At PCCJ

The other day, I watched the Porsche Carrera Cup Japan (PCCJ) at Okayama International Circuit. On that occasion, I was introduced to a representative from Porsche Japan’s motorsport division and had a brief but direct conversation with him.

Also, during the pit tour held that day, the PR representative explained about the Carrera Cup cars, so today I’d like to share a summary of what I learned then.

Porsche’s Motorsport Projects

…That said, I had almost no knowledge about Porsche’s motorsport activities, so I took this opportunity to do a little research.

Porsche Japan announced at the end of last year that they would be strengthening their motorsport activities in 2019 more than ever before. They plan to carry out three projects in 2019.

The first is the world’s fastest one-make race, the Porsche Carrera Cup Japan (PCCJ). The season opener was held in April at Okayama International Circuit, and the final round will be the support race for the F1 Japanese GP at Suzuka Circuit in October, with a total of 11 rounds. This season marks the 19th anniversary of the series.

The second project is a new series called the Porsche Sprint Challenge Japan, using the 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport. This is an evolved version of the GT3 Cup Challenge (one of Porsche Motorsport’s official races held in 10 countries worldwide), where races are run with mixed grids including the 911 GT3 Cup cars.

Since the 718 Cayman GT4 deliveries start mid-2019, the Porsche Sprint Challenge Japan will begin in the latter half of the 2019 season.

The third project is the one-make e-race called Porsche E-Racing Japan, held on PlayStation 4’s Gran Turismo SPORT.

Out of approximately 6 million Gran Turismo users worldwide, about 3.5 million participate in online battles, showing how popular it is. This year, a World Final gathering top-ranked players from around the globe will be held in Monaco.

It demands race-level skills and strategies, and with FIA-sanctioned tournaments, it’s gaining attention as the next generation of motorsport.
(*Source: Official E-Sports Launch [Porsche] Announces 2019 Motorsport Activities)

By the way, there was a recent announcement about the timing of Porsche E-Racing Japan.

ポルシェがPS4「グランツーリスモSPORT」で公式レースを開催！ – GT Sport Porsche Esports Racing Japan（PERJ）

My husband often races online on Gran Turismo and posts decent times, but when he races online, everyone is unbelievably skilled… When I casually suggested, “Why don’t you try joining Porsche E-Racing Japan?,” he replied,

No way, I wouldn’t stand a chance. Everyone’s insanely good.

It’s a whole different world.

Honestly, I should have done at least this much research before going to see PCCJ. Then, when introduced to the motorsport representative, I could have asked better questions… (-_-)

Insights from Porsche’s Motorsport Manager

The person I spoke with this time was Mr. Naoki Matsuoka, who took over as manager of Porsche Japan’s motorsport division this year. Mr. Matsuoka is also an experienced racer himself and is leading Porsche Japan’s motorsport activities this season leveraging his experience.

The Relationship Between Porsche and Motorsport

He said, “Porsche and motorsport are inseparable,” and that this stance has never changed. While many manufacturers use motorsport know-how to improve production cars, Mr. Matsuoka said, “No other manufacturer feeds back motorsport technology into production cars as directly as Porsche does.”

Indeed, comparing the production GT3 and the Carrera Cup car makes this clear.

Although the Carrera Cup car looks like a GT3 on the outside, inside it features a roll cage and uses carbon fiber materials, achieving extreme weight reduction. You might think the Carrera Cup car is completely different structurally from the 911, but Porsche assembles it on the same production line as the regular 911.

In other words, the Carrera Cup car is built by the same staff on the same line that builds the 911, not by a dedicated team on a separate line. I find that amazing.

Porsche also emphasizes that their cars are both sporty and practical. Mr. Matsuoka said,

Even the Panamera, a luxury saloon segment car, can run on the circuit without any issues.

That’s right—the Panamera is exactly like that.

In fact, our 971 Panamera Turbo made headlines when it clocked 7 minutes 38 seconds on the Nürburgring Nordschleife in 2017, beating the 7 minutes 40 seconds of the 997 911 GT3. And that was on standard production tires.

This time was, of course, the fastest in its class worldwide at that time.

Well, the Panamera is impressive, but the driver’s skill must be incredible too. If I drove the Panamera Turbo on the Nürburgring, I’d probably take about 30 minutes…

Live Streaming and Gentleman Racers

Since this year, Porsche Carrera Cup Japan (PCCJ) has been live-streamed on JSPORT, so I asked about the intention behind this. Mr. Matsuoka said,

Of course, we want people to know about the Carrera Cup, but also, we want to shine a spotlight on the gentleman class racers.

Although they are classified as amateurs, they all have amazing skills. They participate in PCCJ, practice hard, and seriously compete to win races. We want many more people to watch their driving.

Since Mr. Matsuoka himself has racing experience, he surely understands the racers’ feelings.

Also, the Porsche Experience Day held at Fuji Speedway in June (which my husband and I attended for the first time last year),

ポルシェエクスペリエンスデイに参加＆ポルシェカレラカップ観戦＠富士スピードウェイ

will be held alongside PCCJ rounds 7 and 8 and Carrera Cup Asia races. This year, Porsche is renting Fuji Speedway exclusively for a whole day.

When I said, “That’s amazing, but it must cost a fortune…!” he replied,

Yes… (laughs) But we owe everything to Porsche fans and owners, so this is our way of showing gratitude.

We only had a short time to talk due to scheduling, but I hope to ask him more next time. Thank you, Mr. Matsuoka!

PCCJ Pit Tour

Next, I’d like to share what I heard on the pit tour. PCCJ started in 2001 and is now in its 19th year as a “one-make race” (a race where all participants drive identical racing machines).

Other manufacturers have held similar one-make races, but as entries dwindled over time, they withdrew. Porsche, however, continues to attract many racers every year and has become the longest-running one-make race.

As mentioned earlier, the Carrera Cup car looks like a production GT3 but is thoroughly lightweight inside. According to PCCJ regulations,

The minimum vehicle weight is 1215 kg with an empty fuel tank, and the minimum driver weight (including helmet, etc.) is 85 kg, making a total of 1300 kg for the race car.

This 1215 kg vehicle weight is about 300 kg lighter than the production GT3.

The PR representative explained that the Carrera T is often cited as a lightweight 911, but it is only about 20 kg lighter than a regular 911 (sorry for saying “only”). So, the Carrera Cup car is incredibly light by comparison.

Finally, when asked, “What are the highlights of PCCJ?” the PR representative said,

What you should watch for is the unique excitement of a one-make race. PCCJ has strict regulations, and all cars, including tires (Michelin), are equal condition. Although there are subtle setup differences by engineers, the outcome is almost entirely down to the driver’s skill. There are few one-make races this exciting.

There are one-make races by Japanese manufacturers too, but sometimes they use different brands of tires, leading to comments like “This season, brand X’s tires are stronger.” In PCCJ, however, it’s all about the driver’s skill, including mental strength and strategy.

I’m sure the fact that the cars are equal condition is a big attraction for PCCJ drivers. Also, surprisingly, there is a 71-year-old driver competing in this year’s PCCJ.

Still active for life—that’s cool.

Racing Is Adult Youth

Motorsport is sometimes called a “rich man’s hobby,” but as you learn more, you realize it’s a world of serious, all-out competition among adults. It reminded me of when Shinsuke Shimada formed a team to challenge the Suzuka 8 Hours endurance race.

Everyone has their own passion in life—some for work, some for hobbies. I want to live a life that burns passionately no matter how old I get, I realized again today (and that’s my conclusion for today, haha).