After being left out of the first two stages, the Brazilian will make his first race in Japan
The Sportsland Sugo Race Track, about 400 km North of Tokyo, receives this weekend, between October 16 and 18, the third stage of the Super Formula. The Championship, one of the fastest and most competitive in the world of motorsport, is the closest to Formula 1 both in terms of equipment and in the format.
Hired by the Buzz Racing by M-Max team in March, the Brazilian driver Sérgio Sette Câmara (YOUSE | MRV | XP Investimentos | Energisa | CBMM | Gasmig) had his first contact with the car in the only pre-season test held in Fuji, in the second half of March. Isolated in Japan due to social distancing policies, as well as restrictions on access to other countries, Sérgio spent practically three months in the eastern country until he obtained the authorization to go to Europe. There, with an Alpha Tauri team, he followed practically all the races of the F1 World Championship so far, playing his role as a reserve driver.
In the same way that he had difficulties to leave Japan, the Brazilian driver had even more difficulties to return in time for the start of the season, held on the last weekend of August. Unfortunately, the movement of foreigners over there remains very restricted and Sette Câmara ended up missing the first two stages of the Championship. After a direct involvement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as well as by the Brazilian Embassy in Japan, Sérgio finally managed to return and, from now on, will compete in the remaining five stages to the end of the 2020 season.
.: INTRODUCING THE SUPER FORMULA :.
After the tests at the beginning of the year and, mainly, the long time he spent at the team headquarters, Sette is quite prepared to start his journey in Super Formula. The car with which he will compete is based on the chassis of the renowned Italian factory Dallara, which introduced the new model in 2019. Buzz Racing by M-Max uses HONDA turbo engines that reach around 550 HP of power. The brakes are made of carbon, Brembo is the brand and the tyres of the Japanese Yokohama. One of the differentials of Super Formula with regard to power is the opportunity to use 100 seconds of boost – a kind of Push-to-Pass used in Stock Car races in Brazil.
According to Sette Câmara, what most caught his attention in the tests was the downforce and the grip of the tyres. “I come from three seasons in the F 2 when we used Pirelli tyres that had a high rate of degradation. Depending on the track, we only had one lap on the maximum performance curve, and then the tyres were already very bad. In the tests I felt this difference in grip, as well as the aerodynamic pressure that these cars have. The speed with which we managed to get around the curves is impressive, and with that, the G force exerted on the drivers is also very large. I prepared a lot physically, as well as in a simulator in the last months and I can’t wait to accelerate ”, commented the 22-year-old.
The Super Formula weekend schedule is very similar to that of the F1, another factor that brings drivers of this class closer to those who compete at the top of world motorsport. There are two free practice sessions on Friday, two on Saturday, which still includes the qualifying session and a single race on Sunday – which will last 53 laps.
The race will be broadcast live on YouTube via the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?
Check out the complete schedule (Brasilia time):
Thursday (15)
21: 00-22: 30 -> Free Practice 1
Friday (16)
01:00 – 02:30 -> Free Practice 2
21:20 – 23:20 -> Free Practice 3
Saturday (17)
01:40 – 02:40 -> Free Practice 4
22:20 – 23:20 -> Qualifying session
Sunday (18)
02:40 – 04:10 -> Race (53 laps)