Lotterer wins Formula Nippon round at Fuji Speedway17/07/2011
Fuji Speedway, Shizuoka Pref, Japan
2011 Formula Nippon Round 3
Round three of the Japanese championship Formula Nippon took place at the Fuji Speedway on 17 July in front of 15,800 spectators. Andre Lotterer who was absent from the second round, came back to the series in Fuji by taking the lead on the second lap, going on to win. Kohei Hirate finished in second, with Kazuki Nakajima third.
Qualifying
Qualifying was during the morning on race day, with the knock out system deciding the grid line-up for the afternoon. JP de Oliveira claimed pole, as Lotterer came in second, with Nakajima qualifying third.
Race
Air temperature increased in the afternoon and track temperature was over 50 degrees Celsius when the race started. JP de Oliveira led from the start, followed by Lotterer but then the German driver overtook the Brazilian on just the second lap. It was compulsory for all drivers to make two pit stops, changing all tyres. Lotterer held his position after his stops, but de Oliveira lost time during his first pit stop, then working his way back up to fourth by the end of the race. Hirate had a good race to finish second and tried to close the gap on Lotterer, although the German driver was just out of reach. Nakajima made a bad start which took him down to sixth position, but he pitted early allowing him to climb up to third place. It was his third consecutive podium finish.
Winning Driver
Andre Lotterer: “I was absent in round two and I am really happy to win my come back race here in Fuji. It was the race we planned and thanks to the team the car was perfect. Thank you to Toyota and Bridgestone.”
Bridgestone senior technical advisor: Yasuo Teranishi
“It was a perfect race for Lotterer and Tom’s team; the performance of the whole team made it happen. Conditions were hard on the tyres as the track temperatures were over 50 degrees Celsius but the Bridgestones provided a highly competitive race.”
