Super GT
Super GT is Japan’s biggest racing series, and it’s like nothing else in sports car racing. Two classes share the track at once: purpose-built GT500 cars from Toyota, Nissan and Honda with about 410 kW (550 hp) or more from 2.0-liter turbo fours, and a GT300 field of GT3 cars and home-built specials. Winners get loaded with ballast, so almost anyone can win on a given weekend. It started in 1993 as the JGTC and took the Super GT name in 2005. Here’s the 2027 calendar, the 2025 champions in both classes, the stories fans still talk about, how the rules work, and the brands and drivers with the most titles.
Super GT at a Glance
First season 1993 as the JGTC; renamed Super GT in 2005
Where it races 6 Japanese tracks plus Sepang in Malaysia, back for 2027
Classes GT500 and GT300 both race at the same time
2025 GT500 champions Tsuboi and Yamashita au TOM’S Toyota GR Supra · third title in a row
Next race November 7–8, 2026 Motegi double-header finale
Most GT500 titles 4 each Ronnie Quintarelli and Sho Tsuboi
Super GT 2027 Calendar
The GT Association (GTA) released the provisional 2027 calendar on July 31, 2026. It’s eight championship rounds, seven in Japan plus a return trip to Malaysia’s Sepang circuit for an evening race in June. The season opens at Okayama on April 3–4 and wraps up at Motegi on November 20–21, 2027, about two weeks later than usual. The other big news is the Suzuka 1000 km in September, an Intercontinental GT Challenge race that GT300 teams can enter, and that will pay Super GT points to the GT300 teams that take part. The dates still need final sign-off from the FIA and Japan’s JAF, so small changes are possible.
2027 Super GT season
| Round | Dates (2027) | Circuit | Country | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | April 3–4 | Okayama International Circuit | Japan | Upcoming |
| 2 | May 3–4 | Fuji Speedway (Golden Week race) | Japan | Upcoming |
| 3 | June 18–19 | Sepang International Circuit (evening race) | Malaysia | Upcoming |
| 4 | July 31–August 1 | Suzuka Circuit | Japan | Upcoming |
| Special | September 4–5 | Suzuka Circuit 1000 km (IGTC, GT300 only) | Japan | Upcoming |
| 5 | September 18–19 | Sportsland Sugo | Japan | Upcoming |
| 6 | October 16–17 | Autopolis | Japan | Upcoming |
| 7 | November 6–7 | Fuji Speedway | Japan | Upcoming |
| 8 | November 20–21 | Mobility Resort Motegi (finale) | Japan | Upcoming |
The 2026 season
The 2026 season isn’t over yet. Six rounds are done, and the Sepang race in June was cancelled and replaced by an extra race at Motegi. So the title will be settled at a double-header finale at Mobility Resort Motegi on November 7–8, 2026: two 250 km (155-mile) sprints, one on Saturday and one on Sunday, each with its own morning qualifying. After Autopolis, Sho Tsuboi and Kenta Yamashita (au TOM’S Toyota) lead GT500 by just 3 points over Naoki Yamamoto and Tadasuke Makino (Stanley Honda). In GT300, João Paulo de Oliveira and Iori Kimura (Kondo Racing Nissan GT-R) lead by 15 points.
| Round | Dates (2026) | Circuit | GT500 winner | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | April 11–12 | Okayama International Circuit | No. 36 au TOM’S Toyota (Tsuboi/Yamashita) | Done |
| 2 | May 3–4 | Fuji Speedway (3 hours) | No. 36 au TOM’S Toyota (Tsuboi/Yamashita) | Done |
| – | June 20–21 | Sepang International Circuit | Not run | Cancelled |
| 3 | August 1–2 | Fuji Speedway | No. 100 Stanley Kunimitsu Honda (Yamamoto/Makino) | Done |
| 4 | August 22–23 | Suzuka Circuit | No. 16 ARTA Mugen Honda (Nojiri/Sato) | Done |
| 5 | September 19–20 | Sportsland Sugo | No. 17 Astemo Honda (Tsukakoshi/Nomura) | Done |
| 6 | October 17–18 | Autopolis (3 hours) | No. 100 Stanley Kunimitsu Honda (Yamamoto/Makino) | Done |
| 7 | November 7 | Mobility Resort Motegi (250 km sprint) | TBA | Upcoming |
| 8 | November 8 | Mobility Resort Motegi (250 km sprint, finale) | TBA | Upcoming |
Super GT Champions: 2025
Super GT crowns drivers and teams in both classes. The 2026 season won’t be decided until the Motegi double-header on November 7–8, 2026, so these are the 2025 champions, the most recent completed season. The 2025 finale was at Motegi on November 2, 2025. Short version: Toyota and TOM’S own GT500 right now, and a Mercedes-AMG took GT300.
