Nissan GT-R R35 Motorsport History 2008 - 2009

Nissan GT-R finished third in the Super GT 2009 Championship

November 8th, Twin ring Motegi (Tochigi prefecture) - Sunday, November 8th saw the final round of the 2009 SUPER GT series taken place at Twin Ring Motegi. Aiming at title glory, the MOTUL AUTECH GT-R (#1 – Satoshi Motoyama / Benoit Treuyer) qualified in fifth place and put in a spirited drive in the race until tyre trouble slowed the car's progress. The results netted third place for Satoshi Motoyama in the Driver's standings, while NISMO were third in the Team's title fight too.

Announcement on Global Motorsports Activities for 2009

TOKYO (February 27, 2009) - Nissan Motor Co. Ltd. and Nissan Motorsports International Co., Ltd. (NISMO) announced their global motorsport programme for 2009. For 2009, Nissan continues to participate in the SUPER GT series, GT500 class, which is the highest level in Japanese domestic motorsports, with the Nissan GT-R. Nissan will also support grassroots activities in select countries outside of Japan to help nurture the motorsports culture, which has millions of fans throughout the world. The R35 model Nissan GT-R will be entered in the GT500 class of SUPER GT. This year's entries will incorporate changes that include an improved air-cooling system and a paddle-shift transmission. The vehicles also conform to the racing body's latest regulation changes to decrease down force through shortened vehicle overhang. NISMO provides technical assistance and vehicle development to all participating teams. This year's line-up of NISMO, HASEMI MOTORSPORT, TEAM IMPUL and KONDO RACING will deploy 1 car each for a total of 4 Nissan GT-Rs that will race in the GT500 class series. Kunihiko Kakimoto remains as general manager in charge of Nissan related teams with the NISMO team managed by Yutaka Suzuki. HASEMI MOTOR SPORT team welcomes to its roster Hironobu Yasuda, who trained in the rigorous Nissan Driver Development Program (NDDP).

5 years since the legendary Syline R-34 GT-R won JGTC Title and the new NISSAN GT-R is back again to claim the Championship Title in 2008

November 9th. Sunto Gun, Shizuoka prefecture. - Round 9 of the 2008 SUPER GT took place at Fuji Speedway (1 lap: 4.563kms). In light rain, the CALSONIC IMPUL GT-R (#12 Tsugio Matsuda/Sebastien Philippe), which started on slick tyres after qualifying in twelfth position, took the win. In the series points' battle, the Xanavi NISMO GT-R (#23 Satoshi Motoyama/Benoit Treluyer) finished 9th, netting the series' championship title. Making its debut this year, the NISSAN GT-R took seven victories from nine rounds, and in the process won the Driver's Championship Title. Source: Nissan

Road to the first GT-R Championship title ...

March 16, Suzuka Circuit, Mie Prefecture, Japan - The XANAVI NISMO GT-R (#23), starting from the second on the grid and driven by Satoshi Motoyama and Benoit Treluyer, won the first race of the 2008 Super GT series in Japan in front of more than 32,000 spectators. Michael Krumm and Masataka Yanagida brought the MOTUL AUTECH GT-R (#22) home in the 2nd place for a historic debut race weekend for Nissan. This was the first 1-2 finish for NISMO since last years round three at Fuji Speedway. And it was the first win for a GT-R machine since the CALSONIC SKYLINE (Benoit Treluyer/Yuji Ide) victory at Suzuka in 2003. This means that Treluyer was the winner of both the last race of the Skyline GT-R and the first race of the Nissan GT-R Source: Nissan

NISSAN ANNOUNCES NEW 2008 SEASON MOTORSPORT PROGRAMS

TOKYO (January 31, 2008) - Nissan Motor Co. Ltd and Nissan Motorsports International Co., Ltd. (NISMO) today announced their 2008 Global Motorsport Programs. Highlighting the company's continued commitment to global motorsport, Nissan will enter the all-new GT-R into the premium Japanese motorsport series, SUPER GT. 2008 marks the return of GT-R to racing, following the transition from the R34 model to the Z five years ago. Continuing from last year, Mr. Kunihiko Kakimoto will be the General Manager for all Nissan related teams, and the NISMO Team Manager will be Mr. Yoshitaka Iijima. NISMO will give technical support and car development support to teams entering the NISSAN GT-R in SUPER GT. As a part of the Nissan team group, NISMO, HASEMI MOTORSPORT, TEAM IMPUL, and KONDO RACING will enter the GT500 class with a total of five NISSAN GT-Rs.

The livery design GT-R GT500 Race Car

TOKYO (January 16, 2008) - The new livery resulted from close collaboration between Nissan's design team and NISMO, its motorsports affiliate company, and incorporates feedback from members of the "Club NISMO" fan club. The signature wide "brush stroke" design motif, synonymous with the current Fairlady Z race car, was carried forward into the new GT-R racing car as Nissan's racing fans worldwide could immediately associate with the design. The livery design swipes forward from the rear in bold red and black - the red symbolizes the passion for racing, while the black signifies the high performance of the new Nissan GT-R.