GR Supra of # 90 Kawabata (Team TOYO TIRES Drift) doing a jump drift
The D1 Grand Prix, the world's first professional drift competition. The final round of this season, which is the 21st year, was held at the Ebisu Circuit South Course, the birthplace of D1. We followed Team TOYO TIRES Drift's No. 90 Kawabata and No. 66 Fujino at this tournament, which will be the total settlement for this year.
It was the last tournament of the Fukushima / Ebisu South Course
The Ebisu South Course was the first venue for the D1 Grand Prix in 2000 and has been held every year since then until this season. It is a place that can be said to be the sacred place of D1, and with the jump drift at the final corner of the specialty, it has been loved not only in Japan but also by drift fans around the world. However, this course will be closed this fall. I will explain the reason in the latter half of the article, but for Kawabata, the Ebisu South Course "There are various things such as taking the right of the D1 driver for the first time in the selection meeting. In that sense, I am indebted to you." Fujino also said, "Ebisu Minami crashes every time I run. On the other hand, I got good results, so it's the most memorable course. I think I'm finally used to this course. By the way, it's a shame, it's not a shame (laughs). It's complicated, "he said. An important tournament that will be the final look at the Ebisu South Course. I want to get good results and connect to next year. However…….
[Round 5 / Single run] Kawabata crash!Fujino passed in 7th place, winning Yokoi
The Ebisu Circuit on that day was sunny from the morning. The ticket was sold out due to the 50% admission limit due to Korona-ka, as it was held at the last Ebisu South Course. Many fans have been looking forward to the final Ebisu round since the morning. There are 27 participants. Of these, the top 16 single-runners can advance to the afternoon follow-up tournament, so you need to stay in that slot first. Judging from the practice run on the previous day and the situation on the day, it seems that if you enter the latter half of the 96 points, you will remain in 16th place.
Kawabata who challenges the first jump
Kawabata stops the car after hitting the wall
You can see that the right rear tire is facing outward
GR Supra receiving repairs on the right rear for the final race of the next day
The strength of the impact can be seen from the large scratches on the wheels and tire sides.
First of all, Kawabata's first run. This is where I want to get 96-97 points without mistakes. The timing of the jump drift intrusion was not good, and I hit the right rear on the pit wall after landing. I have retired here.
Fujino jumping the first run
Fujino heading to the second finish line
Fujino made a mistake in the first run and the score did not increase to 91.9. However, the second one is 97.58, which is a safe area. As a result, it was decided to pass 7th place.
Car 7 Matsui (Team RE Amemiya K & N)
Car No. 77 Matsuyama (FAT FIVE RACING)
Looking at the TOYO TIRES support driver, car No. 7 Matsui (Team RE Amemiya K & N), who specializes in the Ebisu South Course, passed second place at 99.13. Car No. 77 Matsuyama (FAT FIVE RACING) passed in 16th place.
Car No. 70 Yokoi (NANKANG TIRE DRIFT TEAM D-MAX)
The winner was one of the series champion candidates, car No. 70 Yokoi (NANKANG TIRE DRIFT TEAM D-MAX). The first run hit 99.22 to give the championship an edge. "It wasn't a perfect run, but I'm glad I got a good score. From practice, the times when I was in good condition and the times when I was in bad condition were extreme, and I changed the final of the gear ratio just before the actual performance. As a result, that is good. I went in the direction. "
[Round 5 / Follow-up] Fujino 11th, Suenaga (Nao) won the championship for the first time in 8 years!Champion decided by crash
The opponent of Fujino's best 16 races is car No. 79 Meguwa (alpinestars LINGLONG G-MEISTER) who has stepped up to D1GP this year. This season, Mokuwa is an opponent who has won the top prize several times and is not disappointed.
For Fujino, who runs smoothly in the first run ahead of Fujino, Meguwa got 104 points by adding the follow-up point of 8.5 and DOSS score of 96 from beginning to end. On the other hand, although Fujino attracts a run of 98 points, he said that he flew at the start, so he was able to make a big difference with 88 points, which is a 10 point deduction.
Fujino's second run couldn't catch up with Meguwa, who was faster than him, and he had only two points to follow after running 96 points. As a result, Fujino has been eliminated.
Looking at the series championship battle, the championship battle between car No. 99 Nakamura (MUGEN PLUS team ALIVE VALINO) and Yokoi was a turbulent event in which Yokoi was eliminated in the final eight. Nakamura will be the series champion if he can advance to the best four.
The important best 8 races. Nakamura's drift returned for a moment when he was ahead, and when he started again, Yokoi's teammate, Car No. 46 Suenaga (Masa), collided and Nakamura, who was pushed, crashed in front of the first corner. .. As a result of the deliberation, Suenaga lost the foul due to the road obstruction and pushing, and Nakamura won, and the 2021 series champion was decided.
Normally, Nakamura retires here, but the mechanic repairs the machine! As expected, I was eliminated in the best four races with Meguwa, but I still finished this round in 3rd place.
Car No. 9 Naoto Suenaga who wins and makes a guts pose (left photo)
The winner was car No. 9 Naoto Suenaga (LINGLONG TIRE DRIFT Team ORANGE). He won the championship for the first time in eight years. "I had a run of 75 points. I did my best in the first run, but when I heard that Meguwa was pretty good at it, I could see the belly of Meguwa's car when jumping. I was surprised when I got close to it, but I think I was able to pack it after that. "
Matsuyama's best 16 opponents are Yokoi
Matsui
Matsui, a TOYO TIRES support driver, finished the 5th round in 6th place and Matsuyama in 16th place.
