Hello everyone! Sharing how my 2nd race in Super Formula Lights Japan went…
May 15, Free Practice 1 & 2
Starting on Thursday, the main objective was to get comfortable and gain more understanding of the track, and learning set ups.
We ended the day with a strong car, finishing P1 overall after all new tire runs finished. Still had some places to improve on the car, but overall was happy with the car balance.
May 16, Free Practice 3 & 4
Struggled on Friday to find the right setup for the track conditions, as well as having limited track time, and with having a weirdly low amount of grip on new tires meant we ended the day P9 far off where our real pace really would have been.
May 17, Qualifying
Since qualifying was cancelled due to bad weather, the grid would be the last practice session. Meaning we started P9 for both races on Sunday.
May 18, Round 4 Race
Round 5 Race
Race 4 started well, moving up 2 positions by the end of the 1st sector, and moved up another at the end of the lap to be P6 after the opening lap. Tried to manage tyres and launch an attack in the end for P5, but due to the dirty air just being difficult to follow, I couldn’t make a move happen even if we had better pace than others. In the end, finished P5 from P9 after penalties.
Race 5 start was similar, before T1 was alongside and fighting for P6, but suddenly the gap closed on me and was forced to off track, rejoining the race last. Went up 3 positions to finish P10, but it could have been something more. The speed in the race was good, so at least something positive to take away.
Overall a mixed weekend, being able to show that when everything is done right, we are up there. Quite a few things out of our control this weekend, so all we can do is analyse what went wrong and improve and come back stronger for the next round in Okayama.
The track has been amazing, the views around in the mountains are super nice, and with quite a few elevation changes around the track along with high speed corners, it makes for a pretty exciting track to drive around. Another track checked off the list and excited for the next.
That’s it for now.
Until next time,
ZD
2025 SF Lights Competition | B-Max Racing Team
Zach David is sponsored by Ceramic Pro, Attard Baldacchino, JG Summit Olefins Corporation, AutoPlus Sports, KLO & Co. and Malta Motorsport Federation.
For more info and the latest updates, follow ZachdavidRacing on Facebook, @zachdavidracing on Instagram, @zachdavid.racing on TikTok, and @zachdavidracing on YouTube.
-ENDS-
