2025 Super Formula Championship
Tadasuke Makino (left) and his team Dandelion Racing (right) are the current Drivers' and Teams' Championship leaders, respectively.
The 2025 Japanese Super Formula Championship is the fifty-third season of premier Japanese open-wheel motor racing, and the twelfth under the moniker of Super Formula. The season started in March at Suzuka Circuit and is due to be contested over 12 rounds in seven race weekends, ending in November at Suzuka.[1]
Vantelin Team TOM’S driver Sho Tsuboi entered the season as the defending champion.
Teams and drivers
All teams use identical Dallara-built SF23 chassis with either Honda or Toyota engines. Every Honda-powered car uses a Honda HR-417E engine and every Toyota-powered car uses a Toyota TRD-01F engine. All teams compete with tyres supplied by Yokohama.
| Entrant | Engine | No. | Driver name | Rounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vantelin Team TOM’S | Toyota | 1 | Sho Tsuboi[2] | 1–5 |
| 37 | Sacha Fenestraz | 1–5 | ||
| Kondo Racing | Toyota | 3 | Kenta Yamashita[2] | 1–5 |
| 4 | Zak O'Sullivan | 1–5 | ||
| Docomo Team Dandelion Racing | Honda | 5 | Tadasuke Makino[3] | 1–5 |
| 6 | Kakunoshin Ohta[3] | 1–5 | ||
| Kids com Team KCMG | Toyota | 7 | Kamui Kobayashi[2] | 1–2, 5 |
| Seita Nonaka | 3–4 | |||
| 8 | Nirei Fukuzumi[2] | 1–5 | ||
| Hazama Ando Triple Tree Racing | Honda | 10 | ”Juju” | 1–5 |
| ThreeBond Racing | Honda | 12 | Atsushi Miyake[3] | 1–5 |
| docomo business Rookie | Toyota | 14 | Kazuya Oshima[2] | 1–5 |
| Team Mugen | Honda | 15 | Ayumu Iwasa[3] | 1–5 |
| 16 | Tomoki Nojiri[3] | 1–5 | ||
| Itochu Enex Wecars Team Impul | Toyota | 19 | Oliver Rasmussen | 1–2, 5[a] |
| Seita Nonaka | 1–2 | |||
| Rikuto Kobayashi | 3–4 | |||
| 20 | Mitsunori Takaboshi | 1–5 | ||
| KDDI TGMGP TGR-DC | Toyota | 28 | Kazuto Kotaka | 1–5 |
| 29 | Hibiki Taira | 1–5 | ||
| Seita Nonaka | TBC | |||
| Sanki Vertex Partners Cerumo・Inging | Toyota | 38 | Sena Sakaguchi[2] | 1–5 |
| 39 | Toshiki Oyu[2] | 1–5 | ||
| San-Ei Gen with B-Max | Honda | 50 | Syun Koide | 1–5 |
| Ponos Nakajima Racing | Honda | 64 | Ren Sato[3] | 1–5 |
| 65 | Igor Omura Fraga | 1–5 |
Team changes
- The entry co-run by Inging Motorsport and Cerumo added another title sponsor alongside Vertex Partners, with Industrial manufacturer Sanki Shokai joining the series and the team competing under the name Sanki Vertex Partners Cerumo・Inging.[4]
- TGM Grand Prix underwent substantial changes within its organization. The team ended its engine contract with Honda and instead became part of Toyota Gazoo Racing, joining Rookie Racing in serving as a Toyota junior team and receiving Toyota engines. The team is co-run by TGM and TOM'S, acquired a new title sponsor in telecommunications operator KDDI and entered the 2025 season under the name KDDI TGMGP TGR-DC.[2][5]
- A new team entered the championship in Triple Tree Racing, established by Hideki Noda, former Formula One and father of Juju Noda. It uses Honda engines and is operated by motorsport management company 4Minutes. Construction company Hazama Ando was confirmed to be the entry's title sponsor, with the team running under the name Hazama Ando Triple Tree Racing.[6]
- Red Bull ended their partnership with Team Mugen after seven years of cooperation.[7]
- Team Impul added another title sponsor in Itochu's subsidiary company, used car dealer Wecars, with the team competing under the name Itochu Enex Wecars Team Impul.[8]
Driver changes
- Nakajima Racing saw three-time series champion Naoki Yamamoto retire from the series after 15 seasons.[9] The team promoted their reserve driver Igor Fraga, who spent 2024 competing in Super GT's GT300 class with Anest Iwata Racing with Arnage, to its Super Formula outfit.[3]
- Team Impul have an all-new line up as 2016 series champion Yuji Kunimoto retired from the series after 14 seasons and neither of the four drivers who drove the No. 19 car in 2024 returned.[10] The team signed Oliver Rasmussen, who came 19th in the WEC's Hypercar class with Jota Sport in 2024 and made his series debut, and NISMO works driver Mitsunori Takaboshi, who made his full-season debut after a one-off Super Formula appearance for Team Impul in 2021.[2]
