Three laps after the driver switch to Mr. Sato, the sky darkened suddenly and rain began to fall heavily. The downpour made it almost impossible to see in the now heavy wet conditions. Mr. Sato braved the rain during the entirety of his approximately 50-minute stint.

Despite the challenging conditions, Sato maintained his position of 11th, handed to him by teammate Yamamoto, until giving the car to the next driver in the lineup, Mr. Pixton. This time the crew took the time to refuel the car, losing a few seconds over their rivals. Pixton went out on track in 17th place.

After completing his stint, Sato said the following: “It was wet throughout my stint, and it's unfortunate my first race was run in the rain. I wasn't able to drive as well as I'd imagined. Honestly, I'm really impressed with the skill displayed by the professional racing drivers. They are completely different to me in the amount of turn-in speed they carry and the lines they choose into the corners in the wet conditions. If I followed their lines, I'd be throwing the tail out in a slide at the exit of every corner, so it was all I could do to keep cornering the way I did. In contrast, the professional drivers exited every turn with traction and as if nothing had happened. Those drivers and myself are on completely different levels. I learned a lot. The professional drivers are superb.”