Tsuboi, Yamashita and au TOM’S
GT500 drivers’ and teams’ champions
Toyota GR Supra Third in a row
Tsuboi and Yamashita won the 2025 finale at Motegi on November 2 to seal it, with Yamashita taking the lead for good on lap 29. It was Tsuboi’s fourth GT500 title and Yamashita’s third, and au TOM’S became the first team ever to win three GT500 titles in a row.
Toyota
GT500 manufacturer
GR Supra GT500 2.0-liter turbo four
Toyota’s GR Supra has now won four of the last five GT500 titles (2021, 2023, 2024 and 2025). Nissan, with the Z, won the other one in 2022, and Honda hasn’t won since 2020.
Gamou, Suganami and LEON
GT300 drivers’ and teams’ champions
Mercedes-AMG GT3 Won by 2 points
Naoya Gamou and Togo Suganami won the Okayama opener and then kept scoring, which beat Kondo Racing’s Kohei Hirate by two points. It’s Gamou’s second GT300 title, after 2018, also with the LEON team. LEON and Kondo tied on 106 points for the teams’ title, and LEON got the nod.
Mercedes-AMG
GT300 manufacturer
GT3 Evo Customer car
GT300 is mostly a customer GT3 class, so the brand title goes to whichever car the best teams pick. In 2025 that was Mercedes-AMG, thanks to the LEON car.
2025 champions at a glance
| Class | Title | Champion | Car | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GT500 | Drivers | Sho Tsuboi and Kenta Yamashita (Japan) | No. 1 au TOM’S Toyota GR Supra | 80.5 points; third straight title for the pair |
| GT500 | Teams | TGR Team au TOM’S | Toyota GR Supra GT500 | 102.5 points; first team to win three GT500 titles in a row |
| GT500 | Manufacturer | Toyota | GR Supra GT500 | Toyota’s third straight GT500 title |
| GT300 | Drivers | Naoya Gamou and Togo Suganami (Japan) | No. 65 LEON PYRAMID Mercedes-AMG GT3 | 86 points, 2 ahead of Kondo Racing’s Kohei Hirate |
| GT300 | Teams | K2 R&D LEON Racing | Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo | 106 points, level with Kondo Racing but ranked ahead |
| GT300 | Manufacturer | Mercedes-AMG | Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo | Top make in GT300 |
Super GT History
Super GT grew out of the JGTC, which started in 1993 when Japan’s Group C and Group A series wound down. From the start it was a three-way fight between Toyota, Nissan and Honda, with production-shaped cars hiding race-car hardware underneath. It changed its name to Super GT in 2005, shared engine and chassis rules with Germany’s DTM in the 2010s, and today draws some of the biggest crowds in Japanese racing.
- 1993 Japan’s motorsport authority, the JAF, starts the All Japan Grand Touring Car Championship (JGTC) to replace the Group C sports-prototype and Group A touring car series. Masahiko Kageyama wins the title in a Nissan Skyline GT-R.
- 1994 The GT Association (GTA) takes over running the series, with GT1 and GT2 classes. Kageyama wins again, and once more in 1995 for three in a row.
- 1996 The classes are renamed GT500 and GT300, and a McLaren F1 GTR run by Team Lark wins the GT500 title for David Brabham and John Nielsen.
- 1997 Toyota’s Supra wins its first title, with Pedro de la Rosa and Michael Krumm in the Castrol TOM’S car.
- 2000 Ryo Michigami gives Honda and the NSX their first GT500 title. The series also makes its first trip to Sepang in Malaysia.
- 2004 Satoshi Motoyama and Richard Lyons win in the Xanavi Nismo Fairlady Z. In December, the JGTC races at California Speedway in Fontana, its last event under the old name.
- 2005 The series becomes Super GT. Racing in more than one country made it an international series, so it could no longer call itself “All Japan.”
- 2006 Toyota brings its Lexus brand in with the SC 430, which wins the title first time out.
