The 2024 season of the Japanese Rally Championship has begun

Rally driver Yuna Kanematsu reports on RALLY Mikawa Bay 2024, the first round of the 2024 season of the Japanese Rally Championship, which has finally begun. What was the story behind the team’s success in finishing the rally despite a series of hardships and hardships?

The course runs through the Mikawa Bay Skyline

Hello, AMW readers! I am rally driver Yuna Kanematsu. In this, I report on the first round of the Japanese Rally Championship 2024 season, ‘RALLY Mikawa Bay 2024 Supported by AICELLO’, which started from 1 (Fri)-3 (Sun) March 2024 in Gamagori, Aichi Prefecture, Japan.

The Shinshiro Rally, which has been running for 20 years since 2004, will come to an end in 2023 and the new RALLY Mikawa Bay 2024 will be held. I entered the JN4 class, which is dominated by the Suzuki Swift Sport, with the ‘Daito Kentaku WinmaX Cusco DUNLOP Swift’.

In fact, we also drive the Mikawa Bay Skyline, which is now closed to traffic and is familiar to car lovers in Aichi Prefecture. Being able to drive at full throttle on such roads is one of the attractions of rallying.

In addition, the 2024 Japanese Rally Championship has also established a new one-make class for Toyota GR Yaris called the “MORIZO Challenge Cup”, which has been boosted by the success of up-and-coming young drivers.

Alpinestars ambassador

I will be starting my own team, Team Kanematsu (provisional), to compete in 2024, and although there are practically no major differences from the 2023 structure, I will be working towards the championship title!

In 2023, I borrowed service equipment from our club and other things needed to run the team, so things were a bit topsy-turvy before this season’s opening round. This time, I borrowed a Toyota “Hiace” from our sponsor Rosso Modelo as a service car. With the help of many people, we managed to get it into shape.

From 2024, myself and co-driver Momo Tsukishima will be ambassadors for the Italian-based sportswear company Alpinestars! We have a complete set of team wear and chairs used in the service, which is cool, so if you come to the site, I hope you’ll check out that part too.

In addition, we will be using A.S.H.’s new FSE engine oil and PSE transmission oil from 2024. In the past, the transmission sometimes felt worse and was difficult to shift into gear, but with A.S.H.’s oil, the transmission always felt good in the current competition!　In addition, a Defi DSDF data logger will be fitted to check the changes during the rally.