, IDK why, but I'm digging that color theme

on-topic, yay for the first win for 86/BRZ!!

[WhiteGDB]

I would throw these results out the window since the article seems to suggest that some drivers had to drive in the rain.

Edit: reread it and the BRZ driver was actually faster in his second run in the rain, but still sounds like some drivers had both runs during rain.

[Spaceywilly]

Originally Posted by WhiteGDB

I would throw these results out the window since the article seems to suggest that some drivers had to drive in the rain.

Edit: reread it and the BRZ driver was actually faster in his second run in the rain, but still sounds like some drivers had both runs during rain.

The BRZ's second run was in the rain

Then, intermittent showers turned into continuous rainfall, and gradually changed the colour of track surface. Yamano started his 2nd run in such conditions and was even faster than his 1st run by 0.38 seconds whereas his rivals lost time.

Damn ninja edit! I would think the Civic would have the advantage in the rain anyways.

[WhiteGDB]

Although I'm sure the twins will be competitive, this win sounds more like a driver's win than a chassis/vehicle win.

[brewksy]

Originally Posted by WhiteGDB

Although I'm sure the twins will be competitive, this win sounds more like a driver's win than a chassis/vehicle win.

Isn't every race a driver's win? Then again, to the uneducated public, if a faceless magazine races the cars somehow it can be regarded as absolute truth that driver had nothing to do with it.

This doesn't prove that it's faster than all of those cars - but it's definitely competitive with all of those cars. And that's a good thing

[Guff]

[WingsofWar]

What this article is telling me, is that the driver is more in control of the car than its other competitors and not saying that the BRZ/86 is a competitive car.

I have a feeling that racing in the BRZ was a more rewarding experience than driving a faster more equipped car, regardless of a win or lose.

[WhiteGDB]

Originally Posted by brewksy

Isn't every race a driver's win? Then again, to the uneducated public, if a faceless magazine races the cars somehow it can be regarded as absolute truth that driver had nothing to do with it.

This doesn't prove that it's faster than all of those cars - but it's definitely competitive with all of those cars. And that's a good thing

No, because if you're doing comparisons of different cars with the same driver, for example the Stig, the win would go to the better performing car. You may argue that it isn't a race then, but a comparison and I may say an autoX or time trials is just comparing who can post the best times in their car.

I'll only consider it a driver's win if it's wheel to wheel racing where a lot more strategy comes into play.

[ayau]

Originally Posted by WhiteGDB

No, because if you're doing comparisons of different cars with the same driver, for example the Stig, the win would go to the better performing car. You may argue that it isn't a race then, but a comparison and I may say an autoX or time trials is just comparing who can post the best times in their car.

there is no comparison when your subjects/tests don't have any benchmark.

[Draco-REX]

AutoX/Gymkhana and races like them are a measure of driver AND car. However, if the car sucked, it would't win. I'm pretty sure the top places have similar skills.

Also, it looks like the event is scored like AutoX here in the US, which is by fastest single run. So he won with his second run which was in the rain, beating 2nd and 3rd place which got their best times in their first run.

[DarkSunrise]

Can't read too much into a narrow victory. If we start seeing a trend of BRZs being competitive, that'll have some significance.