Subaru BRZ wins first race of the All Japan Gymkhana Championship

The 2014 Subaru BRZ driven by championship driver Tetsuya Yamano, takes the first round of the All Japan Gymkhana with a win. It’s a good start to the All Japan Gymkhana Championship season as Subaru aims to win it all this year. The first leg of the All Japan Gymkhana 2014 championship was held at the Okayama International Circuit on March 8 to 9.

All the attention was on this opening round and the Subaru BRZ performed well on the circuit. The BRZ runs in the popular PN3 class and the car is driven by the champion of last years series, Tetsuya Yamano. He retired from the 2013 SUPER GT series after a successful career and will concentrate all his efforts on the All Japan Gymkhana Championship. He won the SUPER GT in the BRZ in 2012.

Yamano will participate in all the races this season, and the first race was a landslide victory for the Subaru team. The temperature fell to 23 degrees at the start of the race and the road surface didn’t warm up much throughout the race. But Yamano was able to put the BRZ in front and came away with a victory by putting a 1.5 second lead ahead of the second place car.

Early on in the race, the team had to change the tires to increase the grip in the very low temperatures. The Subaru BRZ race car had significant changes to the alignment this year and it handled the increased course distance well. Yamano was able to stay ahead of the competition and came away with a victory.

The Subaru BRZ two-door sports coupe is the ideal car for racing. It starts with its rear-wheel-drive configuration. BRZ uses a rigid, lightweight body and powerful brakes assisted by control-enhancing technology. This allows BRZ to quickly shave off velocity while precisely setting up a perfect line in the corners. It features vented disc brakes, electronic brake-force distribution, and the BRZ is lightweight at 2,762 lbs. The 2.0-liter Boxer engine sits low in the chassis and it all adds up for the perfect balance in a two-door sports car.

Subaru Motorsports, directed by Subaru Technica International (STI), also runs another Subaru BRZ in the Super GT Series, the 2015 Subaru WRX STI in the Nurburgring 24-hour race in Germany and WRX STI in the FIA European Rally Championship WRC and ERC. Linari and Arena finished 2nd in the Subaru WRX STI in Production Cup category of WRC Round 3 recently in Mexico. Stay tuned to Torque News for the latest 2014 Subaru BRZ racing news.

Other Subaru BRZ stories of interest.

• 2014 Subaru BRZ holds value better than any other sports car
• 2014 Subaru BRZ GT300 prepares for SUPER GT Series