- B-Max Racing Team saw Iori Kimura leave the team after Honda ended its association with him. He joined Team Mach in the Super GT GT300 class, while B-Max promoted reigning Super Formula Lights champion Syun Koide from its outfit in that championship to replace him.[11][12][3]
- TOM'S saw Ukyo Sasahara leave the series after five years and three full-time seasons to focus on his Super GT GT500 efforts with TGR Team Deloitte TOM'S. 2022 Super Formula runner-up Sacha Fenestraz returned to the series after a two-year stint in Formula E with Nissan to replace him.[2]
- Kondo Racing replaced TGMGP-bound Kazuto Kotaka with former Williams Academy driver Zak O'Sullivan, who moved to Japan after coming 16th in Formula 2 with ART Grand Prix.[2]
- Newly rebranded team TGMGP also took on two new drivers as Juju Noda and Hiroki Otsu both left the team following its switch from Honda to Toyota engines, with Noda switching to the new Triple Tree Racing team and Otsu electing to focus on his Super GT GT500 efforts with ARTA. Kazuto Kotaka joined the team after coming 14th with Kondo Racing in his second season in 2024. Hibiki Taira, who drove Team Impul's No. 19 car on four occasions in 2024, completed TGMGP's lineup on his full-time debut in the series.[2]
- Juju Noda joined the new Triple Tree Racing team for her second season in the championship after finishing her debut season with TGM Grand Prix in 21st.[6]
Mid-season changes
- Oliver Rasmussen was forced to withdraw from the first two rounds at Suzuka after suffering a back injury in a crash in free practice.[13] Rasmussen's replacement for the two races was announced to be TGMGP's reserve driver Seita Nonaka, who came 3rd in Super Formula Lights with TOM'S and made his series debut.[14][15]
- Kamui Kobayashi missed the Motegi double-header due to a calendar clash with the WEC's 6 Hours of Imola. Nonaka deputized once again after doing so for Team Impul at the Suzuka season opener.[16] With Rasmussen still not cleared for competition after his crash at the opening round, Team Impul signed 2024 Super Formula Lights runner-up Rikuto Kobayashi to make his series debut in his place.[17]
- Oliver Rasmussen returns for the third round at Autopolis after he recovered from his back injury.[18]
- Toyota reevaluated the lineup of its TGMGP junior team after round five at Autopolis: reserve driver Seita Nonaka will be promoted to one of the team's race seats, while Hibiki Taira will in turn be demoted to serve as Toyota's reserve driver.[19][20]
Race calendar
The provisional calendar was announced on 1 August 2024.[1] All weekends except the ones at Autopolis and Sportsland Sugo will be double-headers, making this the longest calendar in Super Formula history. The series originally planned its first race outside Japan since 2004 with a round held at Inje Speedium.[21] These plans, however, were cancelled in October 2024. It marked the second time that a planned round at Inje was cancelled.[22]
| Round | Circuit | Location | Date | Support bill | Map of circuit locations |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Suzuka International Racing Course | Suzuka, Mie | 8 March | Super Formula Lights Honda N-One Owner's Cup |
|
| 2 | 9 March | ||||
| 3 | Mobility Resort Motegi | Motegi, Tochigi | 19 April | Porsche Carrera Cup Asia All Japan Road Race Championship | |
| 4 | 20 April | ||||
| 5 | Autopolis | Hita, Oita | 18 May | Super Formula Lights Honda N-One Owner's Cup | |
| 6 | Fuji Speedway | Oyama, Shizuoka | 19 July | Kyojo Cup Porsche Carrera Cup Japan | |
| 7 | 20 July | ||||
| 8 | Sportsland SUGO | Shibata, Miyagi | 9–10 August | Porsche Carrera Cup Japan Honda N-One Owner's Cup | |
| 9 | Fuji Speedway | Oyama, Shizuoka | 11 October | Kyojo Cup Honda N-One Owner's Cup | |
| 10 | 12 October | ||||
