Three Ferraris target podium at Fuji

The impressive Fuji International Speedway hosts the second consecutive Japanese round of the Blancpain GT World Challenge Asia, where 31 cars will compete on the circuit that stands on the slopes of the most famous volcano in the Land of the Rising Sun. Three Ferrari 488 GT3s will take part, entered by HubAuto Corsa, T2 Motorsports and CarGuy Racing.

HubAuto Corsa. After just failing to secure a place on the overall podium in both races at Suzuka, Yuya Sakamoto lost ground in the standings to Hamprecht and Sathienthirakul. The Japanese driver has so far finished every race in the top six and is targeting a competitive weekend due in part to the fact that this time he won’t suffer the Pit-stop Success Penalty, at least in the first race on Saturday. The experienced Marco Seefried will join Sakamoto this time, as Andre Heimgartner will be competing in the Australian Supercars Championship.

T2 Motorsports. The Singaporean team has its sights on a podium finish after Rio Haryanto's excellent performance in Race-2 at Suzuka in the Pro-Am class. The Indonesian driver will share the cockpit of the 488 GT3 with David Tjiptobiantoro, who alternates with Gregory Teo who competed in the previous round.

CarGuy Racing. The Japanese team, whose headquarters is located next to the main entrance of the circuit, makes a return to the series. After a brilliant 24 Hours of Le Mans - finishing in fifth place - and victory in the Asian Le Mans Series, the Shizuoka-based team will field the 488 GT3 in the Am class, entrusting it to Takeshi Kimura and Yusuke Yamasaki.

Programme. After Friday's free practice, qualifying takes place on Saturday followed by the first of the weekend’s two 60-minute at 3:45 pm local time (8:45 am in Italy). On Sunday the green light for Race 2 goes on at 1:05 pm local time (6:05 am in Italy).