1998 All Japan Grand Touring Car Championship

(Redirected from 1998 JGTC season)

The 1998 All Japan Grand Touring Car Championship was the sixth season of Japan Automobile Federation GT premiere racing. It was marked as well as the sixteenth season of a JAF-sanctioned sports car racing championship dating back to the All Japan Sports Prototype Championship. The GT500 class champion was the #23 Pennzoil NISMO Nissan Skyline GT-R driven by Érik Comas and Masami Kageyama, and the GT300 class champion was the #25 Team Taisan Jr with Tsuchiya MR2 driven by Keiichi Suzuki and Shingo Tachi, who won a record five championship races, plus the post-season all-star race, giving them a total of six wins in 1998.

The season was marred by a horrific crash at the All Japan Fuji GT Race on May 3, 1998, when Ferrari Club of Japan driver Tetsuya Ota lost control of his Ferrari F355 in heavy rain and fog, and crashed into the stationary Porsche 911 of Tomohiko Sunako. Ota's car erupted into flames upon impact, and fellow racer Shinichi Yamaji rushed to extinguish the fire. Ota suffered severe burns and nerve damage that would force him to retire from full-time racing. Sunako suffered a broken leg, but would continue to race in the series later on.

1998 also saw the first GT500 class victory for Honda, at the Japan Special GT Cup at Fuji Speedway.

Drivers and teams

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GT500

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Team Make Car Engine No. Drivers Tyre Rounds
Nismo Nissan Nissan Skyline GT-R Nissan RB26DETT 2.7 L Twin Turbo I6 2   Masahiko Kageyama B All
  Aguri Suzuki 1, 3–7, NC
  Pedro de la Rosa 2
23   Masami Kageyama All
  Érik Comas 1, 3–7, NC
  Ralph Firman 2
Hasemi Motorsport Nissan Nissan Skyline GT-R Nissan RB26DETT 2.7 L Twin Turbo I6 3   Masahiro Hasemi B All
  Tetsuya Tanaka All
Team 5ZIGEN Toyota Toyota Supra Toyota 3S-GT 2.0 L Turbo I4 5   Marc Goossens D All
  Yasutaka Hinoi 1–3
  Eiichi Tajima 4–7
INGING Toyota Toyota Supra Toyota 3S-GT 2.0 L Turbo I4 6   Shinichi Takagi B All
  Pierre-Henri Raphanel 1, 3–7
  Anders Olofsson 2
Team Power Craft Toyota Toyota Supra Toyota 3S-GT 2.0 L Turbo I4 8   Wayne Gardner B 1–4, 6–7
  Minoru Tanaka 1–4, 6–7
Calsonic Team Impul Nissan Nissan Skyline GT-R Nissan RB26DETT 2.7 L Twin Turbo I6 12   Takuya Kurosawa B All
  Kazuyoshi Hoshino 1, 3–7, NC
  Michael Krumm 2
Endless Sports Nissan Nissan Skyline GT-R Nissan RB26DETT 2.7 L Twin Turbo I6 13   Mitsuhiro Kinoshita Y All
  Mitsuo Fujimura All
Castrol Mugen Honda Honda NSX Honda C32B 3.5 L V6 16   Ryo Michigami B All
  Osamu Nakako All
Dome Racing Team Honda Honda NSX Honda C32B 3.5 L V6 18   Katsutomo Kaneishi B All
  Katsumi Yamamoto 1–5
  Juichi Wakisaka 6–7, NC
Team Take One Porsche Porsche 993 GT2 Porsche M64/81 3.6 L Twin Turbo F6 30   Hideki Okada B All
  Yoji Yamada All
Toyota Team TOM'S Toyota Toyota Supra Toyota 3S-GT 2.0 L Turbo I4 36   Masanori Sekiya D All
  Norberto Fontana All
37   Toshio Suzuki All
  Kelvin Burt All
Toyota Team Cerumo Toyota Toyota Supra Toyota 3S-GT 2.0 L Turbo I4 38   Hironori Takeuchi B All
  Hideki Noda All
Denso Toyota Team SARD Toyota Toyota Supra Toyota 3S-GT 2.0 L Turbo I4 39   Keiichi Tsuchiya Y All
  Tatsuya Tanigawa All
Autobacs Racing Team Aguri Nissan Nissan Skyline GT-R Nissan RB26DETT 2.7 L Twin Turbo I6 50   Takeshi Tsuchiya B All
  Satoshi Motoyama 1, 3–7, NC
  Hiroki Katoh 2
Team Taisan Advan Chrysler Chrysler Viper GTS-R Chrysler Viper 8.0 L V10 55   Hideshi Matsuda Y 1–2, 4, 7, NC
  Eiichi Tajima 1–2
  Fuminori Mizuno [ja] 4
  Anthony Reid 7
  Mitsuhiro Kinoshita NC
Mobil 1 Nakajima Racing Honda Honda NSX Honda C32B 3.5 L V6 64   Tom Coronel B All
  Koji Yamanishi 1–2, 4–7, NC
  Koji Sato [ja] 3
JLOC Corsa Lamborghini Lamborghini Diablo GT-1 Lamborghini L532 6.0 L V12 88   Naohiro Furuya D All
  Hisashi Wada All
Lamborghini Diablo Jota 777   Takao Wada 2, 4–5, 7
  Masami Sugiyama 2, 4–5, 7
Kenji Kawagoe Porsche Porsche 993 GT2 Porsche M64/81 3.6 L Twin Turbo F6 89   Kenji Kawagoe D 2
  Toshikazu Kanamori 2
Raybrig Team Kunimitsu with Mooncraft Honda Honda NSX Honda C32B 3.5 L V6 100   Kunimitsu Takahashi B All
  Akira Iida All

