The Lamborghini Murciélago claimed its first ever race win at the weekend when Marco Apicella and Yasutaka Hinoi raced to victory in the GT300 class of the Japanese Super GT series at Suzuka. Rounding out an excellent day for the much-maligned Italian machine, the second Team JLOC entry, driven by Koji Yamanishi and Wada-Q finished, was classified fifth in GT300 although it retired on the final lap. At this point it had been lying in second place with the team cruising towards a 1-2 finish.

After an uncompetitive 2005 season in the Japanese sportscar championship when the Team JLOC (Japanese Lamborghini Owners' Club) Murciélago R-GT flailed around in the larger GT500 class, for 2006 the fearsome machine has been homologated as the Murciélago RG-1 into the smaller GT300 class, and at a stroke its fortunes have been transformed.

The GT300 class started its 'Super Lap' qualifying runs last Saturday afternoon as the Super GT teams prepared for the opening round of the 2006 Japanese Super GT series, the Suzuka 300km. The first car to attack the circuit was the no 88 Akito-sponsored Team JLOC Murciélago RG-1 with Italian Marco Apicella behind the wheel. He completed his flying lap in 2.21.277sec, giving the rest of the GT300 field their target to beat. The next car out of the pits was the Kicchouhouzan Nissan Z driven by Kota Sasaki whose time of 2.20.858sec was sufficient to steal provisional pole from Apicella. The rain continued to fall, and conditions gradually worsened throughout the afternoon. As a result, none of the last five cars in the GT300 class were able to improve their times. Thus Sasaki claimed pole, followed by the no 87 and no 88 Lamborghini Murciélago RG-1s which lined up in 2nd and 3rd places on the grid.

While the sky was not threatening when the Sukuka 300km started at 14:30 on Sunday, a cold wind had been blowing ever since the morning and was growing consistently stronger during the early afternoon. As the machines took to the track for the formation lap, feelings in the pits were very uneasy about the unstable weather front, and the clouds drifting over the circuit occasionally dropped rain mixed with snow.

The Kichouhouzan Nissan Z in the hands of Kota Sasaki lost the GT300 leading position at the green light with the lead being snatched by two Lamborghini Murciélago RG-1s, the No.87 Trike-sponsored car which had been started by Koji Yamanashi, leading the no 88 Akito-backed example, driven by Marco Apicella. Behind them, a fight for 3rd place on the track was developing between Masami Kageyama in the no 13 Nissan Z and Amemiya Aspara in the no 7 Mazda RX-7. At the front of the GT300 class though the two Lamborghinis were running perfectly, the no 87 car in front with the no 88 car running just behind.

They carried out their routine pit stops one after another; the no 87 car pitting first with the no 88 car diving in one lap later. At the next round of stops the no 87 car experienced a problem as Wada-Q took over the drive; the machine being momentarily blocked by a car which was pitting in the next space, and causing an excessive loss of time. The no 88 car, with Yasutaka Hinoi behind the wheel, went into its stop and returned to the track without any incident, thereby taking the GT300 lead and pushing the no 87 machine down to second place. It appeared that the two Lamborghinis would finish in this order, but with just one lap remaining, the no 87 car suddenly and unexpectedly entered its pit, presumably due to worries over fuel shortage. Following a quick check-and-go stop, the car returned to the track, but the problem had not been resolved and the car failed to complete the final lap. The no 7 Mazda RX-7 driven by Tetsuya Yamano thus moved into second place.

At the chequered flag for the GT300 class it was the no 88 Lamborghini Murciélago RG-1 of Marco Apicella and Yasutaka Hinoi which claimed the class victory, with the no 7 Mazda RX-7 of Tetsuya Yamano and Hiroyuki Iiri placed second. Although the no 87 Murciélago RG-1 of Koji Yamanashi and Wada-Q did not cross the finish line after stopping on the final lap, a fifth place finish was awarded. Team JLOC has participated in the Japanese GT Championship since the inauguration of the series back in 1994, and this was its first - richly deserved - win. It is also the first win in the world for the Lamborghini Murciélago sportscar.