Super Taikyu Series Entry List Announced, Look Ahead To 2026

The 2026 Eneos Super Taikyu Series Empowered by Bridgestone starts in two weeks, and already, the full-season entry list has been published – along with the entry list for the opening round of the 2026 season.

Mobility Resort Motegi will host the opening round on 21–22 March. The season will kick off with a pair of four-hour endurance races, headlined by the FIA GT3 cars of the ST-X class. A month later, Suzuka Circuit will host the five-hour Suzuka S-Tai event on 18–19 April.

Super Taikyu’s signature event, the NAPAC Fuji 24 Hour Race, takes place the week before the 24 Hours of Le Mans on 5–7 June. The series resumes with a double-header of four-hour races at Sportsland Sugo on 4–5 July, and a five-hour race at Autopolis on 25–26 July.

And then, after a three-month layoff, the season concludes with the double-header three-hour races at Okayama International Circuit on 24–25 October, followed by the season finale, the four hour race at Fuji Speedway on 14–15 November.

2026 will also see the full-scale debut of the new S-Tai Challenge series, aimed at entry-level teams and drivers. Their three-race calendar begins at Motegi, followed by the July race at Sugo, and the November finale at Fuji.

2026 Super Taikyu Series Calendar

• 21–22 March: Mobility Resort Motegi (4 Hours x 2)
• 18–19 April: Suzuka Circuit (5 Hours)
• 5–7 June: Fuji Speedway (Fuji 24 Hour Race)
• 4–5 July: Sportsland Sugo (4 Hours x 2)
• 25–26 July: Autopolis International Racing Course (5 Hours)
• 24–25 October: Okayama International Circuit (3 Hours x 2)
• 14–25 November: Fuji Speedway (4 Hours)

The 2026 entry list features an enormous 72 total entries divided along 11 classes, and out of those cars, 56 cars and nine classes will take part in the opening races at Motegi.

Race 1 on Saturday has 32 entries, with the headlining ST-X class joined by the production vehicles in the ST-3, ST-4, ST-5F, and ST-5R classes, and ST-1, whose two entries will also run in both races.

ST-X will be guaranteed a new champion this year with 2025 title winners seven x seven Racing not filing an entry for 2026. Returning teams eager to challenge for the championship include Mercedes-AMG customers TKRI and Craft-Bamboo Racing, and apr with its Lexus RC F GT3.

D’station Racing is also back with an unchanged line-up from last season, but over the offseason, the team made a surprising move and changed cars from the Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo to the Ferrari 296 GT3 Evo.

The new #777 Ferrari recently arrived at team headquarters and will be ready to race next week (alongside its returning #47 Porsche 911 Cup car in the ST-1 class).

Team Pop Race makes its ST-X debut with a programme built around two-time D1GP champion Daigo Saito, one of drifting’s greatest drivers of all time – he makes his GT3 racing debut in the #44 Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO.

GTNET MotorSports has also filed an entry for later rounds, as has another new team, R Zero Racing – which is preparing to enter a Mercedes-AMG with support from Hitotsuyama Racing.

Entries of note in the lower categories include Hitotsuyama Racing’s new BMW M2 Racing that will ensure some competition in a depleted ST-3 class, Toyota works driver Rikuto Kobayashi and reigning SUPER GT GT300 champion Togo Suganami in the ST-4 class alongside several other current and former SUPER GT drivers, and in ST-5, Kyojo Cup contender (and former Super Taikyu English announce team member!) Hana Burton driving Club Mazda Spirit Racing’s Roadster.

The ST-Z (GT4), ST-Q, and ST-2 classes will feature in Race 2 on Sunday. The ST-Z class is loaded with 12 entries, over half of which will run the Toyota GR Supra GT4.

The Toyota contingent includes familiar entries such as three-time series champion Saitama Green Brave, SHADE Racing, and Team Noah, and a host of ST-Z newcomers.

Malaysian team Wing Hin Motorsports makes its debut, and Hong Kong upstart Atlas Apex Racing will join forces with Tracy Sports for its Super Taikyu debut. Okabe Jidosha Motorsport moves up after decades in the ST-3 class, and Team ZeroOne will back the new entry from Aoyama Gakuin University Automobile Club.

ZeroOne will also continue to run one of two Nissan Z NISMO GT4s in the field, along with Team Impul. The rebranded Kokusai Group Sports Team returns with its Porsche 718 GT4 RS Clubsport, as does Techno First with its Audi R8 LMS GT4; Team YUK Hirata-G makes its debut with a Mercedes-AMG GT4.

There are three entries in the ST-Q class for manufacturer-developed vehicles.

Representing Toyota are two variants of the GR Yaris hatchback: GR Team ORC Field will run the #28 GR Yaris M Concept, a midship concept featuring Toyota’s new G20E 2.0-litre inline-4 engine which made its debut last October at Okayama. GR Team Spirit will continue to develop the #104 GR Yaris DAT Concept, featuring the eight-speed Direct Automatic Transmission (DAT) used in many Toyota/GR road vehicles.

From Subaru is the new #61 High Performance X “Version 2” run by Team SDA Engineering. This five-door hot hatch was first unveiled at the Tokyo Auto Salon, based on the Subaru WRX Performance-B STI Concept – it will use the same Subaru FA24 as the previous “HiPerfX” while running on Eneos E20 gasoline blend.

Additional ST-Q entries from Toyota, Mazda, Honda, and Nissan will appear throughout the 2026 season.

ST-2 has five Honda Civic Type Rs, two Toyota GR Yaris, and two Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution Xes; notable names include Tetsuya Yamano at Nihon Automobile College, Honda works driver Syun Koide at Team Spoon, Toyota junior Kiyoshi Umegaki at KTMS, and the class debut of ST-5F champions Team Yamato.

Starting at Round 2 in Suzuka, the ST-TCR class will enter the fray; six teams have entered for part or all of the 2026 season. And in the near future, Birth Racing Project will enter a Ford Mustang Dark Horse R in the new ST-USA category, an exhibition class for American-made automobiles.

Images © STMO, D’station Racing, Toyota, Subaru