Tomohiko Sunako (砂子 智彦, Sunako Tomohiko, born 6 November 1964 in Tokyo), professionally known as Jukuchou Sunako (砂子塾長), is a semi-retired Japanese racing driver, motoring journalist, and driving instructor.[1][2][3][4] He is the son of former Nissan works racing driver and Yamaha factory motorcycle racer, Yoshikazu Sunako.[citation needed]
Sunako competed in the Super Taikyu Series (formerly the N1 Endurance Series, and Super N1 Endurance Series) from 1990 to 2008. He won the Class 1 championship in 1996 driving a Nissan Skyline GT-R.[citation needed]
He suffered a broken leg and minor burns in an accident at Fuji Speedway during the All-Japan Fuji GT Race on 3 May 1998, when his car spun off during the formation laps in torrential rain, and was then struck by the Ferrari F355 of Tetsuya Ota which also lost control and burst into flames. Sunako recovered from his injuries and continued to race in the All-Japan Grand Touring Car Championship / Super GT Series until 2006.[citation needed]
He retired in 2008, but came back to racing in 2018 to compete in the GT World Challenge Asia series in a BMW Team Studie M4 GT4. Sunako and Takayuki Kinoshita steered BMW Team Studie to the GT4 teams' championship in 2018, and Sunako won the GT4 overall drivers' championship in 2019.[citation needed]
In 2012, Sunako established Tokyo Virtual Circuit, a simulator facility based in the Minato ward of Tokyo.[5]
Complete JGTC/Super GT Results
edit| Year | Team | Car | Class | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | DC | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | 910 Racing | Porsche 911 | GT300 | SUZ | FUJ 8 |
SEN 4 |
FUJ | MIN | 13th | 13 | ||||
| ecurie SiFo | Renault Sport Spider | SUG 18 |
||||||||||||
| 1998 | 910 Racing | Porsche 911 | GT300 | SUZ 5 |
FUJ C |
SEN | FUJ | MOT | MIN | SUG | 23rd | 8 | ||
| 1999 | Team Taisan Jr. | GT300 | SUZ 5 |
FUJ | SUG | MIN | FUJ | TAI | 20th | 10 | ||||
| 910 Racing | MOT 9 |
|||||||||||||
| 2000 | GT300 | MOT Ret |
FUJ 8 |
SUG Ret |
FUJ 9 |
TAI | MIN | SUZ 12 |
25th | 5 | ||||
| 2001 | GT300 | TAI 5 |
FUJ 6 |
SUG 2 |
FUJ 6 |
MOT 10 |
SUZ 4 |
MIN 5 |
3rd | 54 | ||||
| 2002 | Team Taisan Jr. | GT300 | TAI | FUJ 7 |
SUG | SEP | 21st | 7 | ||||||
| 910 Racing | FUJ 14 |
MOT | MIN 8 |
SUZ | ||||||||||
| 2003 | GT300 | TAI | FUJ 17 |
SUG | FUJ 21 |
FUJ 15 |
MOT 11 |
AUT | SUZ 16 |
NC | 0 | |||
| 2004 | GT300 | TAI 16 |
SUG 24 |
SEP 15 |
TOK 19 |
MOT 12 |
AUT 22 |
SUZ 20 |
NC | 0 | ||||
| 2005 | GT300 | OKA Ret |
FUJ 18 |
SEP 15 |
SUG 15 |
MOT 17 |
FUJ Ret |
AUT 15 |
SUZ 20 |
NC | 0 | |||
| 2006 | Endless Sports | GT300 | SUZ | OKA | FUJ | SEP | SUG | SUZ Ret |
MOT | AUT | FUJ | NC | 0 |
References
edit- ^ "BMW TEAM Studie体制発表会2020 | BMW Team Studie" (in Japanese). 14 March 2020. Archived from the original on 24 June 2021. Retrieved 16 June 2021.
- ^ "Tomohiko Sunako | Racing career profile | Driver Database". www.driverdb.com. Archived from the original on 24 June 2021. Retrieved 16 June 2021.
- ^ Magazine, Speedsport. "Tomohiko Sunako: Racedriver biography - career and success". www.speedsport-magazine.com. Archived from the original on 24 June 2021. Retrieved 16 June 2021.
- ^ "Tomohiko Sunako Profile | Racing Years". www.racingyears.com. Archived from the original on 24 June 2021. Retrieved 16 June 2021.
- ^ "砂子塾長挨拶・プロフィール | 砂子塾長.com" (in Japanese). 10 May 2020. Archived from the original on 25 October 2021. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
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