GT300

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Team Make Car Engine No. Drivers Tyre Rounds
RE Amemiya Racing Mazda Mazda RX-7 Mazda RE20B 2.0 L 3-rotor 7   Shinichi Yamaji D All
  Haruhiko Matsumoto [ja] All
Team Daikokuya Porsche Porsche 993 RSR Porsche M64/80 3.8 L F6 9   Shuroku Sasaki [ja] D 1–2
  Tsunefumi Hioki 1, 3
  Yukihiro Hane 3–5, 7
  Naohiro Kawano 4–5, 7
  Hideaki Ichimura 2
99   Tsunefumi Hioki 5–6
  Kiichi Takahashi 5
  Akira Yoshitomi 6
Ability Motorsport Porsche Porsche 993 GT2 Porsche M64/82 3.6 L Turbo F6 10   Hidehiko Aso D All
  Akira Ishikawa [ja] All
M Factory Racing Club Nissan Nissan Skyline GTS-R (HR31) Nissan SR20DET 2.0 L Turbo I4 11   Hiromoto Ishimori B 2, 4
  Kazuo Miura 2, 4
Xanavi Racing with Nismo Jr. Nissan Nissan Silvia (S14) Nissan SR20DET 2.0 L Turbo I4 15   Masahiko Kondo B All
  Takayuki Aoki All
Kageisen Racing Team Mazda Mazda Roadster (NA) Mazda RE13B 1.3 L 2-rotor 17   Toshihiko Nogami [ja] D 1–2, 4–5, 7
  Tomoyuki Hosono 1, 4
  Masaaki Nagashima 2, 5, 7
Racing Project Bandoh Toyota Toyota Celica Toyota 3S-GE 2.0 L I4 19   Manabu Orido Y 4–7
  Max Angelelli 4–6
  Katsumi Yamamoto 7
Hitotsuyama Racing BMW BMW M3 (E36) BMW S14 2.2 L Turbo I4 21   Hiroki Katoh D 1, 3–7
  Yasushi Hitotsuyama [ja] 1–2, 4, 7
  Mikio Hitotsuyama [ja] 3, 5–6
  Takayuki Kinoshita 2
Hirano Motorsport Nissan Nissan Skyline GTS-i (R32) Nissan RB20DET 2.0 L Turbo I6 24   Toshiyuki Hirano Y 2, 4
  Teruhiko Someba 2, 4
Team Taisan Jr. with Tsuchiya Toyota Toyota MR2 Toyota 3S-GTE 2.0 L Turbo I4 25   Keiichi Suzuki Y All
  Shingo Tachi All
Team Ferrari Club of Japan Ferrari Ferrari F355 GT Ferrari F129B 3.5 L V8 27   Tetsuya Ota Y 1–2
  Anders Olofsson 1
  Steven Andskär 2
28   Masahiro Yamazaki 2–3
  Hiroaki Suga 5
A'PEX Toyota Toyota MR2 Toyota 3S-GTE 2.0 L Turbo I4 44   Morio Nitta D All
  Shota Mizuno 1–3
  Peter Dumbreck 4–7
Cobra Racing Team Porsche Porsche 993 RSR Porsche M64/80 3.8 L F6 51   Katsunori Iketani Y All
  Seiichi Sodeyama 1
  Masamitsu Ishihara 2–5, 7
  "OSAMU" 6
KRAFT Toyota Toyota Cavalier Toyota 3S-GE 2.0 L I4 60   Kumi Sato [ja] D All
  Masaoki Nagashima [ja] 1
  Junko Mihara 2
  Akira Watanabe 3–7
Team Taeivon Ralliart Mitsubishi Mitsubishi FTO Mitsubishi 4G63 2.0 L Turbo I4 61   Akihiko Nakaya T All
  Takahiko Hara All
Team Gaikokuya Porsche Porsche 993 GT2 Porsche M64/81 3.6 L Turbo F6 70   Yoshimi Ishibashi Y All
  Patrick van Schoote All
SigmaTec Racing Team Porsche Porsche 993 GT2 Porsche M64/81 3.6 L Turbo F6 71   Kaoru Hoshino D All
  Masaki Jyonai All
Okura Rotary Racing Mazda Mazda RX-7 Mazda RE20B 2.0 L 3-rotor 72   Mark Porter Y 3–7
  Yoshimi Katayama 3–4
  Isao Hirano 5–7
Cusco Racing Subaru Subaru Impreza WRX STI Subaru EJ20 2.0 L Turbo F4 77   Katsuo Kobayashi Y All
  Hideyuki Tamamoto All
NAC West Nissan Nissan Silvia (S13) Nissan FJ20DET 2.0 L Turbo I4 79   Masanori Sugiyama Y 2, 4
  Hiroyasu Aoyagi 2, 4
Team Daishin Nissan Nissan Silvia (S14) Nissan SR20DET 2.0 L Turbo I4 81   Hideo Fukuyama D All
  Nobuyuki Oyagi [ja] All
First Racing Team Toyota Toyota MR2 Toyota 3S-GTE 2.0 L Turbo I4 91   Masahiro Matsunaga Y 1–3
  Yasuhisa Fujiwara 1–3
Toyota Celica   Masahiro Matsunaga 4–7
  Yasuhisa Fujiwara 4–7
Alta Racing Team Mazda Mazda RX-7 Mazda RE20B 2.0 L 3-rotor 117   Toshihiro Fukazawa Y 2, 4–5, 7
  Tetsuo Kozai 2, 4–5, 7
NSX Dream28 Competition Honda Honda NSX Honda C32B 3.5 L V6 280   Hajime Oshiro Y 4
  Mamoru Suzuki 4
Yellow Magic Ferrari Ferrari F355 Ferrari F129B 3.6 L V8 355   Hiroaki Suga Y 4–5, 7
  Takayuki Ohi [ja] 4
  Tatsuyuki Fujiwara 5
  Seiichi Sodeyama 7
910 Racing Porsche Porsche 993 RSR Porsche M64/80 3.8 L F6 910   Atsushi Yogo [ja] D All
  Tomohiko Sunako 1–2
  Shogo Kobayashi [ja] 3–4
  Takayuki Kinoshita 5–7
911   Kiichi Takahashi 1–4, 7
  Shogo Kobayashi 1
  Kazushige Saito 2–3, 7
  Hirotaka Nakajima 4

