Sunday, September 22nd, Sportsland SUGO, Miyagi Prefecture. Heavy rain pouring down. The 6th round of the Super GT was held in the worst conditions. The team fought patiently to rise to the top. The prestigious "TGR TEAM THIRD" was founded in 1972. The drivers are Yuhi Sekiguchi and Yuichi Nakayama. At the end of the 4th round, the team was ranked 11th in the GT500 class. They had not been able to achieve results. The team is led by Director Juichi Wakisaka, 52 years old. On the grid before the race, facing the interview camera. "Now, let's get excited!" He has one strong desire for motorsports. "In reality, we directors and drivers only need to produce results, but our industry is not yet booming. Unless we find something we can do and do something extra, motorsports will not become more popular." I want to be able to capture that desire and his fighting on the circuit. "Good morning." Wakisaka kindly accepted this close-up interview. "I do my professional work not for myself, but for someone else. That will eventually become a team effort." He is a former professional racing driver himself. He built a brilliant career, winning the All Japan GT Championship Series in 2002, and the Super GT Series in 2006, 2009, and 2019, and was nicknamed "Mr. GT." He was also featured in many media outlets for his light-hearted way of speaking. The fourth race last month, at Fuji Speedway in Shizuoka Prefecture. On this day, the final race was scheduled for the afternoon. "I want you to watch this before the race." When the reporters got in the car, they saw Wakisaka taking a "selfie" with his smartphone. "To everyone waiting at the TGR stage, I'll be there soon, so please wait. Thank you." --Where will the video be uploaded? If you upload this to Instagram Stories, the people waiting will be waiting in the heat, right? They'll be happy and say, "I'm coming now!" The director himself was on his way to appear in a talk show before the race. When the announcer at the venue called his name, he took to the stage, this time pointing his smartphone camera towards the spectators. He grabbed the microphone and... "Imitating Yuhi Sekiguchi. (Making the sound of an engine shifting up) Whin, whin, whin...'Tch!" He had a bright personality that was different from the face of the director during the race, and he was seen exciting the audience. When asked why. "Anyway, it's about raising the "temperature" of the audience, so if you have the (race) start when the tension is at its peak, it will suddenly become exciting. I want to create that kind of atmosphere." However, he said that when he was active, he sometimes showed his sharpness. "He's a difficult driver who is troublesome. When I was young, I kept thinking about how to play the role of 'Juichi Wakisaka' so that I could win. From there, as I got older, I started thinking about how to liven up the entire industry." "I do my best to play the role that the audience wants at the circuit, even though I can only do it this way, so that they will go home happy." That's why now, attracted by Wakisaka's charm, many spectators gather around him. --It's amazing, they treated us well until the end and came even though it was hot. If they are even a little happy, they will come again. The final on September 22nd arrived. The rain stopped, and TEAM THIRD, led by Wakisaka, aimed to make a comeback from 8th place in the qualifying round. During the race, he encouraged the driver and staff. "We have the power now, so we can turn it around!" They continued to attack boldly and rose to 4th place at one point. However, they ended up in 11th place. They were unable to get out of the long tunnel. "The fans who come to motorsports support their "favorites" with emotion. We are not doing well, but by showing them that we can get back on our feet if we work hard even in bad times, I think that not all of the fans are in a good state. There are difficult times and unpleasant times, but if they think, 'That team, that Super GT is working hard,' I think that will help us to liven up our struggles." The 2024 season is coming to an end, and the 7th round will be held on Sunday, October 20th at Autopolis in Oita Prefecture. Wakisaka continues to struggle to help the team rise and for motorsports to flourish. (Video provided by GTA) "MONDAY MOTOR SPORT" Broadcast on Fuji TV's "FNN Live News α" every Monday from 11:40 p.m. Super GT 2024 October 19th (Sat) - 20th (Sun) Round 7 Autopolis https://supergt.net/pages Toyota Times https://toyotatimes.jp/ FNN Prime Online https://www.fnn.jp/