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Okayama Super Formula: Lotterer cruises to Race 1 win

Andre Lotterer won the first of the two Okayama Super Formula races after sprinting past pole-sitter Yuhi Sekiguchi at the start.

Andre Lotterer, VANTELIN TEAM TOM’S

Andre Lotterer, VANTELIN TEAM TOM’S

Shigenobu Yoshida

Yuhi Sekiguchi, Team Impul
Felix Rosenqvist, Team LeMans
Yuhi Sekiguchi, Team Impul
Pierre Gasly, Team Mugen
Felix Rosenqvist, Team LeMans
Takuya Izawa, Dandelion Racing
Pierre Gasly, Team Mugen
Takuya Izawa, Dandelion Racing

Sekiguchi was slow off the line when the race got underway, giving 2011 champion Lotterer the chance to take the lead into Turn 1.

The Japanese driver initially stayed within a few car lengths of Lotterer, before the TOM'S driver put the hammer down and established a comfortable buffer of two seconds at the front of the field.

Sekiguchi tried to pull back the deficit during the final quarter of the race, but ultimately had to settle for second place.

Meanwhile, Nick Cassidy crossed the line comfortably in third position to take his maiden Super Formula podium.

The New Zealander, who finished fourth in last year's European F3 championship, had won at the same venue in Super GT earlier this year.

Former F1 driver Kamui Kobayashi was classified fourth after gaining three places at the start, while Naoki Yamamoto likewise jumped from ninth on the grid to end up fifth.

However, the 2013 champion faced a stern challenge from Jann Mardenborough in the final stages of the race, the Nissan GT Academy winner finishing just half a second adrift in sixth.

Kondo Racing's Kenta Yamashita was next up in seventh while Hiroaki Ishiura finished eighth after a poor getaway from fourth on the grid.

Championship leader and Suzuka winner Kazuki Nakajima had to settle for ninth after an uneventful race, while Toyota Le Mans driver Yuji Kunimoto completed the top 10.

Red Bull junior Pierre Gasly's race was severely compromised by a startline accident, forcing him to pit for a fresh nose.

The Frenchman came out at the back of the pack after his stop and was unable to make tangible process from there on, finishing a lap down in 19th.

Race 1 Results:

Po.DriverCar Name / EngineGap
1  Andre Lotterer TOM'S-Toyota  
2  Yuhi Sekiguchi Impul-Toyota 1.948
3  Nick Cassidy Kondo-Toyota 7.786
4  Kamui Kobayashi KCMG-Toyota 11.558
5  Naoki Yamamoto Mugen-Honda 14.919
6  Jann Mardenborough Impul-Toyota 15.492
7  Kenta Yamashita Kondo-Toyota 17.496
8  Hiroaki Ishiura Inging-Toyota 18.752
9  Kazuki Nakajima TOM'S Toyota 25.369
10  Yuji Kunimoto Inging-Toyota 28.965
11  Koudai Tsukakoshi REAL SF-Honda 31.129
12  Felix Rosenqvist Team LeMans-Toyota 32.867
13  Tomoki Nojiri Dandelion-Honda 37.407
14  Takuya Izawa Dandelion-Honda 38.023
15  Kazuya Oshima Team LeMans-Toyota 40.064
16  Daisuke Nakajima Nakajima-Honda 44.114
17  Narain Karthikeyan Nakajima-Honda 45.671
18  Takashi Kogure B-Max Racing-Honda 1 Lap
19  Pierre Gasly Mugen-Honda 1 Lap

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