| 11 | Suzuka International Racing Course | Suzuka, Mie | 22 November | Formula Regional Japanese Championship | |
| 12 | 23 November |
Regulation changes
Double-header race weekends now have two 60-minute practice sessions on a Friday instead of a single 90-minute session. The rounds held at Autopolis and Sugo retain the format previously employed for single-race events, with 90 minutes of practice prior to qualifying on Saturday. Races held on Saturday are now run over a reduced distance of 165km, while races held on Sunday, including those held during the single-race weekends at Autopolis and SUGO, are run over 185km. These longer races no longer have a pre-determined pit window, while the shorter races retained the existing pit window.[23]
A restriction on the teams' activity on race weekends was employed in order to prevent fatigue among staff members. Teams are now required to stop all work carried out in the paddock four hours after the end of the final session, although there are exemptions in cases of cars becoming seriously damaged in incidents.[23]
Race results
| Round | Circuit | Pole position | Fastest lap | Winning driver | Winning team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Suzuka International Racing Course | Tomoki Nojiri | Ayumu Iwasa | Kakunoshin Ohta | Docomo Team Dandelion Racing |
| 2 | Tomoki Nojiri | Ren Sato | Tadasuke Makino | Docomo Team Dandelion Racing | |
| 3 | Mobility Resort Motegi | Tadasuke Makino | Sho Tsuboi | Tadasuke Makino | Docomo Team Dandelion Racing |
| 4 | Kenta Yamashita | Sho Tsuboi | Kakunoshin Ohta | Docomo Team Dandelion Racing | |
| 5 | Autopolis | Tomoki Nojiri | Ayumu Iwasa | Sho Tsuboi | Vantelin Team TOM’S |
| 6 | Fuji Speedway | ||||
| 7 | |||||
| 8 | Sportsland SUGO | ||||
| 9 | Fuji Speedway | ||||
| 10 | |||||
| 11 | Suzuka International Racing Course | ||||
| 12 |
Championship standings
Scoring system
- Race points
| Position | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | 7th | 8th | 9th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Points | 20 | 15 | 11 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
- Qualifying points
| Position | 1st | 2nd | 3rd |
|---|---|---|---|
| Points | 3 | 2 | 1 |
Drivers' championship
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Notes:
- † – Driver did not finish the race, but was classified as they completed more than 90% of the race distance.
Teams' championship
| Pos | Driver | SUZ1 | MOT | AUT | FUJ1 | SUG | FUJ2 | SUZ2 | Points | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Docomo Team Dandelion Racing | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 116 | |||||||
| 10 | 12 | 2 | 2 | 13 | ||||||||||
| 2 | Team Mugen | 2 | 3 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 67 | |||||||
| 7 | 4 | Ret | 10 | Ret | ||||||||||
| 3 | Vantelin Team TOM’S | 4 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 62 | |||||||
| 11 | 16 | 8 | Ret | 17 | ||||||||||
| 4 | Ponos Nakajima Racing | 3 | 5 | 3 | 9 | 4 | 46 | |||||||
| 18 | 6 | Ret | 12 | 8 | ||||||||||
| 5 | Sanki Vertex Partners Cerumo・Inging | 6 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 31 | |||||||
| Ret | 15 | Ret | 7 | 10 | ||||||||||
| 6 | Kids com Team KCMG | 5 | 9 | 5 | 8 | 7 | 23 | |||||||
| Ret | 14 | 11 | 16 | 9 | ||||||||||
| 7 | Kondo Racing | 8 | 11 | 7 | 11 | 3 | 20 | |||||||
| 9 | 22† | 12 | 13 | Ret | ||||||||||
| 8 | docomo business Rookie | 13 | 10 | 10 | 6 | 15 | 7 | |||||||
| 9 | San-Ei Gen with B-Max | 14 | 8 | 14 | 14 | 20 | 3 | |||||||
| 10 | Itochu Enex Wecars Team Impul | 12 | 19 | 15 | 19 | 11 | 0 | |||||||
| 17 | 20 | 16 | Ret | 14 | ||||||||||
| 11 | KDDI TGMGP TGR-DC | 15 | 17 | 13 | 15 | 12 | 0 | |||||||
| Ret | 18 | 18 | Ret | 16 | ||||||||||
| 12 | ThreeBond Racing | Ret | 13 | 17 | 18 | 18 | 0 | |||||||
| 13 | Triple Tree Racing | 16 | 21 | 19 | 17 | 19 | 0 | |||||||
| Pos | Driver | SUZ1 | MOT | AUT | FUJ1 | SUG | FUJ2 | SUZ2 | Points | |||||
Notes:
- † – Driver did not finish the race, but was classified as they completed more than 90% of the race distance.
