Max Racing have announced that they will not take part in the opening round of the 2022 Autobacs Super GT Series at Okayama International Raceway on 16-17 April, opting instead to begin their season from the second round at Fuji Speedway during the Golden Week holiday on 3-4 May.
The team have suspended all activities following the death of Oono Associates president and Max Racing founder Tsuyoshi Oono on 2 March. They did not take part in any of the official pre-season tests at Okayama or Fuji, and during this time Oono Associates’ subsidiary Takanokono Hotel also withdrew their title sponsorship of the Okayama round.
Tetsuya Tanaka, manager of Max Racing, addressed the public in the team’s first statement since Oono’s passing: “Following the sudden death of team owner Tsyuoshi Oono, we have suspended our participation in official tests. For various reasons, we have also decided not to take part in the race. We would like to express our deepest apologies to everyone involved and to all our supporters for this disappointing news. We apologise and ask for your understanding.”
“The team plans to return for the rest of the season starting from round two at Fuji. We are determined to fight for the championship as a team in memory of Tsuyoshi Oono. We hope that all motorsport fans will support our team in the coming battles. We would like to thank you in advance for your support.”
Kimiya Sato and Super Formula rookie contender Atsushi Miyake are still slated to drive the #244 Hachi-Ichi Toyota GR Supra this season. With Max Racing’s withdrawal from Okayama, there will be 27 cars entered in GT300 for the first race of the season.
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