- 2008 Nissan’s new GT-R wins the GT500 title in its debut season, with Motoyama and Benoît Tréluyer.
- 2011–2015 Ronnie Quintarelli wins four GT500 titles in five years in Nissan GT-Rs. From 2014, GT500 runs 2.0-liter turbo four-cylinder engines under rules shared with the DTM, and Thailand’s Buriram replaces Sepang.
- 2018 Former Formula 1 champion Jenson Button wins the GT500 title with Naoki Yamamoto in his first full season.
- 2019 Super GT and the DTM race each other in the Dream Race at Fuji.
- 2022 Nissan’s new Z wins the GT500 title in its first year.
- 2025 Sepang returns after 12 years, and au TOM’S becomes the first team to win three GT500 titles in a row.
- 2026 Honda switches to the Prelude-GT, Sepang is cancelled, and the season ends with a Motegi double-header. It’s the last year of the tire war.
- 2027 Bridgestone becomes the only GT500 tire and Dunlop the only GT300 tire, and Sepang comes back.
Memorable Stories From Super GT
Two classes on track at once, heavy ballast and lots of pit strategy mean Super GT finales are rarely settled until the last lap. These are the ones fans bring up most.
2000–2027
Super GT goes overseas
Sepang Buriram
The series first went to Sepang in Malaysia in 2000 and kept coming back most years through 2013. Thailand’s Buriram took over from 2014 to 2019, then the series stayed in Japan for five seasons. Sepang finally returned in 2025, was cancelled again for 2026, and is back on the 2027 calendar on June 19, as an evening race.
2004
The only race in America
California Speedway Fontana
On December 18–19, 2004, the JGTC put on an All-Star non-championship weekend at California Speedway in Fontana, with drifting demos between the races. About 45,000 people showed up, most of them new to racing. A deal for 2005 never came together, so it’s still the only time the series has raced in the US.
2018
Button’s rookie title
Honda NSX-GT Team Kunimitsu
Jenson Button, the 2009 Formula 1 champion, signed on for a full season with Naoki Yamamoto in Team Kunimitsu’s RAYBRIG Honda NSX. Third place in the Motegi finale was enough to beat Nick Cassidy and Ryo Hirakawa’s Lexus by three points. Button called it just as big as his F1 title.
2019
Super GT meets the DTM
Dream Race Fuji
After years of working toward shared rules, Super GT’s GT500 cars and Germany’s DTM cars finally raced each other at Fuji in November 2019. The home team won both races, Nick Cassidy in a Lexus and Narain Karthikeyan in a Honda, and Alex Zanardi raced a BMW M4 DTM with hand controls. Here they share a parade lap at Motegi in 2017.
2020
Out of fuel on the last lap
Toyota GR Supra Fuji
Ryo Hirakawa led the Fuji finale from pole in the KeePer TOM’S Supra and was about to win the title. Then his car ran out of fuel coming out of the last corner, and Naoki Yamamoto’s Honda, which had been closing in, went by to win the race and the title for him and Tadasuke Makino. The team’s engineer blamed a fuel calculation mistake.
2021
A title lost in traffic
Fuji finale GT300 contact
The next year Yamamoto went into the Fuji finale leading, until a GT300 Honda went for a gap at Turn 1 on lap 51 of 66 and hit his NSX hard. His car lost 11 minutes in the garage. Yuhi Sekiguchi and Sho Tsuboi won the race in the au TOM’S Supra and came back from 16 points down to take the title.
Two more worth knowing: in 1996 a British McLaren F1 GTR beat the Japanese factory cars to the GT500 title, the only time a non-Japanese brand has won the top class. And in 2025, au TOM’S won a third straight GT500 title, a first for any team in the series.
Super GT Rules
Super GT runs two classes in the same race, so the fast GT500 cars are always lapping slower GT300 traffic, and that’s where a lot of races are won and lost. Here’s how it works under the 2026 rules. For 2027 the main announced changes are the single tire suppliers and the Suzuka 1000 km counting for GT300.
The cars
The factory class
GT500
Purpose-built race cars from Toyota (GR Supra), Nissan (Z NISMO) and Honda (the new Prelude-GT for 2026), shaped like the road cars but built to one shared set of rules. They use 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinders making well over 410 kW (550 hp). For 2026, each team gets one engine for the whole season.