Notes
- ^ Oliver Rasmussen entered the first double-header at Suzuka, but withdrew ahead of the first qualifying session after sustaining an injury in free practice. He was replaced by Seita Nonaka.
References
- ^ a b Klein, Jamie (15 August 2024). "Super Formula heading to South Korea in 2025". Japan Racing Insider. Retrieved 1 August 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Presents its 2025 motorsport team setups in Japan". Toyota Gazoo Racing. 25 December 2024. Retrieved 25 December 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Honda 2025 Motorsports Program Overview". Honda. 10 January 2025. Retrieved 10 January 2025.
- ^ "TOYOTA GAZOO Racing、2025年の国内参戦体制を発表". Toyota Gazoo Racing. 25 December 2024. Retrieved 25 December 2024.
- ^ Klein, Jamie (26 February 2025). "Inside TGM's transformation from plucky independent to Toyota junior team". Japan Racing Insider. Retrieved 26 February 2025.
- ^ a b Klein, Jamie (15 January 2025). "Juju Noda secures Super Formula return with new family run team". Japan Racing Insider. Retrieved 15 January 2025.
- ^ Klein, Jamie (11 September 2024). "Red Bull's partnership with Mugen in Super Formula set to end after 2024". motorsport.com. Retrieved 11 September 2024.
- ^ "2025 SUPER FORMULA Round1,2 エントリーリスト" (PDF). Suzuka Circuit. 4 February 2025. Retrieved 4 February 2025.
- ^ Klein, Jamie (5 November 2024). "Three-time champion Yamamoto retires from Super Formula". motorsport.com. Retrieved 5 November 2024.
- ^ Klein, Jamie (29 November 2024). "Yuji Kunimoto announces Super Formula exit". Japan Racing Insider. Retrieved 29 November 2024.
- ^ Klein, Jamie (13 December 2024). "Super Formula Suzuka Day 3 paddock notes". Japan Racing Insider. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
- ^ Klein, Jamie (17 March 2025). "GT300 Grid Complete as Kimura Joins Team Mach". sportscar365.com. John Dagys Media. Retrieved 17 March 2025.
- ^ O'Connell, RJ (13 March 2025). "Rasmussen To Miss Okayama Test After Injury". Dailysportscar. Retrieved 13 March 2025.
- ^ Hirano, Ryuji (7 March 2025). "クラッシュのラスムッセンはスーパーフォーミュラ開幕大会を欠場。野中誠太が代役出場へ". AutoSport Web. Retrieved 7 March 2025.
- ^ Klein, Klein (7 March 2025). "Suzuka Super Formula: Practice day paddock notes". Japan Racing Insider. Retrieved 7 March 2025.
- ^ Klein, Klein (6 March 2025). "KCMG picks Seita Nonaka to replace Kobayashi for Motegi". Japan Racing Insider. Retrieved 6 March 2025.
- ^ Klein, Klein (8 April 2025). "Rikuto Kobayashi gets Team Impul call-up for Motegi". Japan Racing Insider. Retrieved 8 April 2025.
- ^ Hirano, Ryuji (13 May 2025). "オリバー・ラスムッセンがスーパーフォーミュラ第5戦オートポリスで復帰。チームが公式発表". AutoSport Web. Retrieved 13 May 2025.
- ^ Ebii, Kenichiro (19 May 2025). "TGR-DCが迎えた"入れ替えの時"。生き残った小高と降格の平良、どちらも前を向". jp.motorsport. Retrieved 19 May 2025.
- ^ Klein, Klein (19 May 2025). "Hibiki Taira set to be benched amid TGM GP TGR-DC driver reshuffle". Japan Racing Insider. Retrieved 19 May 2025.
- ^ Klein, Jamie (24 August 2024). "Super Formula confirms 2025 calendar + more news". Japan Racing Insider. Retrieved 24 August 2024.
- ^ Klein, Jamie (12 October 2024). "Super Formula scraps planned 2025 South Korea race". motorsport.com. Retrieved 12 October 2024.
- ^ a b Klein, Jamie (10 February 2025). "Race format, tyres and more: News from Super Formula's season launch event". Japan Racing Insider. Retrieved 10 February 2025.