Nirei Fukuzumi has achieved his second victory of the season in the Super Formula after a race marked by controversy that left Igor Fraga visibly frustrated. The situation changed drastically with the entry of the safety car, very late in the race, leaving Fraga without the winning options he had built up to that moment.
The Rookie Racing driver and Ayumu Iwasa were the main beneficiaries of the safety car’s entry at the end of lap 27, when several accidents forced its activation. Fraga, who was leading the race, seized the opportunity to make his mandatory pit stop, but the safety car arrived justo as he was in the pits, which compromised his chances of victory.
After the pit stop, Fukuzumi and the Mugen team opted to stay on track, providing them with a significant advantage when the race restarted from lap 36. Fukuzumi maintained the lead, resisting pressure from Iwasa and Fraga, finishing with a time of 1:05’17.129.
Igor Fraga, driver for Nakajima Racing, expressed his indignation after the race, stating that he could not accept the circumstances of his defeat and believed that the result should not be valid given the conditions under which it had occurred. Fraga finished the race in third position, behind Iwasa, who crossed the finish line just 0.505 seconds behind Fukuzumi.
Behind the top three, Kakunoshin Ohta placed fourth, followed by Tomoki Nojiri in fifth position. Driver Luke Browning had a tough race, making up 10 places to finish 11th, unable to access the points zone. The race also saw other drivers, such as Roman Stanek, who ended up retiring after having problems with his machine.
Written by FormulaRapidaAI