Schedule

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Round Race Circuit Date
1 Suzuka GT 300   Suzuka Circuit March 22
2 All Japan Fuji GT Race   Fuji Speedway May 3
3 HiLand GT Championship   Sendai Hi-Land Raceway June 28
4 Japan Special GT-Cup   Fuji Speedway August 9
5 Motegi GT Championship Race   Twin Ring Motegi September 13
6 CP Mine GT Race   Mine Circuit October 11
7 SUGO GT Championship   Sportsland SUGO October 25
NC Nicos Cup GT Allstar Race   TI Circuit November 15

Season results

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Round Circuit GT500 Winning Team GT300 Winning Team
GT500 Winning Drivers GT300 Winning Drivers
1 Suzuka Circuit #23 Pennzoil NISMO GT-R #25 Team Taisan Jr with Tsuchiya MR-2
  Masami Kageyama
  Érik Comas
  Keiichi Suzuki
  Shingo Tachi
- Mt. Fuji Race abandoned because of crash at start and subsequent fog.[1]
2 Sendai #23 Pennzoil NISMO GT-R #25 Team Taisan Jr with Tsuchiya MR-2
  Masami Kageyama
  Érik Comas
  Keiichi Suzuki
  Shingo Tachi
3 Mt. Fuji #64 Mobil 1 Nakajima Racing Honda NSX #25 Team Taisan Jr with Tsuchiya MR-2
  Tom Coronel
  Koji Yamanishi
  Keiichi Suzuki
  Shingo Tachi
4 Twin Ring Motegi #16 Castrol Mugen Honda NSX #77 Cusco Subaru Impreza
  Ryo Michigami
  Osamu Nakako
  Katsuo Kobayashi
  Hideyuki Tamamoto
5 Mine Circuit #100 Team Kunimitsu Honda NSX #25 Team Taisan Jr with Tsuchiya MR-2
  Kunimitsu Takahashi
  Akira Iida
  Keiichi Suzuki
  Shingo Tachi
6 Sportsland SUGO #16 Castrol Mugen Honda NSX #25 Team Taisan Jr with Tsuchiya MR-2
  Ryo Michigami
  Osamu Nakako
  Keiichi Suzuki
  Shingo Tachi
NC TI Circuit #64 Mobil 1 Nakajima Racing Honda NSX #25 Team Taisan Jr with Tsuchiya MR-2
  Tom Coronel
  Koji Yamanishi
  Keiichi Suzuki
  Shingo Tachi

