2024 Super Formula Championship
The 2024 Japanese Super Formula Championship was the fifty-second season of premier Japanese open-wheel motor racing, and the twelfth under the moniker of Super Formula. It started in March at Suzuka Circuit and ended in November at the same venue, after nine rounds across seven race weekends.[1]
Sho Tsuboi, driving for Vantelin Team TOM’S, won his first Super Formula Drivers' Championship at the final race, ahead of two-time champion Tomoki Nojiri. Docomo Team Dandelion Racing won the Teams' Championship.
This was the final Super Formula season for three-time champion Naoki Yamamoto, who announced his retirement on 5 November prior to the season-ending JAF Suzuka Grand Prix.[2]
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Teams and drivers
[edit]All teams used identical Dallara-built SF23 chassis with either Honda or Toyota engines. Every Honda-powered car used a Honda HR-417E engine and every Toyota-powered car used a Toyota TRD-01F engine.
| Entrant | Engine | No. | Driver name | Rounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Kondo Racing[3]
|
Toyota | 3 | Kenta Yamashita[3]
|
All |
| 4 | Kazuto Kotaka[3]
|
All | ||
| Docomo Team Dandelion Racing[4]
|
Honda | 5 | Tadasuke Makino[4]
|
All |
| 6 | Kakunoshin Ohta[4]
|
All | ||
 Kids com Team KCMG[3]
|
Toyota | 7 | Kamui Kobayashi[3]
|
All |
| 8 | Nirei Fukuzumi[3]
|
All | ||
| ThreeBond Racing[4]
|
Honda | 12 | Atsushi Miyake[4]
|
All |
| docomo business ROOKIE[3]
|
Toyota | 14 | Kazuya Oshima[3]
|
All |
| Team Mugen[5]
|
Honda | 15 | Ayumu Iwasa[5]
|
All |
| 16 | Tomoki Nojiri[5]
|
All | ||
| Itochu Enex Team Impul[3]
|
Toyota | 19 |  Théo Pourchaire[3]
|
1 |
 Ben Barnicoat[6]
|
2 | |||
| Hibiki Taira[7]
|
3–4, 8–9 | |||
 Nyck de Vries[8]
|
5–7 | |||
| 20 | Yuji Kunimoto[3]
|
All | ||
| Vantelin Team TOM’S[3]
|
Toyota | 36 | Sho Tsuboi[3]
|
All |
| 37 | Ukyo Sasahara[3]
|
All | ||
| Vertex Partners Cerumo・INGING[3]
|
Toyota | 38 | Sena Sakaguchi[3]
|
All |
| 39 | Toshiki Oyu[3]
|
All | ||
| San-Ei Gen with B-Max[4][9]
|
Honda | 50 | Iori Kimura[4]
|
All |
| TGM Grand Prix[4]
|
Honda | 53 | "Juju"[4][10]
|
All |
| 55 | Nobuharu Matsushita[11]
|
1–3 | ||
| Hiroki Otsu[12]
|
4–9 | |||
| PONOS Nakajima Racing[4]
|
Honda | 64 | Naoki Yamamoto[4]
|
All |
| 65 | Ren Sato[4]
|
All |
Team changes
[edit]- B-Max Racing Team downsized from running two cars in 2023 to a single-car entry in 2024. The team also gained a new title sponsor in food ingredient manufacturer San-Ei Gen, with the team now known as "San-Ei Gen with B-Max".[9]
- Cerumo-INGING acquired a new title sponsor in finance advisory firm Vertex Partners, with the team now known as "Vertex Partners Cerumo-INGING".[3]
- Nakajima Racing acquired a new title sponsor in video game developer PONOS to replace Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), with the team now known as "PONOS Nakajima Racing".[4]
Driver changes
[edit]- Reigning Drivers' Champion Ritomo Miyata left the series and moved to Formula 2 and the European Le Mans Series in preparation to step up to the FIA World Endurance Championship with Toyota Gazoo Racing.[13]
- Miyata's replacement at Vantelin Team TOM'S was Sho Tsuboi, who spent the last five seasons at INGING, and was Miyata's co-driver in their 2023 Super GT GT500 class championship campaign. Ukyo Sasahara, who raced with TOM'S for the last three rounds of the 2023 season, returned on a full-time contract for 2024. Both drivers swapped numbers from the end of last season with Tsuboi driving the No. 36 car and Sasahara the No. 37 car.[3]
