12 Hour winner on road to recovery

ONE of the heroes of the Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour is on the road to recovery following a hefty crash at Fuji Speedway recently.

Japanese star Katsumasa Chiyo, the 2015 12-hour winner, crashed heavily when his Nissan GT-R experienced brake failure at more than 280km/hr during the recent Super GT race at the famous Fuji circuit.

Chiyo-san endeared himself to thousands of Aussie fans when he stormed to the lead in the closing stages of the 2015 race, helping to deliver Nissan a remarkable Bathurst victory with their Nissan GT-R NISMO GT3.

He then starred in the final 30 minutes of the 2016 race when he cut a 10-second margin to under 2 at the line whilst chasing eventual winner Shane van Gisbergen's McLaren, ultimately helping Nissan back up their 2015 win with second place this year.

"I could leave the hospital in a day after the big crash in last Super GT race but I had a detailed medical examination because the impact was huge, then slight damage was found in the backbone and had a diagnosis of complete cure 3-4 weeks," Chiyo posted on his official website.

"And I will have a detailed medical examination before the race once again and will judge it whether I can participate in next Super GT Suzuka1000Km. Therefore the team will register a third driver just in case.

"Because it is the important race that for the championship, I try advanced medical care and nourishment management to promote recovery.

"Even if there is only a 1 percent chance, I’m going to do the maximum that I can and never give up until the last moment of judgment.

"Finally thank you for much support and a messages of the encouragement and please don't worry, I'm very fine and positive."

The B12hr team extends their best wishes to Chiyo-san in a quick recovery and a return to the circuit.