By way of two days of the Tremendous Method Championship’s winter take a look at at Suzuka Circuit, Honda’s manufacturing unit drivers have led all 4 take a look at periods.
Dandelion Racing’s Tadasuke Makino within the No. 5 Dallara SF23-Honda set the quickest time of the take a look at to this point on Thursday afternoon at 1m35.597s, main his teammate Kakunoshin Ohta within the No. 6 Dandelion automobile (1m35.656s). Makino additionally led the primary take a look at session on Wednesday morning, whereas Ohta was quickest in Thursday morning’s session.
Makino and Ohta had been among the many 5 drivers confirmed as a part of Honda’s Tremendous Method plans for 2025. The duo that mixed for 4 wins and secured the groups’ championship final season will return to Dandelion Racing. Will probably be Ohta’s solely Japanese marketing campaign, as he has relinquished his seat within the Tremendous GT Sequence GT500 class to deal with his new program in IMSA with Acura Meyer Shank Racing.
Honda additionally introduced that two-time Tremendous Method Champion Tomoki Nojiri and 2024 Rookie of the Yr Ayumu Iwasa will stay at Crew Mugen in 2025, whereas Ren Sato will keep at Nakajima Racing in one of many group’s two automobiles. Not less than three extra seats will probably be introduced later by Nakajima Racing, B-Max Racing, and ThreeBond Racing.
Sato (no relation to Takuma) set the quickest time on Wednesday at 1m36.337s, and was fifth quickest on Thursday behind Nojiri, who was fourth.
The quickest Toyota-powered driver was Cerumo-INGING’s Sena Sakaguchi, who was third quickest on Thursday with a 1m35.967s, along with his teammate Toshiki Oyu in sixth on the finish of Thursday. Former Nissan Method E driver Sacha Fenestraz, driving the No. 37 TOM’S Toyota, was tenth quickest in his return to the Tremendous Method paddock (1m36.591s).
Nakajima Racing’s Igor Fraga led the way in which among the many rookies. Picture through Tremendous Method
Of the rookies participating in testing, Igor Fraga has led all 4 periods within the No. 64 Nakajima Racing Honda. The Brazilian-Japanese driver’s finest lap on Thursday afternoon was a 1m36.252s, adequate for seventh general — forward of reigning Tremendous Method champion Sho Tsuboi within the No.36 TOM’S Toyota.
Fraga is the main candidate to exchange three-time sequence champion Naoki Yamamoto, who retired from the sequence after 2024, however no official announcement has been made by Nakajima Racing presently.
Behind him within the rookie leaderboard was Toyota-backed Tremendous Method Lights graduate Seita Nonaka within the No.7 KCMG Toyota, who was eleventh on Thursday (1m36.677s), adopted by 2024 Tremendous Method Lights champion Syun Koide within the No.50 B-Max Racing Honda (1m36.803s) and former Hertz Crew JOTA WEC driver Oliver Rasmussen within the No.19 Crew Impul Toyota (1m36.827s).
Mitsunori Takaboshi within the second Impul automobile crashed throughout Thursday’s closing session when he spun exiting the Hairpin Nook, however his finest time from the morning session (1m37.802s) was nonetheless faster than these from Kondo Racing’s two rookie testers, GB3 Sequence race winner James Hedley (1m37.900s) and Method 2 alumni Juan Manuel Correa (1m38.063s).
W Sequence alumni Miki Koyama made a wonderful first impression in her first take a look at within the No. 8 KCMG Toyota, finishing 62 laps on the day and ending with a finest time of 1m38.078s. Koyama, who hopes to turn into the fifth lady to race within the sequence’ historical past, had her take a look at day moved up from Friday to Thursday, permitting Nonaka to drive the No. 8 automobile tomorrow whereas Haas F1 Crew’s Oliver Bearman prepares to drive the No. 7 automobile, in the course of the closing day which is solely reserved for rookie drivers.
As well as, Williams Racing Academy driver Zak O’Sullivan was a last-minute addition to the entry listing. On Wednesday morning it was confirmed that O’Sullivan, the 2023 FIA Method 3 Championship runner-up, would drive the No. 4 Kondo Racing Toyota on Friday. O’Sullivan gained two races in F2 final season earlier than a scarcity of funds compelled him to desert the championship after the Monza spherical.