- 2023 Championship runner-up Liam Lawson also left the series to focus on his dual reserve driver role at Red Bull Racing and RB Formula One Team in Formula One. He was replaced at Team Mugen by fellow Red Bull Junior Team member Ayumu Iwasa, who returned to Japan to make his series debut.[5]
- Cerumo-INGING signed former Honda and TGM Grand Prix driver Toshiki Oyu to replace Sho Tsuboi. Sena Sakaguchi took over Tsuboi's old number 38, and Oyu was given the number 39.[3][14]
- Itochu Enex Team Impul recruited an all-new lineup of 2023 FIA Formula 2 Champion Théo Pourchaire, who made his series debut as the only non-Japanese driver on the grid, and 2016 Super Formula champion Yuji Kunimoto, who had spent the last four seasons with KCMG.[3] Impul's former drivers left the series, with Ryō Hirakawa electing to focus on his new role as the reserve driver for McLaren in Formula One and Yuhi Sekiguchi joining KCMG as a reserve driver and team coordinator.[3][15][16]
- KCMG signed former Honda and ThreeBond Racing driver Nirei Fukuzumi to replace Yuji Kunimoto in the renumbered No. 8 entry, alongside team-mate Kamui Kobayashi.[3]
- B-Max Racing Team recruited reigning Super Formula Lights champion Iori Kimura to drive the team's single No. 50 car.[4] Nobuharu Matsushita left B-Max after four seasons, and Raoul Hyman left after just one season in the No. 51 car.
- TGM Grand Prix signed Juju Noda to drive its No. 53 car, replacing Toshiki Oyu.[3][10][4] Noda became the first Japanese woman and youngest driver to race in the history of the series, after spending 2023 in Euroformula Open, the Drexler-Automotive Formula Cup, and BOSS GP. Before the opening round of the season, TGM signed former B-Max Racing driver Nobuharu Matsushita to drive the No. 55 car.[11] Matsushita replaced Cem Bölükbaşı, who left the series after one year and went on to race in the European Le Mans Series for DKR Engineering.
- Atsushi Miyake rejoined Super Formula after a one-year absence, signing with ThreeBond Racing to replace Nirei Fukuzumi.[4]
Mid-season
[edit]- Théo Pourchaire signed a contract to join Arrow McLaren for the remainder of the 2024 IndyCar Series, and left Team Impul and Super Formula after just one race.[17] Pourchaire would be released from Arrow McLaren after just five races in IndyCar, but would return to the team as an injury replacement for one more race before departing. 2023 IMSA GTD Pro Champion Ben Barnicoat made his series debut at Autopolis, replacing Pourchaire in the No. 19 car.[6]
- 2023 Super Formula Lights and Super GT GT300 runner-up Hibiki Taira debuted at the following round in Sugo to replace Barnicoat, and returned for his second race at Fuji in July.[7][18]
- Nobuharu Matsushita departed TGM Grand Prix after three races.[19] Hiroki Otsu, who drove for the team as an injury substitute the previous year, returned to replace Matsushita for the remainder of the season.[12][8]
- 2020–21 Formula E World Champion and Toyota Gazoo Racing WEC driver Nyck de Vries joined team Impul at Mobility Resort Motegi and the October double-header at Fuji Speedway, becoming the fourth different driver in the Impul No. 19 car. Taira would return to finish out the season in the JAF Suzuka Grand Prix double-header.[8]
Race calendar
