Alright, for starters, the first course of pre-race chatter.
Where's KCMG? They are a Chinese-based team, they raced at Fuji just a few days ago... you'd think that if they made it to Fuji they would make it to Shanghai, as well, as it could be considered their home race. They didn't have any car-destroying crashes at Fuji, as far as I'm aware of, and there's no Asian Le Mans Series duties until December 8th at Sepang... so what's stopping them?
Also, as the Aston Martin driver lineup continues to flex about, will Bruno Senna or Frederic Makowiecki be racing? Since Goethe's back, where to for Bruno Senna? And why hasn't Mako been immediately confirmed? He's racing at Twin Ring Motegi for Super GT on November 3rd... that gives him plenty of time to hop over to Shanghai for the 6 Hours. If Paul Dalla Lana comes back aboard, considering he is done with those "business commitments", there will be a bit of a fight for the third seat in the #99, I think: Stanaway or Senna.
Where's Kaz Nakajima? He'll be racing at Twin Ring Motegi on the 3rd also but surely he could make it to Shanghai... he has five days to do it. Then again, it looks like a sealed deal since there's no "TBA" in the 3rd slot for the #7; just a " - ".