• Course Features and Tactics
Home of the Japanese Grand Prix, the Suzuka Circuit is one of the preeminently technical courses of the F1 series. For race engineers, Suzuka presents a tough challenge, and finding just the right car settings here tests all of their know-how and ingenuity. Suzuka has everything from chicanes and low-speed corners, to mid-speed S-curves that drivers take in 3rd or 4th gear. There are also exciting high-speed corners like 130R, where cars will be pushing 280km/h. From the standpoint of aerodynamics and mechanics, Suzuka demands an extremely advanced degree of balance.

For example, low-speed corners normally call for a softer suspension to maintain traction on the out turn. But on the other hand, high-speed corners require a stiffer suspension to keep the car stable. The trick is how to balance these opposing factors. You can’t focus on any one particular corner, because the car has to run well on the course as a whole.

Aerodynamically, Suzuka is generally regarded as a high downforce circuit, but you also want to maximize top speed on the two long straightaways. The best strategy is to bring a car with high downforce, but aerodynamically efficient, with low drag. You could say from the engineer’s standpoint, Suzuka is an extremely greedy course—it wants everything.

• Qualifying and Race Strategies
The track surface here has a relatively high grip level, so tire wear becomes an issue. In particular, we worry about rear tire wear. The F1 regulations this year require a single set of tires for both qualifying and race, so the issues are compounded. Tire wear at Suzuka is an integral part of race strategy. And while you don’t lose much time in the pits here, the course has a significant fuel effect, meaning a team will use two or even three pit stops. Throwing tire wear into the mix, you could easily see many teams making three pit stops on race Sunday.

Another Suzuka feature is a rather narrow track. It’s difficult to overtake here, so qualifying position is extremely important. In this sense, some teams might feel that the best strategy is to go very light on fuel to try and qualify as high as possible. The only legitimate overtaking spot on the circuit is the chicane. The key here is to come out of 130R with a lot of momentum, and then overtake in the chicane’s braking areas. There is one other possible overtake point in the hairpin braking area, but the chances of doing anything there are almost nil. These are two areas to watch carefully during the race.

• The TF105 is Tailor-Made for Suzuka
Suzuka is also a circuit that is very demanding on the driver, but it’s a course where taking risks can pay off handsomely. With several “complex” corners (diameter of the turn changes during the course of the corner), driving rhythm becomes a key issue. If you get off rhythm in one corner, you usually can’t get back until three or four turns later, losing a great deal of time in the process. Fortunately, Jarno and Ralf, our drivers this year, are very good at Suzuka, so we aren’t too worried about the driver equation. Last year, Jarno was called in at the last minute to drive the TF104, and he drove fast enough to qualify 6th. For Ralf’s part, he drove for a year in Japan, so he knows Suzuka well. Unfortunately, the last three years haven’t seen great things in terms of Panasonic Toyota Racing results at Suzuka. Two years ago, McNish crashed and couldn’t start the race. Last year, we did qualify 6th, but we fell off the pace during the race, finishing well back.

But we are very confident in our prospects this year. We have had some favorable finishes, but much of our confidence is based in the fact that our cars appear to be very compatible with the Suzuka Circuit. While our nemesis last year was downforce, this year our cars have downforce to spare—every bit on par with the top teams, and our car is well suited to the smooth Suzuka track surface. We plan on bringing what we consider to be the ultimate (and final) version of our V10 engine, and we intend to continue development of aerodynamic parts until the very last minute. More than a car designed specifically for Suzuka, you could say that we will be unveiling the final evolutionary stage of the TF105.

• We Draw Tremendous Energy from your Support
Some might say that the Japanese GP is just one of 19 races during the F1 season, but for us, the Japanese GP is one of the most special of the Grand Prix events. Why do we feel this way? It’s because of the overwhelming number of fans who come out to cheer us on! Every year, there is a Panasonic Toyota Racing cheer section on Corner 1, and the fans urge on all of the drivers, regardless of affiliation, as they pass by in a fury of speed and sound. This year we desperately want to reward our fans with a strong finish.

Of course, we are in the last stage of the series, and the competition for the Constructors’ crown is white hot. It won’t be a simple task to come out on top. We know that Ferrari will be armed with a lot of data from Suzuka, since their tire manufacturer is Bridgestone, based in Japan. As well, Suzuka is the home course for Honda, so BAR will be giving it all they have. McLaren and Renault are expected to be fast as always here. You can bet it will be a top-class battle. We look forward to seeing you, and hope you cheer us on.