[edit]The provisional calendar was announced on 3 August 2023, with the final two rounds confirmed to be double-headers later on.[1][20] Fuji Speedway's double-header weekend was later moved from the start of the season to 12–13 October, serving as the sixth and seventh rounds of the championship, which meant Suzuka hosted the opening round of the championship on 10 March. On 25 December 2023, the calendar was slightly amended, with the season finale moved forward by two weeks.[21]
| Round | Circuit | Location | Date | Support bill | Map of circuit locations |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Suzuka International Racing Course | Suzuka, Mie | 10 March | All Japan Road Race Championship Formula Regional Japanese Championship |
|
| 2 | Autopolis | Hita, Oita | 19 May | Super Formula Lights Honda N-One Owner's Cup | |
| 3 | Sportsland SUGO | Shibata, Miyagi | 23 June | Super Formula Lights Honda N-One Owner's Cup | |
| 4 | Fuji Speedway | Oyama, Shizuoka | 21 July | Super Formula Lights Porsche Carrera Cup Japan Kyojo Cup | |
| 5 | Mobility Resort Motegi | Motegi, Tochigi | 25 August | Formula Regional Japanese Championship All Japan Road Race Championship | |
| 6 | Fuji Speedway | Oyama, Shizuoka | 12 October | Formula Regional Japanese Championship Honda N-One Owner's Cup | |
| 7 | 13 October | ||||
| 8 | Suzuka International Racing Course | Suzuka, Mie | 8–10 November | Super Formula Lights | |
| 9 |
Race results
[edit]Season report
[edit]First half
[edit]The 2024 Super Formula Championship began at Suzuka, where Sena Sakaguchi of INGING secured pole position during qualifying. Sakaguchi was overtaken at the start of the race by Tomoki Nojiri from Team Mugen and Ren Sato from Nakajima Racing. The race faced disruption following a collision between Yuji Kunimoto of Team Impul and Kazuto Kotaka of Kondo Racing at the Esses, which resulted in both drivers retiring. After the race resumed, Nojiri maintained his lead and made his pitstop on lap 13. Sato pitted two laps later, only to rejoin the track behind four drivers who had overcut him. This sequence left Nojiri in the lead, ultimately securing his twelfth career victory, ahead of Kenta Yamashita of Kondo Racing and Naoki Yamamoto of Nakajima Racing. Sakaguchi, who delayed his pitstop until lap 19 in hopes of a safety car that did not occur, finished in seventh place.[22]
In the second round of the championship at Autopolis, Iwasa secured pole position, but his start resembled Sakaguchi’s in the first round as he was overtaken by Dandelion Racing’s Tadasuke Makino and Yamamoto. As Yamamoto's defense slowed Iwasa, Makino held a lead of three seconds by the time both drivers made their pit stops on lap 24. This interval allowed Yamamoto and Makino’s teammate, Kakunoshin Ohta, to move ahead of Iwasa. The rookie managed to overtake both competitors over the following ten laps, but Makino had already established a 13-second advantage, securing his first race victory. Sho Tsuboi of Team TOM’S claimed third place, following Iwasa past Yamamoto and Ohta. After an off-track incident, Nojiri finished ninth, resulting in him and Makino sharing the championship lead at 23 points, with Iwasa and Yamamoto trailing with 20 points each.[23]
