Autopolis Super Formula: Nojiri beats Kunimoto to pole
Dandelion Racing’s Tomoki Nojiri took the pole position for the Autopolis round of Super Formula, edging out defending champion Yuji Kunimoto in qualifying.
Using a set of newly-introduced soft compound, Nojiri lapped the returning Autopolis circuit in 1m26.196s to secure his first pole in Super Formula since last year’s Okayama round.
Kunimoto qualified two tenths behind Nojiri in second, but marginally ahead of former F1 driver Kamui Kobayashi, who claimed the third spot on the grid.
WEC star Andre Lotterer, setting the pace in the Saturday morning practice, was next up in fourth with a time of 1m26.637s, while Red Bull protege Pierre Gasly qualified fifth in his Mugen-Honda.
TOM’s driver Kazuki Nakajima was another tenth adrift in sixth, ahead of Naoki Yamamoto and championship leader Hiroaki Ishiura.
Kondo Racing’s Kenta Yamashita qualified ninth after a late flyer, while former European F3 champion Felix Rosenqvist completed the top 10.
Meanwhile, Koudai Tsukakoshi crashed in the final minute of the Q1, bringing out the red flag. The organisers granted three extra minutes after the session resumed, allowing Rosenqvist to make a lucky escape from the elimination zone.
Results:
| Po. | Driver | Car Name / Engine | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Tomoki Nojiri |
Dandelion-Honda | 1'27.980 | 1'26.852 | R1'26.196 |
| 2 | Kunimoto |
Inging-Toyota | 1'27.968 | 1'26.924 | R1'26.387 |
| 3 | Kamui Kobayashi |
KCMG-Toyota | 1'28.366 | R1'26.317 | R1'26.414 |
| 4 |  Andre Lotterer |
TOM'S-Toyota | 1'28.727 | 1'27.119 | 1'26.637 |
| 5 |  Pierre Gasly |
Mugen-Honda | 1'28.648 | 1'27.003 | 1'26.738 |
| 6 | Kazuki Nakajima |
TOM'S-Toyota | 1'28.359 | 1'27.172 | 1'26.810 |
| 7 | Naoki Yamamoto |
Mugen-Honda | 1'28.698 | 1'27.265 | 1'27.178 |
| 8 | Hiroaki Ishiura |
Inging-Toyota | 1'28.998 | 1'27.179 | 1'27.200 |
| 9 | Kenta Yamashita |
Kondo-Toyota | 1'28.818 | 1'27.324 | |
| 10 |  Felix Rosenqvist |
Team LeMans-Toyota | 1'28.649 | 1'27.400 | |
| 11 | Yuhi Sekiguchi |
Impul-Toyota | 1'28.638 | 1'27.540 | |
| 12 | Takuya Izawa |
Dandelion-Honda | 1'28.847 | 1'27.637 | |
| 13 |  Narain Karthikeyan |
Nakajima-Honda | 1'29.061 | 1'27.677 | |
| 14 |  Jann Mardenborough |
Impul-Toyota | 1'28.012 | 1'27.837 | |
| 15 | Kazuya Oshima |
Team LeMans-Toyota | 1'29.078 | ||
| 16 |  Nick Cassidy |
Kondo-Toyota | 1'29.164 | ||
| 17 | Daisuke Nakajima |
Nakajima-Honda | 1'29.227 | ||
| 18 | Takashi Kogure |
B-Max Racing-Honda | 1'29.306 | ||
| 19 | Koudai Tsukakoshi |
Real-Honda | 1'29.870 |
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