HKS Co., Ltd. is a publicly traded company headquartered in Fujinomiya, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan specializing in the engineering, manufacturing, and sales of high performance aftermarket and accessory automotive parts and components. With 50 years in business, and global success in aftermarket parts and motorsport, the company notably states, "HKS is perhaps the most known aftermarket brand in the world".
The Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution, popularly referred to as the 'Evo', is a sports sedan and rally car based on the Lancer that was manufactured by Japanese manufacturer Mitsubishi Motors from 1992 until 2016. There have been ten official versions to date, and the designation of each model is most commonly a Roman numeral. All generations use two-litre intercooled turbo inline four-cylinder engines and all-wheel drive systems.
Nissan Motorsports International, abbreviated as Nismo, is a division of Nissan Motorsports & Customizing focused in motorsport and performance-oriented car models for Nissan. Nismo was initially a company, Nissan Motorsports International Co., Ltd., formed in 1984 as a result of a merger of two motorsport departments, being the in-house tuning, motorsports and performance subsidiary of Nissan. It has competed in JSPC, JTCC, the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the 24 Hours of Daytona. They currently participate in Super GT, GT Racing and Formula E. Nismo ceased to be a company in April 2022 by being merged with sister Autech into a new Nissan subsidiary, Nissan Motorsport & Customizing.
Group A is a set of motorsport regulations administered by the FIA covering production derived vehicles intended for competition, usually in touring car racing and rallying. In contrast to the short-lived Group B and Group C, Group A vehicles were limited in terms of power, weight, allowed technology and overall cost. Group A was aimed at ensuring numerous entries in races of privately owned vehicles.
The Nissan 350Z is a two-door, two-seater sports car that was manufactured by Nissan Motor Corporation from 2002 until 2009 and marks the fifth generation of Nissan's Z-car line. The 350Z entered production in 2002 and was sold and marketed as a 2003 model from August 2002. The first year there was only a coupe, as the roadster did not debut until the following year. Initially, the coupe came in Base, Enthusiast, Performance, Touring and Track versions, while the Roadster was limited to Enthusiast and Touring trim levels. The Track trim came with lightweight wheels and Brembo brakes, but its suspension tuning was the same as all other coupes. The Nissan 350Z was succeeded by the 370Z for the 2009 model year.
Ralliart is the high-performance and motorsports division of Mitsubishi Motors. It was responsible for development and preparation of the company's rally racing and off-road racing vehicles, as well as the development of high-performance models and parts available to the public. Ralliart scaled down its business activities in April 2010, though the brand will continue to be used by Mitsubishi.
Satoshi Motoyama is a Japanese professional racing driver and team manager. He is best known for racing in the Super GT Series, formerly known as the All-Japan Grand Touring Car Championship (JGTC) as a factory driver for Nissan, and for racing in the Formula Nippon Championship. He is a three-time champion of the GT500 class of Super GT, and a four-time Formula Nippon/Super Formula champion, making him one of the most successful Japanese racing drivers of all-time.
Michael Krumm is a German professional racing driver. He won the All-Japan GT Championship in the GT500 class in 1997 and 2003 for TOM'S and Nismo, respectively, and in 2011 he won the FIA GT1 World Championship driving for JR Motorsports.
The Nissan GT-R, is a sports car and grand tourer produced by Nissan, unveiled in 2007. It is the successor to the Nissan Skyline GT-R, a high-performance variant of the Nissan Skyline. Although this model was the sixth-generation to bear the GT-R name, it is no longer part of the Skyline line-up. The GT-R is built on the PM platform, which is derived from the FM platform used in the Skyline and the Nissan Z models.
The Bathurst 24 Hour was an endurance race for GT and production cars held at the Mount Panorama Circuit in Bathurst, New South Wales in 2002 and 2003. Only two races were held before the collapse of the management organisation PROCAR. Both races were won by V8 Supercar team Garry Rogers Motorsport with Holden Monaros.
Claudiu David is a former Romanian rally driver. He is now a mentor for high-performers, working with people who have already achieved what only a few people on the planet can, in a bespoke journey, to achieve what is still missing in their lives. Claudiu David has a degree in executive coaching. He has work experience with Olympic athletes at the National Institute of Sport Research. He has a strong interest in Astrosophy. His tools used to work with are philosophy, Christianity, anthroposophy, situational meditation.
