
Real pair Koudai Tsukakoshi and Nobuharu Matsushita took the win on the road after a thrilling battle with the #8 ARTA Honda shared by Nojiri and Toshiki Oyu, only to be disqualified following post-race inspection for a worn skid block.
Nojiri and Oyu arrived at Sugo carrying only 22kg of success ballast, having failed to score since the opening round of the season at Okayama, while Tsukakoshi and Matsushita had a nominal 58kg, including a stage one fuel flow restrictor.