The first official pre-season test for the 2026 Autobacs SUPER GT Series at Okayama International Circuit began on Friday, behind closed doors.
And across two sessions, defending GT500 Champions Sho Tsuboi, Kenta Yamashita, and TGR Team au TOM’S picked up where they left off at the end of last season – with both drivers taking a turn at the top of the GT500 leaderboard.
TOM’S has controversially relinquished the champion’s number 1 plate in favour of the team’s signature number 36 in 2026, but the #36 au TOM’S Toyota GR Supra was number one for most of the two-hour morning session. Sho Tsuboi was the first driver to break through the one-minute, 18-second barrier when he posted a 1:17.614.
The four-time and reigning GT500 Champion would improve near the end of the morning session, securing first place with a 1:17.446, a little over a second slower than the GT500 course record set last year by TGR Team Eneos ROOKIE driver Nirei Fukuzumi.
Toyotas occupied three of the top four spots in GT500 that session: Toshiki Oyu in the #38 KeePer Cerumo GR Supra was second-fastest (1:17.723), and the aforementioned Fukuzumi was fourth-fastest (1:17.960) in the #14 Eneos X Prime GR Supra.
Between them, the fastest Nissan Z NISMO GT500 was the #12 TRS Impul with SDG Z in third place. Only days after celebrating his 40th birthday, Bertrand Baguette led the three-car Nissan contingent, setting a 1:17.764.
Five Honda HRC Prelude-GTs took to the track as well, with the fastest of the quintet being the #17 Astemo HRC Prelude-GT. Koudai Tsukakoshi set the car’s best time, a 1:18.011, good enough for fifth-fastest in Session 1.
After a mid-day intermission, testing resumed in the afternoon with another two-hour session. This time, three-time GT500 Champion Yamashita was the fastest man on the track for most of those two hours.
Right at the end of the ten-minute GT500 Exclusive Run at the end of Session 2, Yamashita sealed first place with a 1:17.493, only a couple hundredths off the best time from Tsuboi in Session 1.
“We tested in Okayama back in February, but that was only for the GT500 cars. Having the GT300s on track together definitely changes the conditions and creates a different atmosphere,” said Tsuboi. “The top time was set during the mixed-class session, so it wasn’t the ideal timing—like getting a clear lap when the tyres were at their peak. Given those circumstances, I think there’s still room for improvement, so in that sense, it was positive.
“Regarding the afternoon results, Yamashita’s final lap time showed a significant gap over second place, which was another positive aspect. Of course, we won’t know for sure until the actual race unfolds, but at least among the GR Supra contingent, I feel we have a solid sense of being in good form.”
Kazuki Hiramine in the #12 TRS Impul Z finished second in Session 2 (1:17.844), followed by Yuhi Sekiguchi in the #39 Denso Kobelco SARD GR Supra (1:17.917) in third place, Katsumasa Chiyo in the #23 Motul Niterra Z (1:17.930) in fourth, and Ukyo Sasahara in the #37 Deloitte TOM’S GR Supra (1:17.968) in fifth.
The #17 Astemo Prelude was the quickest Honda yet again, this time, it was rookie Yuto Nomura who set the car’s best lap of 1:18.169, which put the car eighth on the Session 2 leaderboard.
Fastest of the two cars not using Bridgestone tyres was the #64 Modulo HRC Prelude-GT, which set a 1:19.068 with Riki Okusa behind the wheel.
GT500 COMBINED DAY 1 RESULTS >>>
It was a trouble-free day of running for the GT500 cars, less so in GT300. Even before the weekend, one car did not arrive. The #11 Gainer Tanax Nissan Fairlady Z was a late scratch from the field for this opening test – it will likely return for next week’s test at Fuji Speedway, showcasing updates to the car.
Of the 28 remaining cars in GT300, the fastest in Session 1 was the #60 Syntium LM corsa Lexus LC500, which scored its first win at Sportsland Sugo back in September. Veteran Hiroki Yoshimoto set a 1:24.919, the fastest time of day one, and the only one under one minute and 25 seconds.
“For me personally, it was my first time driving the car in four months since the final round (at Motegi),” admitted Yoshimoto. “Before the official test in Okayama, (Shunsuke Kohno) drove exclusively during the GTE (GT Entrants’ Association) test, allowing us to verify various aspects of the car. The work Kono had advanced during testing functioned well, the car felt good, and I was able to drive comfortably.
“We encountered a transmission issue partway through Session 1, but the team worked smoothly to fix it, so we could run the remaining hour in the afternoon. Last year during testing at Okayama, we were essentially running a brand-new car and didn’t achieve a satisfactory setup. After racing a full season, the car has evolved in various ways, and I felt a level of responsiveness I hadn’t experienced before. Last season, we managed one win, but our other results were completely lacking. This year, I want to achieve strong results in every race.”
Session 1 was only briefly interrupted for a red flag when the #5 Mach Syaken/Air Buster MC86 stopped on the backstretch, but the car was able to resume running. Meanwhile, an electrical problem kept the #4 Goodsmile Hatsune Miku Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO in the garage until the afternoon session, and even then, Nobuteru Taniguchi and Tatsuya Kataoka only completed 12 laps.
The newest GT300 team on the grid, Team Eneos ROOKIE, made a statement early on: Hiroaki Ishiura, back in the GT300 class for the first time since his championship season in 2007, went second-fastest in the #32 Eneos X Prime Mercedes-AMG (1:25.508).
Seita Nonaka was third-fastest in the #52 Saitama Green Brave Toyota GR Supra (1:25.666). This was the car that would bring out a red flag in Session 2 when it went off in the gravel at the final corner, but not before it finished tenth-quickest in that session. Behind Nonaka were defending champion Naoya Gamou in the #65 LEON Pyramid AMG (1:25.760) and João Paulo de Oliveira in the #56 Realize/Nissan Mechanic Challenge GT-R (1:25.788).
The afternoon run was a chance for the new #9 Pacific Umamusume NAC BMW M4 GT3 EVO to grab some headlines; a new car to SUPER GT in its EVO configuration, and a new partnership for Pacific Racing Team. Yusuke Tomibayashi led Session 2 with a 1:25.798, set before the GT300 Exclusive Run near the end of the day.
But it was very close at the top of the leaderboard: Hibiki Taira in the #30 apr Toyota GR86 was only seven milliseconds (1:25.805) behind Tomibayashi in second. Rookie Tokiya Suzuki in the #32 Eneos Mercedes-AMG (1:25.818) and Yuui Tsutsumi in the #2 Hyper Water INGING GR86 (1:25.843) were all within half a tenth of the top time.
The #25 Hoppy Schatz GR Supra was parked for Session 2 due to a drivetrain problem which emerged in Session 1.
GT300 COMBINED DAY 1 RESULTS >>>
Images © GTA
