This weekend, the FIA World Endurance Championship heads to Fuji for its penultimate round, but is the Toyota-owned circuit the series' best option for a Japanese race? We explore the alternatives.
Just two weeks after a thriller in Texas, the FIA World Endurance Championship has made the flight over the Pacific Ocean to the Land of the Rising Sun.
Yes, this weekend is the penultimate round of the series with surely yet another nail-bitter in store for all those WEC fans around the world. So far this year, six races have seen six different cars take top honours in the Hypercar class whilst the LMGT3 field is finally seeing some competition as well.
Both FIA WEC classes are highly competitive in 2024. Image: Porsche Newsroom
But it is not the event itself that interests us in this article. Instead, we wonder if Fuji is really the best circuit for the WEC's Japanese round. With plenty of alternatives across the home of reigning World Champions, Toyota, should the series move elsewhere?
But ever since layout alterations in 2005, the circuit has become quite the polarising venue among racing fans. Whilst the first sector with its long straight and middle portion's long radius corners get high praise, the technical switchbacks of the final sector are often the cause for debate. Indeed, spectators and sim racers alike agree on the fact that this strange uphill section is tricky to get right and makes for clumsy racing.
Multiclass racing is difficult at Fuji Speedway. Image: Porsche Newsroom
Certainly, multiclass events like this weekend's WEC round highlight this single-file nature more than most. Frequently, drivers in the top class will remain behind slower traffic for the entire run from the Dunlop Chicane all the way to the mile-long front straight. Not only can this ruin battles, it also results in low-percentage moves into the chicane as drivers do their best to get ahead before the sector.
As a result, the manufacturer would not have quite the same pull it does now, allowing the series to move elsewhere if it so wished. And in this article, I am both wishing for the switch to happen and wondering where the championship would go if it decided to move away from Fuji. Well there is no denying that as a racing nation, Japan is full of top-level racing venues, and two main ones stick out with potential to host the WEC.
Suzuka may be too tight for multiclass racing. Image: Alpine Cars Media
It is no secret that being an older race track, Suzuka is quite the narrow ribbon of tarmac. From Turn 2 up the Esses, through the Dunlop Curve and into the Degners, Sector 1 is similar to Fuji's final sector for its single-file nature. But once you get round to the second half of the track, long, sweeping straights provide just enough room for multi-class racing to come together smoothly.
Lumbering models, the heavier Hypercars versus the previous LMP1 category would work well at Suzuka and with many events taking place, there is data to suggest GT3 cars run well at Suzuka as well. Unfortunately though, it seems that moving to the home of the Japanese Grand Prix would be replacing one evil for another when it comes to tight multiclass racing. A short stint in Automobilista 2 will rapidly point that out.
Multiclass racing at Suzuka is tricky. But not impossible.
Moreover, there is the small issue that Suzuka is the official circuit and test facility for Honda, a direct rival to Toyota, something the manufacturer likely would not take calmly. Especially if it were racing up against a Honda Hypercar.
Now, Motegi is not an FIA Grade 1 circuit, instead holding a Grade 2 rating within the FIA. However, having run at Sebring in the past, the World Endurance Championship is not required to run at top flight venues.
Motegi Features a Bridge under the Indycar Oval. Image: Nissan Global Newsroom
Much like Suzuka and Fuji, Motegi hosts annual rounds of Super GT, a Japanese series featuring a GT3-esque lower class and the GT500 category at the front of the field, models capable of rivalling and sometimes beating Hypercar lap times. With all three venues producing thrilling races in this national championship year-in, year-out, any of the three race tracks in this article are fantastic venues. But a WEC event moving away from the regular tracks and visiting the likes of Motegi would be a brilliant addition to the calendar.
Where do you think the World Endurance Championship should run its Japanese round? Let us know in the comments below and join the discussion in our forums!
Just two weeks after a thriller in Texas, the FIA World Endurance Championship has made the flight over the Pacific Ocean to the Land of the Rising Sun.
Yes, this weekend is the penultimate round of the series with surely yet another nail-bitter in store for all those WEC fans around the world. So far this year, six races have seen six different cars take top honours in the Hypercar class whilst the LMGT3 field is finally seeing some competition as well.
Both FIA WEC classes are highly competitive in 2024. Image: Porsche Newsroom
But it is not the event itself that interests us in this article. Instead, we wonder if Fuji is really the best circuit for the WEC's Japanese round. With plenty of alternatives across the home of reigning World Champions, Toyota, should the series move elsewhere?
