The rain continued to fall throughout the day and with heavier rain on the way the qualifying session was brought forward by 30-minutes.
On a wet track the competitors taking part in the 6 Hours of Fuji, Round 7 of the 2017 FIA World Endurance Championship, found it hard to find any grip. Several cars spun but there were no major incidents in the tricky conditions.
LMP1: Porsche Takes Step Closer to 2017 Title
The no2 Porsche of championship leaders Earl Bamber and Brendon Hartley took a step closer to securing the 2017 world title by taking pole position in Japan.
It was the second pole for the car and Hartley but the debut pole position for Bamber. The two Kiwi drivers set a combined lap time of 1m35.160, just 0.071s ahead of the no1 Porsche of Andre Lotterer and Neel Jani.
The no8 Toyota of Kazuki Nakajima and Sebastien Buemi were close to the two Porsches , finishing the session with a 1m35.355, just 0.195s behind the no2 Porsche 919 on pole position.
The no7 Toyota didn’t fare as well, finishing 1.47 seconds off the pace.
LMGTE PRO: Debut 2017 Pole for Porsche GT Team
The no91 Porsche 911 RSR of Fred Makowiecki and Richard Lietz took the new for 2017 car’s first pole position in the WEC with an average lap time of 1m47.577. The Porsche duo finished ahead of the two Ford GTs with the no67 Ford of Andy Priaulx and Harry Tincknell 0.441 seconds behind the pole sitter, with the no66 Ford just 0.121s behind their teammates.
LMP2: Vaillante Rebellion 1-2 in the Rain
The no13 Vaillante Rebellion Oreca 07-Gibson of Nelson Piquet Jr and David Heinemeier Hansson finished at the top of the LMP2 standings with a debut pole for the car and the drivers. The 1m44.196 average lap was 0.729 seconds quicker than the rest of the field led by their teammates Bruno Senna and Julien Canal in the no31 Oreca07.
Championship leaders Thomas Laurent and Ho Pin Tung were third fastest in the no38 Jackie Chan DC Racing Oreca-Gibson with a 1m45.078, 0.849s ahead of round 6 winners Andre Negrao and Nico Lapierre in no36 Signatech Alpine A470 in fourth.
LMGTE AM: First Pole For Clearwater Racing Ferrari
The no61 Clearwater Racing Ferrari F488 of Matt Griffin and Weng Sun Mok scored their first pole position in the WEC in the wet conditions at Fuji Speedway. Griffin set the early pace before handing over to Mok to consolidate their position at the top of the LMGTE Am time sheets. The Ferrari was 0.326s ahead of the no77 Dempsey-Proton Racing Porsche of Christian Ried and Matteo Cairoli, which, in turn, was just 0.050s ahead of the no98 Aston Martin Racing Vantage of Pedro Lamy and Paul Dalla Lana.
Round 7 of the 2017 FIA World Endurance Championship, the 6 Hours of Fuji, is due to start at 11h00 (local) / 04h00 (CET)