Japanese GP preview

By Jonathan Gill

07th October 2006

	Wherever Sato and Yamamoto finish on Sunday, Super Aguri can be proud of what it’s already achieved

With the 2006 FIA Formula One World Championship still very much in the melting pot, inevitably all eyes will be focused on the front of the grid at the ultra-challenging Suzuka circuit this weekend.

Spare a thought, though, for the small Oxfordshire-based Super Aguri outfit. The all-Japanese rookie team is gearing up for its milestone home debut, and the pressure rests on drivers Takuma Sato and Sakon Yama­moto to score its first-ever points.

To date, Sato’s 12th place finish in Australia is the Honda-powered outfit’s best showing, but both drivers will be hoping to maximise their local knowledge to improve on that result on very familiar ground in Japan.

Wherever Sato and Yamamoto finish on Sunday, Super Aguri can be proud of what it’s already achieved. The fledgling team overcame massive odds just to be ready for the start of this season, and it’s worth remembering that its two drivers are still racing what are basically four-year-old Arrows chassis.

“Through our constant improvement, we have managed to come from around seven per cent off the pace at our first grand prix in Bahrain,” said newly promoted technical director Mark Preston.

“We are now within three per cent of the front-runners in recent races, which is a huge effort in anyone’s books. It is a credit to all who have worked so hard and delivered so much over this first year of racing.”