Sportsland SUGO hosted the third round of the series, marked by persistent wet weather throughout the weekend. Nojiri secured pole position during qualifying. Pre-race drama unfolded as Yamamoto crashed during the warm-up laps, leading to a one-hour delay for barrier repairs. The race commenced under safety car conditions, transitioning to green flag racing after five laps. However, the safety car returned promptly when Kazuya Oshima of ROOKIE Racing crashed, resulting in six additional laps under caution. The subsequent restart was also short-lived, as Sakaguchi fell victim to the challenging conditions at the same corner, prompting a red flag. The race was not restarted and Nojiri was declared the winner, followed by Iwasa and Tsuboi, with only half points awarded. This result placed Nojiri in the championship lead, 6.5 points ahead of Iwasa in second place.[24]
In the fourth round of the championship at Fuji Speedway, Nirei Fukuzumi of KCMG secured pole position. Ayumu Iwasa started alongside him but dropped to 13th after a poor start, allowing Toshiki Oyu of INGING to move into second. Oyu stayed close to Fukuzumi until he pitted on lap 13. Fukuzumi followed but encountered a slow pit stop, which caused him to lose positions. Sho Tsuboi, starting from fourth, delayed his pit stop until lap 28 and rejoined the track behind Oyu, Nojiri and Makino. With fresher tires, Tsuboi quickly overtook the two cars ahead of him within two laps and set out to catch Oyu, gaining over a second per lap. He ultimately passed Oyu to claim his first victory since 2020 and his first win for TOM'S. With Iwasa finishing in 11th place and out of the points, Tsuboi rose to second in the championship standings, 9.5 points behind Nojiri.[25]
Championship standings
[edit]- 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
[edit]
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Teams' championship
[edit]| Pos | Team | SUZ1 | AUT | SUG[a] | FUJ1 | MOT | FUJ2 | SUZ2 | Points | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Docomo Team Dandelion Racing
|
4 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 148 |
| 10 | 5 | 14 | DNS | 19† | 9 | 4 | 3 | 8 | |||
| 2 | Team Mugen
|
1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 131.5 |
| 9 | 9 | 2 | 11 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 9 | 7 | |||
| 3 | Vantelin Team TOM’S
|
11 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 112.5 |
| 15 | 12 | 16 | 12 | 16 | 12 | 14 | 15† | 14 | |||
| 4 | Kids com Team KCMG
|
6 | 8 | 10 | 4 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 6 | 3 | 77.5 |
| 19† | 10 | 13 | 8 | 12 | 5 | 5 | 14 | 10 | |||
| 5 | PONOS Nakajima Racing
|
3 | 4 | 11 | 7 | 4 | 7 | 15 | 7 | 5 | 61 |
| 5 | Ret | DNS | 10 | 10 | 8 | DSQ | Ret | 6 | |||
| 6 | Kondo Racing
|
2 | 7 | 6 | 13 | 2 | 10 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 50 |
| Ret | 18 | 8 | 17 | 8 | 16 | 12 | Ret | 19 | |||
| 7 | Vertex Partners Cerumo・INGING
|
7 | 6 | 5 | 2 | 6 | 18 | 10 | 4 | 13 | 42 |
| 16 | 15 | 12 | Ret | Ret | Ret | Ret | 10 | 16 | |||
| 8 | Itochu Enex Team Impul
|
18 | 13 | 7 | 6 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 13 | 12 | 9 |
| Ret | 19† | 17 | 9 | 13 | 13 | 15 | Ret | 17 | |||
| 9 | TGM Grand Prix
|
8 | 16 | 18 | 14 | 15 | 17 | 13 | 12 | 20 | 3 |
| 17 | 20 | 19 | 19 | 18 | 19 | 16 | Ret | Ret | |||
| 10 | San-Ei Gen with B-Max
|
12 | 14 | 9 | 15 | 17 | Ret | 9 | 11 | 11 | 3 |
| 11 | docomo business ROOKIE
|
13 | 11 | Ret | 16 | 14 | 15 | Ret | Ret | 15 | 0 |
| 12 | ThreeBond Racing
|
14 | 17 | 15 | 18 | 20 | 14 | Ret | Ret | 18 | 0 |
| Pos | Team | SUZ1 | AUT | SUG | FUJ1 | MOT | FUJ2 | SUZ2 | Points | ||
Notes
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b Klein, Jamie (3 August 2023). "Provisional Super Formula calendar hints at F1 support race". motorsport.com. Retrieved 3 August 2023.
