Tsuboi and Yamashita Deliver TOM’S Victory in SUPER GT Okayama Opener

Toyota’s one-two finish points to an early edge over Honda’s new Prelude-GT.

Overview

Defending GT500 champions Sho Tsuboi and Kenta Yamashita won Sunday’s 82-lap season opener at Okayama after Tsuboi passed Rikuto Kobayashi soon after the pit stops.
The TOM’S Toyota pulled away to win by just under 20 seconds, with Kobayashi and pole-sitter Toshiki Oyu securing second for a Toyota GR Supra one-two.
Team Impul’s Nissan Z of Bertrand Baguette and Kazuki Hiramine climbed from seventh on the grid to finish third, while Rookie Racing’s Nirei Fukuzumi and Kazuya Oshima took fourth.
Honda’s Prelude-GT debut topped out at sixth for ARTA’s No. 16 as Real Racing’s early lead for the marque faded to 10th, and the repaired No. 8 ARTA entry finished just outside the points after its qualifying crash.
In GT300, D’station’s Tomonobu Fujii and Charlie Fagg converted pole in the Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo to a clear win, and Daniil Kvyat marked his series debut with sixth for JLOC’s Lamborghini.