Back in the Land of the Rising Sun, Fenestraz got up on the wrong side of the bed.

By joining the prestigious Team Tom's during the off-season, Sacha Fenestraz had everything to smile about. The Franco-Argentinian was returning to Japan after an acceptable interlude in Formula E with Nissan e.dams, a country that allowed him to become a professional driver with the help of Toyota in Super GT and Super Formula. The former champion of F3 Japanese (2019) had also spent three years with Team Tom's, in Super GT (6^e in 2022).

The disappointment was as great as the promise at the opening round at Suzuka. Never the Formula One champion Renault 2.0 Eurocup 2017 was unable to finish in the top 10 and score a single point! On Saturday, Fenestraz was handicapped by a laborious qualifying session, punctuated by a driving error (22^e). "I tried to improve my position as much as possible and put myself in a position that would allow me to score points, but at the end of the race the tyre degradation became too great and I lost positions." However, optimism remained high for the 25-year-old. “If I can get a better position in qualifying tomorrow, I think I can fight better in the race.”

Taking inspiration from Tsuboi

Sunday unfortunately did not go as planned. Of course, the qualifications were more satisfactory (11^e). But this time Fenestraz was not helped by his pit wall. “The problem was the strategy. The team called me into the pits too early. I think it was a mistake. I wanted to stay out longer, maybe until the last ten or five laps. But the team wanted to come in early. So we did it and unfortunately it didn’t go well. I’m not very happy to be honest.” Such comments are not usual in the mouths of French speakers.

© Toyota GR

The frustration was evident, especially since the settings of his Dallara were improvable. “I think we had a very strong car for the race. But unfortunately we couldn’t pass Sena Sakaguchi. Our top speed was much lower than his. So it was very difficult to pass him, even with the Push-to-Pass. (engine boost for overtaking. Ed.). But I think the main issue today was definitely the strategy." Sacha Fenestraz also wondered about the difference in behavior between his car and that entrusted to the double title holder, his teammate Sho Tsuboi (4^e and 2^e), the only one to challenge the domination of Dandelion Racing embodied by Kakunoshin Ohta and Tadasuke Makino. “The car setup between Tsuboi and me is very, very different. So I think from Motegi onwards (April 18-20), I'll take inspiration from his settings and then try to manage from there." The Annecy native therefore has plenty to keep him busy in the coming weeks.

Medhi Casaurang-Vergez (with Tetsuya Suzuki)

ALSO READ > Suzuka Race 2: Makino gives Dandelion Racing a double, Iwasa leads the championship