Hirakawa’s temporary teammate Sena Sakaguchi led the first half of the 82-lap contest from pole position, keeping the #14 Rookie Racing Toyota Supra of Kazuya Oshima at bay as the two circulated the track well clear of the remainder of the field. However, the race slipped away from Sakaguchi and Hirakawa after an incident for Yudai Uchida in the #360 Tomei Sports Nissan GT300, with almost the entire field heading into the pits to avoid being caught out by the safety car. Sakaguchi and Oshima entered the pits virtually nose-to-tail at the end of lap 33, with Yuhi Sekiguchi in the #36 TOM’S Supra following them another 15 seconds behind in third. TV pictures showed TOM’S mechanics pushing back the #37 Supra now driven by Hirakawa into the fast lane after completing the pitstop, losing the lead in the process. When a clear order emerged behind the safety car, the Rookie Racing Toyota of Oshima’s teammate Kenta Yamashita took the net lead from Sho Tsuboi in the #36 TOM’S … [Read more...] about Hirakawa explains pitstop that cost TOM’S Okayama win