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KC Motorgroup Ltd. (KCMG) scored a TCR class podium finish on its Super Taikyu debut at the opening round of the 2019 championship at Suzuka with its Honda Civic Type R TCR FK8. The 2019 Super Taikyu endurance racing championship kicked off in style at the Suzuka Circuit, as KCMG used its experience of TCR to finish on the class podium in its first race in the series. Having fielded a Honda Civic Type R in TCR Europe last year, where it won four races and the Teams’ Championship, the squad knew how to get the most out of the car with the help of its highly experienced drivers. The trio of Matt Howson, Jim Ka To and KCMG founder Paul Ip put the Type R fourth on the grid in the TCR class for the five-hour race. Ip started and held fifth initially before an incident with another car dropped them to the rear of the field. Team-mate Ka To took over and the team used a full course yellow period to its advantage during the pit stop phase, hauling it up to third. The 2008 Asian Formula Renault Challenge champion put in a strong stint to help consolidate the position as the strategy change meant they were now out of sync with the rest of the field. While the other cars’ strategies played out, 2015 Le Mans 24 Hours LMP2 winner Howson joined the race in fifth. In the final stages, the British driver closed the gap to the podium places, crossing the line in fourth but was promoted to third following a penalty ahead. The second round of the Super Taikyu championship takes place on the Sugo circuit on 27/28 April. In the meantime KCMG will continue to take part in the Intercontinental GT Challenge, with the California 8 Hours on March 30, and the VLN Endurance Championship while it prepares for the Nurburgring 24 Hours. Matt Howson: “I’m so happy to be part of this brilliant debut for KCMG in Super Taikyu, with little time and preparation a podium was beyond expectation. My team-mates were on superb form and the team never put a foot wrong. There’s plenty of work to do but we’re only going to get better so the other teams should definitely be worried about us! Thanks to all at KCMG for a great performance.” Jim Ka To: “It’s been a great debut for KCMG in Super Taikyu. Paul did a good opening stint and the team did a really great job with the strategy to get us back into the top three during my stint, and Matt pulled off two great moves in the final run. I’m glad we scored a podium on debut because it means we have a strong baseline and can improve from here to score even better results in the rest of the season.” Paul Ip: “What a great start to our Super Taikyu campaign. A podium finish in your first race is always something to be proud of, especially when we had to overcome a few obstacles along the way. The strategy we used to get us from the back to the front worked perfectly, and Jim Ka To and Matt Howson were excellent team-mates. I couldn’t be prouder of the team we had behind us and I know we will only get stronger from here.”
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