- ^ Klein, Jamie (5 November 2024). "Naoki Yamamoto to leave Super Formula after 2024 season finale". Japan Racing Insider. Retrieved 5 November 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x "TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Presents its 2024 motorsport team setups in Japan". Toyota Gazoo Racing. 12 December 2023. Retrieved 12 December 2023.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p "Honda 2024 Motorsports Program Overview". Honda Racing. 19 January 2024. Retrieved 19 January 2024.
- ^ a b c d Klein, Jamie (23 November 2023). "Red Bull junior Iwasa gets 2024 Mugen Super Formula seat". motorsport.com. Retrieved 23 November 2023.
- ^ a b Thukral, Rachit (14 May 2024). "Barnicoat replaces IndyCar-bound Pourchaire at Autopolis Super Formula round". motorsport.com. Retrieved 14 May 2024.
- ^ a b Wood, Ida (14 June 2024). "Hibiki Taira to make Super Formula debut with Team Impul at Sugo". formulascout.com. Retrieved 14 June 2024.
- ^ a b c Klein, Jamie (7 August 2024). "Nyck de Vries joins Super Formula for Motegi and Fuji rounds". Japan Racing Insider. Retrieved 7 August 2024.
- ^ a b "2024年スーパーフォーミュラ参戦体制". b-maxracing.co.jp. 9 February 2024. Retrieved 9 February 2024.
- ^ a b Thukral, Rachit (9 January 2024). "Noda secures Super Formula drive with Honda squad TGM". motorsport.com. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
- ^ a b Klein, Jamie (5 March 2024). "Nobuharu Matsushita completes 2024 Super Formula grid". Japan Racing Insider. Retrieved 5 March 2024.
- ^ a b Klein, Jamie (15 July 2024). "Another chance at redemption for Honda's super-sub Hiroki Otsu". Japan Racing Insider. Retrieved 15 July 2024.
- ^ Thukral, Rachit (20 November 2023). "Toyota star Miyata gets dual F2, ELMS programme in 2024". www.motorsport.com. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
- ^ Klein, Jamie (2024-01-25). "What's the deal with Honda drivers moving to Toyota?". Japan Racing Insider. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
- ^ Klein, Jamie (22 October 2023). "Hirakawa joins Miyata, Lawson in Super Formula exodus". motorsport.com. Retrieved 22 October 2023.
- ^ Klein, Jamie (2024-02-20). "Super Formula Suzuka test: Media day paddock notes". Japan Racing Insider. Retrieved 2024-02-20.
- ^ Benyon, Jack (9 May 2024). "McLaren picks Pourchaire for its IndyCar seat: All the details". The Race. Retrieved 9 May 2024.
- ^ Wood, Ida (3 July 2024). "Hibiki Taira keeps Super Formula seat at Team Impul for a second race". Formula Scout. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
- ^ Klein, Jamie (5 July 2024). "Why Super Formula will miss Nobuharu Matsushita when he's gone". Japan Racing Insider. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
- ^ "２０２４年全日本レース選手権カレンダー申請一覧" (PDF).
- ^ "Super Formula on X: "2024年スーパーフォーミュラ レース日程変更のお知らせ"". X. 23 December 2023. Retrieved 26 December 2023.
- ^ Klein, Jamie (10 March 2024). "Super Formula Suzuka: Nojiri wins season-opener, Pourchaire 18th on debut". motorsport.com. Retrieved 13 November 2024.
- ^ Klein, Jamie (19 May 2024). "Super Formula Autopolis: Makino finally claims maiden victory". motorsport.com. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
- ^ Klein, Jamie (23 June 2024). "Super Formula Sugo: Nojiri declared winner in rain-shortened contest". motorsport.com. Retrieved 15 November 2024.
- ^ Klein, Jamie (21 July 2024). "Super Formula Fuji: Tsuboi charges back to end four-year win drought". motorsport.com. Retrieved 18 November 2024.