The mixed class
GT300
GT3 cars from Lexus, Nissan, Porsche, Ferrari, Mercedes-AMG, Lamborghini, Aston Martin and BMW, plus GTA-GT300 specials built just for this series (like Subaru’s BRZ and a Lexus LC 500) and one Mother Chassis car with a 4.5-liter V8. A Balance of Performance (BoP) keeps them close.
The last tire war
Tires
In 2026, Bridgestone, Dunlop and Yokohama all supply teams, with Michelin in GT300 too. From 2027 to 2029, Bridgestone is the only GT500 supplier and Dunlop the only GT300 supplier, each bringing three dry compounds.
How a race weekend works
- The weekend. Two days. Saturday has a practice session of 1 hour 45 minutes in the morning and two-stage knockout qualifying (Q1 and Q2) in the afternoon. The race is on Sunday, with GT500 and GT300 on track together.
- Races. Most rounds are 300 km (186 miles) with one mandatory pit stop and a driver change. The Fuji Golden Week race and Autopolis run three hours with two stops. No driver can drive more than two-thirds of the race.
- Success Weight. The big one. Every car carries 2 kg (4.4 lb) of ballast for each championship point it has scored. In GT500, anything over 50 kg (110 lb) comes as a lower fuel flow instead, and over 67 kg a smaller refueling restrictor makes pit stops longer. In GT300, the refueling restrictor kicks in above 50 kg. The weight is halved for the second-to-last round and removed for the finale, so the title is fought on equal terms.
- Fuel flow. For 2026 the standard GT500 fuel flow dropped from 95 to 90.2 kg per hour.
- Points. GT500 pays the top 10: 20, 15, 11, 8, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1. GT300 pays the top 15, starting at 25 for the win. Pole is worth a bonus point in both classes.
- Two drivers per car. Most crews are two pros who share the car and the title. GT300 teams often add a third driver for the long races.
Manufacturers With the Most Super GT Titles
We count GT500 (and early JGTC top-class) drivers’ titles, from 1993 to 2025, since that’s the prize the factories really fight for. Toyota and its Lexus brand have 14 between them, Nissan 13 and Honda five. McLaren has the other one, from 1996. More on the road cars on our Toyota, Lexus, Nissan and Honda pages. GT300 champions include Mercedes-Benz and Lamborghini.
14 GT500 titles
Toyota (including Lexus)
1997–2025 8 Toyota, 6 Lexus
The Supra won Toyota’s first title in 1997, the Lexus SC 430, RC F and LC 500 added six more between 2006 and 2019, and the GR Supra has won four of the last five. Counted as one company, Toyota has the most top-class titles.
13 GT500 titles
Nissan
1993–2022 Skyline GT-R, Z, GT-R
Nissan dominated the early JGTC with the Skyline GT-R, won with the Fairlady Z in 2004 and the GT-R from 2008 to 2015, and took its latest title with the new Z in 2022. Counted by badge, Nissan has more titles than Toyota or Lexus alone.
5 GT500 titles
Honda
2000–2020 NSX and HSV-010
Honda won with the mid-engined NSX in 2000 and 2007, the HSV-010 in 2010, and the modern NSX-GT in 2018 and 2020. Its Prelude-GT drivers are in the 2026 title fight.
Drivers With the Most Super GT Titles
Ronnie Quintarelli and Sho Tsuboi share the record with four GT500 titles each. Third place is a five-way tie on three: Masahiko Kageyama (1993–1995), Satoshi Motoyama (2003, 2004, 2008), Yuji Tachikawa (2001, 2005, 2013), Juichi Wakisaka (2002, 2006, 2009) and Kenta Yamashita (2019, 2024, 2025). We picked Motoyama for the card, but they’re all equal.
4 titles
Ronnie Quintarelli
Italy 2011–2015
The Italian won four GT500 titles in five years in Nissan GT-Rs: 2011 and 2012 with Masataka Yanagida at MOLA, then 2014 and 2015 with Tsugio Matsuda at NISMO.
4 titles
Sho Tsuboi
Japan 2021–2025
Tsuboi tied Quintarelli’s record in 2025, with titles in 2021 (with Yuhi Sekiguchi), 2023 (Ritomo Miyata) and 2024 and 2025 (Kenta Yamashita), all for au TOM’S Toyota. He’s leading again in 2026.