Point Ranking

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GT500

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Drivers

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Rank No. Driver SUZ FUJ SEN FUJ MOT MIN SUG TAI Points
1 23 Masami Kageyama 1 6C 1 10 4 4 6 10 67
1 23 Érik Comas 1 1 10 4 4 6 10 67
2 64 Koji Yamanishi 2 1C 1 16Ret 2 19DNS 1 50
2 64 Tom Coronel 2 1C 19Ret 1 16Ret 2 19DNS 1 50
3 12 Kazuyoshi Hoshino 11 5 3 2 7 4 4 49
3 12 Takuya Kurosawa 11 10C 5 3 2 7 4 5 49
4 16 Osamu Nakako

Ryo Michigami

17Ret 9C 18Ret 5 1 11 1 7 48
5 3 Masahiro Hasemi

Tetsuya Tanaka

5 11C 14Ret 2 8 8 5 4 37
6 39 Keiichi Tsuchiya

Tatsuya Tanigawa

3 15C 4 9 14Ret 3 14Ret 3 36
7 36 Masanori Sekiya

Norberto Fontana

6 3C 3 8 3 16 15Ret 13Ret 33
8 2 Aguri Suzuki 18Ret 2 7 11 5 9 12Ret 29
8 2 Masahiko Kageyama 18Ret 5C 2 7 11 5 9 12Ret 29
9 37 Toshio Suzuki

Kelvin Burt

7 7C 6 11 18Ret 10 2 6 26
10 100 Kunimitsu Takahashi

Akira Iida

10 4C 12 19Ret 7 1 13Ret 2 25
11 38 Hironori Takeuchi

Hideki Noda

9 12C 16Ret 21Ret 5 12 3 11Ret 22
12 50 Satoshi Motoyama 13 11 6 6 9 8 15Ret 17
12 50 Takeshi Tsuchiya 13 8C 11 6 6 9 8 15Ret 17
13 5 Marc Goossens 4 14C 7 20Ret 19Ret 18Ret 16Ret 14
14 5 Yasutaka Hinoi 4 14C 7 14
15 18 Katsutomo Kaneishi 20Ret 2C 17Ret 4 15Ret 15 21DSQ 14Ret 10
16 18 Katsumi Yamamoto 20Ret 2C 17Ret 4 15Ret 10
17 8 Wayne Gardner

Minoru Tanaka

8 20C 10 12 19Ret 7 8
18 6 Pierre-Henri Raphanel 21Ret 13Ret 13 13Ret 6 20DNQ 6
18 6 Shinichi Takagi 21Ret 18C 13Ret 13 13Ret 6 20DNQ 6
19 30 Yoji Yamada

Hideki Okada

12 13C 8 15 9 14 17Ret 9 5
20 88 Hisashi Wada

Naohiro Furuya

19Ret 19C 9 18 10 13 11 3
21 55 Hideshi Matsuda 14 16C 14 10 8 1
22 55 Anthony Reid 10 1
24 55 Eiichi Tajima 14 16C 0
24 5 20Ret 19Ret 18Ret 16Ret 0
24 55 Fuminori Mizuno [ja] 14 0
25 13 Mitsuhiro Kinoshita 17C 15Ret 16 12 17 12Ret 0
25 55 8 0
26 13 Mitsuo Fujimura 17C 15Ret 16 12 17 12Ret 0
27 777 Takao Wada

Masayoshi Sugiyama

15 21C 17 17Ret 18Ret 0
28 18 Juichi Wakisaka 15 21DSQ 14Ret 0
29 64 Koji Sato [ja] 19Ret 0
30 2 Pedro de la Rosa 5C 0
31 23 Ralph Firman 6C 0
32 50 Hiroki Katoh 8C 0
33 12 Michael Krumm 10C 0
34 6 Anders Olofsson 18C 0
35 89 Kenji Kawagoe

Tonichi Kanamori

22C 0

GT300 Class (Top 5)

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Drivers

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Rank Drivers Number/Team Points Wins
1   Keiichi Suzuki
  Shingo Tachi
#25 Team Taisan Jr with Tsuchiya MR-2 106 5
2   Manabu Orido #19 Racing Project Bandoh Toyota Celica 46 0
3   Morio Nitta #44 MOMOCORSE A'PEX MR-2 45 0
4   Hiroki Katoh #21 Hitotsuyama Racing BMW M3 44 0
5   Akihiko Nakaya
  Takahiko Hara
#61 Team Taeivon Ralliart Mitsubishi FTO 37 0

References

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  1. ^ "JGTC Fog Bank Ends 2nd Round of GTC". Archived from the original on 5 June 2011.
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