Reigning champion Nojiri and Hirakawa were the clear class of the field in the first two races of 2022 earlier this month, with Impul Toyota driver Hirakawa taking victory in the first race ahead of his Mugen Honda rival before the positions were reversed in the second race.
It leaves Nojiri on 38 points, two points clear of Hirakawa in the standings by virtue of his bonus points for pole position for the second race.
Read Also:
Ritomo Miyata (TOM’S), who was fifth and third in the two Fuji races, is their nearest rival on 19 points ahead of this weekend’s third round at Suzuka.
While Hirakawa was pleased to end a winless streak dating back to 2020 at Fuji, he admitted his path was eased by some of Honda’s other drivers suffering misfortunes, including Nojiri’s teammate Ukyo Sasahara and Team Goh’s Red Bull-backed rookie Ren Sato.
He named Sasahara and Sato, as well as rookie Atsushi Miyake, whom he had to battle early in the second Fuji race, as drivers to watch as…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Motorsport.com – All – Stories…