- Nissan GT-Rs that have taken titles both in Japan and around the world gather at Fuji Speedway
- 150 NISMO road cars brimming with NISMO’s racing DNA enjoy a parade run
- Professional drivers take FIA action for road safety pledge in front of 30,000 fans
Related Story: More than 30,000 Nissan motorsports fans attend NISMO Festival 2015
OYAMA, Japan – Nissan’s NISMO FESTIVAL 2015 was held at Fuji Speedway on November 29. Under sunny, crisp late Autumn weather that allowed for an unimpeded view of majestic Mt. Fuji, 30,000 Nissan and NISMO fans gathered at Fuji Speedway and reveled in the fun from early morning right until the finale.
This season Nissan has taken home numerous titles from both domestic race categories and others from around the globe. Taking the title in both the SUPER GTs GT500 and GT300 class, Nissan also grabbed its first championship in the Blancpain Endurance Series Pro Class and took overall victory at Australia’s Bathurst 12 Hour for the first time in 23 years. For this year’s NISMO FESTIVAL, the three NISSAN GT-R NISMO GT3s that have attained glory around the world gathered together for the first time.
What makes the NISMO festival such a big attraction is the fact that not only modern vehicles are brought out for the event, but also former racecars that boast illustrious success can be seen. This year mighty machines such as the NISSAN R382 (1969) and the Skyline Super Silhouette (1984) enthralled the crowds of fans. For the “Nissan Motorsports Heritage Run” successive generations of NISSAN / NISMO vehicles ran on the course with the very legendary drivers who took the wheel of these cars in their day. Those who remembered watching these machines race in the past watched the Aurora Vision digest video and were swept away with nostalgia while seeing the real machines speed passed their eyes.
On top of that, the fans had their eyes glued to the now customary “NISMO GP” in which the top drivers from the GT500, GT300 and Super Taikyu engaged in a fierce contest.
There were also many events to entertain the kids that came along. One of the most touching of these was when a handful of lucky youngsters were chosen for the momentous task of passing bouquets to this season’s champions.
In the stand area there were commercial vehicle exhibitions of the latest models and shop booths selling limited edition minicars and other popular goods that saw long lines forming right from the early morning. A large crowd gathered around the stage to witness the talk show held with each Nissan teams’ drivers and team principals and this also was a huge success. Not only that, numerous fans could be seen at the “garage sale,” where patrons could buy racing car parts, along with the always popular engine disassembly demonstrations put on by Omori Factory.
From last year Nissan/NISMO has been fully supporting the FIA’s action for road safety. To that end all vehicles that ran on the track were sporting stickers promoting the campaign. A quiz event was held on the stage to raise awareness and leading up to the NISMO GP main event, the drivers declared the FIA proposed “10 Golden Rules” for road safety in front of all the fans. Not only that, a special message from FIA president, Jean Todt, specifically for the NISMO festival was broadcast around the circuit.
Being able to enjoy the technology that has been cultivated in motorsports is one of the most attractive aspects of NISMO road cars. In a stage event champion drivers Tsugio Matsuda and Ronnie Quintarelli, who are both very fond of their own NISMO Notes made an appearance. NISMO COO, Motohiro Matsumura, who plans and develops NISMO models, and Nissan CPS Hiroshi Tamura spoke with Quintarelli who described how users like him are satisfied with the car’s stylish, functional beauty and how it contributed to a happy lifestyle with his wife. Matsuda on the other hand, explained how users like him were able to use the car to improve their performance on the circuit. With this the two perfectly summarized the lifestyle that NISMO road cars provide.
In the finale, Global head of marketing and sales, Daniele Schillaci stated, “I was really moved to see numerous NISMO road cars and various generations of racing cars gather here, as well as regular car owners enjoying themselves on the track. This is exactly what we mean by NISMO DNA.”
CEO Shoichi Miyatani gave a powerful declaration stating: “In 2015 the GT-R has been engaging in high-stakes battles, and I think we can say that this was the year of the GT-R. We aren’t going to let go of this momentum next year and will continue to come out fighting.”
Then, with that, the festival was brought to its conclusion.
Timing for the full event video:
17:55 NISMO FEST WELCOME- Driver Intro
50:00 NISMO Road Car Parade
1:21:14 NISMO Racecar Safari- lots of NISMO race cars flying past a bus!
2:27:19 NISSAN GT-R Prestige Race (Cup race by GT-R Club Track Edition)
3:18:35 NISSAN Z Race (Cup race by Z33/Z34)
3:57:19 Historic Car Race (310 Sunny, KPGC10 Skyline GT-R, 510 Bluebird)
4:52:04 NISSAN Motorsport Heritage Race Cars! (R380, R381, R390, R391, JGTC R32/R33/R34/Z33, FIAGT1 R35,.)
6:07:53 FIA Road Safety / GRID WALK for the NISMO GP
6:51:19 NISMO GP Build Up – Race between all the NISMO Drivers in GT500, GT300 GT3 cars!
7:11:10 NISMO GP RACE START (Battle by 2015 SGT GT500/300, Super Taikyu Endurance, BES/B12h)
7:54:00 GRAND FINALE
18.00 Event starts
09:30-10:30 Racing Car Taxi Ride / Circuit Safari
10:40-11:10 Nissan GT-R Prestige Cup Exhibition Race (Cup race by GT-R Club Track Edition)
11:30-12:00 Z Challenge Exhibition Race (Cup race by Z33/Z34)
12:10-12:55 Nissan Historic Car Exhibition Race (310 Sunny, KPGC10 Skyline GT-R, 510 Bluebird)
13:05-13:55 Nissan Motorsports Heritage Run (R380, R381, R390, R391, JGTC R32/R33/R34/Z33, FIAGT1 R35,.)
14:00-14:50 FIA Road Safety Campaign / Grid Walk / Pit Walk
14:55-15:35 NISMO GP 2015 (Battle by 2015 SGT GT500/300, Super Taikyu Endurance, BES/B12h,…)
15:45-16:30 Finale Ceremony
Much more from NISMO Festival 2015 on Twitter at #NISMOFes
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