Fuji: An Unpopular Circuit
Existing in many forms over the years, Fuji Speedway is officially owned by Toyota and used by the car manufacturer as a testing facility. It also regularly hosts major motor racing events like the Japanese Super GT series and this weekend's FIA WEC round. It even hosted Formula One for a time, first in 1976 and 1977, then again in 2007 and 2008.But ever since layout alterations in 2005, the circuit has become quite the polarising venue among racing fans. Whilst the first sector with its long straight and middle portion's long radius corners get high praise, the technical switchbacks of the final sector are often the cause for debate. Indeed, spectators and sim racers alike agree on the fact that this strange uphill section is tricky to get right and makes for clumsy racing.
Multiclass racing is difficult at Fuji Speedway. Image: Porsche Newsroom
Certainly, multiclass events like this weekend's WEC round highlight this single-file nature more than most. Frequently, drivers in the top class will remain behind slower traffic for the entire run from the Dunlop Chicane all the way to the mile-long front straight. Not only can this ruin battles, it also results in low-percentage moves into the chicane as drivers do their best to get ahead before the sector.
Several Japanese Alternatives
There is obviously one clear reason for the FIA World Endurance Championship running at Fuji Speedway, and that is Toyota. As aforementioned, the manufacturer owns the circuit and has been a mainstay of the series since its inception. However, as rumours of Honda rebranding its Acura ARX-06 continuously swilling in the papers, Toyota may well no longer be the sole Japanese entrant in WEC's top class.As a result, the manufacturer would not have quite the same pull it does now, allowing the series to move elsewhere if it so wished. And in this article, I am both wishing for the switch to happen and wondering where the championship would go if it decided to move away from Fuji. Well there is no denying that as a racing nation, Japan is full of top-level racing venues, and two main ones stick out with potential to host the WEC.
Suzuka
Home to the Formula One Japanese Grand Prix, Suzuka is a world famous racing circuit and a favourite among drivers and fans alike. Great levels of elevation change, epic flow from turn-to-turn and some of the most recognisable corners in motorsport.Suzuka may be too tight for multiclass racing. Image: Alpine Cars Media
It is no secret that being an older race track, Suzuka is quite the narrow ribbon of tarmac. From Turn 2 up the Esses, through the Dunlop Curve and into the Degners, Sector 1 is similar to Fuji's final sector for its single-file nature. But once you get round to the second half of the track, long, sweeping straights provide just enough room for multi-class racing to come together smoothly.
Lumbering models, the heavier Hypercars versus the previous LMP1 category would work well at Suzuka and with many events taking place, there is data to suggest GT3 cars run well at Suzuka as well. Unfortunately though, it seems that moving to the home of the Japanese Grand Prix would be replacing one evil for another when it comes to tight multiclass racing. A short stint in Automobilista 2 will rapidly point that out.
Multiclass racing at Suzuka is tricky. But not impossible.
Moreover, there is the small issue that Suzuka is the official circuit and test facility for Honda, a direct rival to Toyota, something the manufacturer likely would not take calmly. Especially if it were racing up against a Honda Hypercar.
Twin Ring Motegi
With that in mind, Twin Ring Motegi is another international location that offers fantastic racing on a regular basis. Featuring less elevation change and more straight lines with few twisty sections, it is far less old-school in its design. But take a look at the rest of the FIA WEC calendar and perhaps that is what the series needs.Now, Motegi is not an FIA Grade 1 circuit, instead holding a Grade 2 rating within the FIA. However, having run at Sebring in the past, the World Endurance Championship is not required to run at top flight venues.
Motegi Features a Bridge under the Indycar Oval. Image: Nissan Global Newsroom
Much like Suzuka and Fuji, Motegi hosts annual rounds of Super GT, a Japanese series featuring a GT3-esque lower class and the GT500 category at the front of the field, models capable of rivalling and sometimes beating Hypercar lap times. With all three venues producing thrilling races in this national championship year-in, year-out, any of the three race tracks in this article are fantastic venues. But a WEC event moving away from the regular tracks and visiting the likes of Motegi would be a brilliant addition to the calendar.
Where do you think the World Endurance Championship should run its Japanese round? Let us know in the comments below and join the discussion in our forums!
