Race 2: P7 on the grid → P5

Race 2, held from 17:50 on Saturday 20 June, featured a reverse-grid format for the top 10 from qualifying, meaning Tsuchihashi started from P7 on the grid. Immediately from the start, there was intense battling for position inside the top 10, with two cars dropping back significantly.

Tsuchihashi avoided the early confusion well and moved up to P4 on the opening lap, putting himself in position to challenge for P3 from lap 2 onwards. Although battles continued in Race 2, there were no incidents that required the Safety Car to be deployed, unlike in Race 1.

Tsuchihashi held P4 until lap 6, but came under pressure from the driver who had qualified P1 and was therefore recovering from P10 on the reverse grid, dropping to P5 on lap 7. In the closing stages, he again closed the gap to the car ahead as he looked to retake P4, but the race reached its 30-minute time limit with Tsuchihashi just 0.1 seconds behind. He finished the 13-lap race in P5, scoring points for the second consecutive race this weekend.

©KSP Reportages