3 titles
Satoshi Motoyama
Japan 2003–2008
Nissan’s favorite son won in 2003 in a Skyline GT-R, 2004 in the Fairlady Z and 2008 in the GT-R. He shares third place with four others on three titles.
Talk Super GT With Other Fans
Planning a trip to Fuji, still not over the 2020 finale, or picking the Motegi winner? Share it with other racing fans in the AutoGathering community.
- Motegi 2026 title predictions
- Super GT trip planning in Japan
- Success Weight debates
- JGTC nostalgia: Skyline vs. Supra vs. NSX
- Best GT300 car on the grid
- Prelude-GT first impressions
- Sim racing Japanese tracks
- Race-weekend photos
Super GT FAQ
When does the 2027 Super GT season start?
At Okayama International Circuit on April 3–4, 2027. The provisional calendar has eight rounds, including Sepang in Malaysia, and ends at Motegi on November 20–21, 2027.
Who won Super GT in 2025?
In GT500, Sho Tsuboi and Kenta Yamashita in the au TOM’S Toyota GR Supra, their third title in a row. In GT300, Naoya Gamou and Togo Suganami in the LEON PYRAMID Mercedes-AMG GT3.
When is the 2026 Super GT finale?
A double-header at Mobility Resort Motegi on November 7–8, 2026, with a 250 km sprint race on each day.
What’s the difference between GT500 and GT300?
GT500 is the faster factory class for Toyota, Nissan and Honda, with 2.0-liter turbo engines. GT300 is a mixed class of GT3 cars and Japanese-built specials. Both race at the same time.
What is Success Weight in Super GT?
Ballast that cars carry based on their points: 2 kg (4.4 lb) per point. Heavier GT500 cars also lose fuel flow. It’s halved for the second-to-last race and removed for the finale.
Who has won the most Super GT titles?
Ronnie Quintarelli and Sho Tsuboi, with four GT500 titles each.
What was the JGTC?
The All Japan Grand Touring Car Championship, the series’ name from 1993 to 2004. It became Super GT in 2005.
Does Super GT race outside Japan?
Sometimes. It has raced at Sepang in Malaysia and Buriram in Thailand, and once in the US, at Fontana in 2004. Sepang is back on the 2027 calendar.
Explore the Circuits
Every Super GT track is in our Asia circuit directory, from Fuji Speedway to Motegi, where the title is usually settled. We also have a full guide to Suzuka.
Photo credits
- Header image: Morio, CC BY-SA 3.0, cropped and resized.
- The 2025 GT500 champion au TOM'S Toyota…: Aos.1905, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped and resized.
- The 2025 GT300 champion No. 65 LEON…: Aos.1905, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped and resized.
- Two Gainer Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3 cars…: Morio, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped and resized.
- The No. 39 DENSO SARD Toyota Supra…: Aero777, CC BY-SA 3.0, cropped and resized.
- The 1997 Castrol TOM'S Toyota Supra JGTC…: Mytho88, CC BY-SA 3.0, cropped and resized.
- The Motul Autech Nissan GT-R racing at…: Morio, CC BY-SA 3.0, cropped and resized.
- The No. 16 Castrol Mugen Honda NSX…: BWard 1997, CC BY 4.0, cropped and resized.
- The 2014 Motul Autech Nissan GT-R GT500…: Mocchy, Public domain, cropped and resized.
- The No. 1 Xanavi NISMO Nissan Fairlady…: Tokumeigakarinoaoshima, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped and resized.
- The 2004 RAYBRIG Honda NSX JGTC GT500…: Hatsukari715, Public domain, cropped and resized.
- The No. 100 RAYBRIG Honda NSX-GT leads…: Takayuki Suzuki, CC BY-SA 2.0, cropped and resized.
- Super GT and DTM cars on a…: Takayuki Suzuki from Kanagawa, Japan, CC BY-SA 2.0, cropped and resized.
- A Toyota GR Supra GT500 car, the…: Tokumeigakarinoaoshima, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped and resized.
- The No. 37 KeePer TOM'S Toyota GR…: Tokumeigakarinoaoshima, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped and resized.
- The No. 36 au TOM'S Toyota GR…: Tokumeigakarinoaoshima, CC0, cropped and resized.
- The No. 36 au TOM'S Toyota GR…: Tokumeigakarinoaoshima, CC0, cropped and resized.