The 2010 FIA GT1 World Championship was the inaugural FIA GT1 World Championship, a motor racing competition reserved for FIA GT1 cars. The championship was a replacement for the FIA GT Championship which had been held annually from 1997 to 2009. It was the first sports car racing series to be sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) as a World Championship since the demise of the World Sportscar Championship at the end of the 1992 season.
Chris Buncombe is a British racing driver who made his last appearance at the Le Mans 24 Hours was in 2011. He joined Aston Martin Racing at the end of the 2009 season when he drove in the Le Mans Series scoring a podium finish on his debut with the team at Nürburgring driving the 008 Aston Martin LMP1 car. Chris won the 2007 24 Hours of Le Mans in the LMP2 class driving for Binnie Motorsports in their Lola B05/40-Zytek.
The 2011 FIA GT1 World Championship season was the second season of the SRO Group's FIA GT1 World Championship, an auto racing series for grand tourer cars complying with Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) GT1 regulations. The championship comprised two titles: GT1 World Champion for Drivers and GT1 World Champion for Teams. Five of the six manufacturers represented in the 2010 championship returned for the second season, however Maserati was not represented and 2010 Teams World Champions Vitaphone Racing Team did not defend their title.
The 2011 FIA GT1 Algarve round is an auto racing event held at the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve in Portimão, Portugal on 6–8 May 2011. The event is the third round of the 2011 FIA GT1 World Championship season. FIA GT1 previously visited the Algarve circuit in autumn 2010, with drivers Peter Dumbreck and Michael Krumm of Sumo Power Nissan winning the Qualifying Race, and Michael Bartels and Andrea Bertolini of Vitaphone Maserati winning the Championship Race. The event is supported by the FIA GT3 European Championship, the Mini Challenge, and local Portuguese racing series.
The 2011 FIA GT1 Sachsenring round is an auto racing event held at the Sachsenring, Saxony, Germany on 13–15 May, and will be the fourth round of the 2011 FIA GT1 World Championship season. It is the FIA GT1 World Championship's first race held at the 3.7 km (2.3 mi) Sachsenring, as the circuit replaces the Nürburgring as the German round for the series. The event will be supported by the German ADAC Masters Weekend, featuring the ADAC GT Masters, ATS Formel 3 Cup, ADAC Formel Masters, and ADAC Procar Series, as well as the German Mini Challenge.
The 2011 FIA GT1 San Luis round was an auto racing event held at the Potrero de los Funes Circuit, San Luis, Argentina on 4–6 November, and was the final round of the 2011 FIA GT1 World Championship season. It was the FIA GT1 World Championship's second race held in Argentina, a week after the 2010 San Luis round at the 6.270 km (3.896 mi) circuit. This event was supported by the TC 2000 Championship, Fiat Linea Competizione and the Argentine Formula Renault Championship.
The 2012 Autobacs Super GT Series was the twentieth season of the Japan Automobile Federation Super GT Championship including the All Japan Grand Touring Car Championship (JGTC) era and the eighth season as the Super GT series. It also marked the thirtieth season of a JAF-sanctioned sports car racing championship dating back to the All Japan Sports Prototype Championship. The season began on April 1 and ended on November 18, 2012, after eight championship races and a non-championship race.
The Nismo Global Driver Exchange was an initiative from Nissan and Nismo to share driving experience from various motor racing categories around the world.
The Nissan GT-R LM Nismo is a sports prototype racing car built by the Nissan Motor Company and their motorsports division Nismo. Designed for the Le Mans Prototype 1 (LMP1) regulations of the FIA World Endurance Championship and the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the GT-R LM was unique amongst Le Mans Prototypes at the time for utilizing a front mid-engine layout for its internal combustion engine, as opposed to the rear mid-engine layout used by nearly all other competitors in the category. It was Nissan's first prototype chassis since the R391 in 1999, although the company had developed engines in recent years. The car was branded after the Nissan GT-R road car and shares similar engine and drivetrain configurations, but is not related to the sports car. The GT-R LM Nismo program was announced on 23 May 2014, while the car was publicly shown for the first time in a Nissan commercial during Super Bowl XLIX on 1 February 2015. It was retired from competition at the end of 2015, after having only competed unsuccessfully at the 2015 24 Hours of Le Mans.
