The timetable for this weekend’s World Touring Car Championship races at the Twin Ring Motegi has been significantly altered, with Typhoon Lan meaning that the shipment of teams equipment has been delayed.
The announcement comes after a torrid time in Nigbo, China nearly two weeks’ ago, when heavy rain throughout the weekend ultimately caused the Main Race to be stopped after just two safety car laps.
Typhoon Lan has been lashing the region recently, causing “significant delays to vessel routings and operations”. The scheduled WTCC container shipment from Shanghai to Tokyo has been delayed.
As well as delays to shipping, the typhoon has also caused around 350 flights to be cancelled, passenger trains getting stuck due to blackouts and the deaths of three local people.
The changes mean that there will be little track action on Saturday, with only Free Practice 1 taking place at 15:15 local time (07:15 BST, 08:15 CEST).
All the remaining sessions will take place on Sunday, beginning with Free Practice 2 at 08:00 local time. There will be just four hours between qualifying and the Opening Race as a result.
Whilst both races will still be carried live on Eurosport 1, the changes to the schedule mean that qualifying will only be available on the Eurosport Player.
“Unfortunately, the weather is something we cannot control and we hope fans watching on TV and making the trip to Twin Ring Motegi won’t experience too much inconvenience,” said Head of Eurosport Events François Ribeiro.
“In DHL, the WTCC’s Official Logistics Partner, our other logistical consultants and operational staff, we have the perfect team of people working to ensure delays are kept to a minimum.
“And while it’s going to be a busy Sunday, we have managed similar timetable congestion effectively in the past. We look forward to a great show.”