Ohta Secures Eighth Career Win in Dramatic Super Formula Race at Motegi
Kakunoshin Ohta delivered a dominant performance to claim his eighth career victory in the Super Formula race at Motegi, securing a clean sweep of wins for the weekend. The Dandelion Racing driver converted pole position into a commanding win, despite facing challenges from fellow competitors throughout the 37-lap event.
The race began under improved weather conditions compared to Saturday, allowing for a more competitive and thrilling contest. Ohta started strong, but his lead was briefly taken by Toshiki Oyu’s Inging machine on the opening lap. However, the safety car was deployed on the third lap after Rikuto Kobayashi became stuck in the gravel at the final corner. This allowed Oyu to maintain his advantage over Ohta when the race resumed on lap seven.
Oyu pitted on lap 10, but Ohta capitalized on clear air at the front, pulling away from Sena Sakaguchi, who had moved up from fifth on the grid to third on the first lap. By lap 25, Sakaguchi had overtaken Oyu, and the latter found himself fighting against Zak O’Sullivan and reigning champion Ayumu Iwasa. Despite these challenges, Ohta managed to hold off Sakaguchi, winning by 0.958 seconds to complete a perfect weekend and take an early 20-point championship lead.
Sakaguchi’s second-place finish marked his first podium since his rookie season in 2024 and Inging’s first since the same year. Oyu struggled with pace, being up to three seconds slower than Sakaguchi on fresh tires, which allowed Nirei Fukuzumi to overcut his way to third place by pitting on lap 29. This marked Rookie Racing’s first-ever podium since joining Super Formula in 2020, as Fukuzumi surpassed the previous best finish of fourth by Kazuya Oshima.
Luke Browning, who started in 21st place due to a disappointing qualifying session, demonstrated strong pace on old tires. He made his pit stop on the penultimate lap, taking advantage of Oyu holding up the pack. Browning finished four seconds ahead of Oyu, while Zak O’Sullivan secured sixth for Team Impul.
A side-by-side moment between O’Sullivan and Ayumu Iwasa’s Mugen car on the final lap at Turn 11 saw Iwasa go wide, allowing Kenta Yamashita (KCMG) to sneak through for seventh. Completing the top ten were Syun Koide, who backed up his fifth-place finish from the opener, and Nobuharu Matsushita in the brand-new Delightworks Racing team.
Tadasuke Makino faced a difficult qualifying session in the sister Dandelion car, securing his worst-ever grid position in Super Formula at 18th, before finishing 13th. Sho Tsuboi was 14th for TOM’S after avoiding action when Igor Fraga spun Tomoki Nojiri on the opening lap. Fraga finished 16th for Nakajima Racing, while Nojiri recovered to 18th after a pit stop for a fresh front wing.
Sacha Fenestraz (TOM’S) retired from the race after slowing with a loose right-rear wheel following his pit stop. Other notable finishes included Ryo Sato (PONOS Nakajima Racing) in 11th, Kazuki Kobayashi (KDDI TGMGP TGR-DC) in 12th, and Taku Makino (Dandelion Racing) in 13th.
Race Results
| Driver | Team | Laps | Time | Interval | km/h | Pits | Points | Retirement |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| K. Ohta | Dandelion Racing | 37 | 1:00’49.123 | 1 | 20 | – | 20 | – |
| S. Sakaguchi | Sanki Vertex Partners Cerumo・Inging | 37 | +0.958 | 1:00’50.081 | 0.958 | 1 | 15 | – |
| N. Fukuzumi | NTT Docomo Business Rookie | 37 | +13.210 | 1:01’02.333 | 12.252 | 1 | 11 | – |
| L. Browning | Realize Kondo Racing | 37 | +20.345 | 1:01’09.468 | 7.135 | 1 | 8 | – |
| T. Oyu | Sanki Vertex Partners Cerumo・Inging | 37 | +24.350 | 1:01’13.473 | 4.005 | 1 | 6 | – |
| Z. O’Sullivan | Wecars Impul with SDG | 37 | +24.770 | 1:01’13.893 | 0.420 | 1 | 5 | – |
| K. Yamashita | KCMG | 37 | +25.553 | 1:01’14.676 | 0.783 | 1 | 4 | – |
| A. Iwasa | Team Mugen Autobacs | 37 | +25.769 | 1:01’14.892 | 0.216 | 1 | 3 | – |
| S. Koide | ThreeBond Racing | 37 | +26.105 | 1:01’15.228 | 0.336 | 1 | 2 | – |
| N. Matsushita | Delightworks Racing | 37 | +26.965 | 1:01’16.088 | 0.860 | 1 | 1 | – |
| R. Sato | PONOS Nakajima Racing | 37 | +27.386 | 1:01’16.509 | 0.421 | 1 | 1 | – |
| K. Kobayashi | KDDI TGMGP TGR-DC | 37 | +27.912 | 1:01’17.035 | 0.526 | 1 | 1 | – |
| T. Makino | Dandelion Racing | 37 | +28.736 | 1:01’17.859 | 0.824 | 1 | 1 | – |
| S. Tsuboi | Vantelin Team TOM’S | 37 | +28.872 | 1:01’17.995 | 0.136 | 1 | 1 | – |
| Y. Nomura | San-Ei Gen with B-Max | 37 | +31.373 | 1:01’20.496 | 2.501 | 1 | 1 | – |
| I. Fraga | PONOS Nakajima Racing | 37 | +32.760 | 1:01’21.883 | 1.387 | 1 | 1 | – |
| R. Staněk | Navikuru Buzz MK Racing | 37 | +33.408 | 1:01’22.531 | 0.648 | 2 | 1 | – |
| T. Nojiri | Team Mugen Autobacs | 37 | +42.067 | 1:01’31.190 | 8.659 | 2 | – | – |
| S. Nonaka | KCMG | 37 | +51.727 | 1:01’40.850 | 9.660 | 1 | – | – |
| C. Wurz | Team Goh | 37 | +53.147 | 1:01’42.270 | 1.420 | 1 | – | – |
| U. Sasahara | Realize Kondo Racing | 37 | +59.633 | 1:01’48.756 | 6.486 | 1 | – | – |
| J. Noda | Hazama Ando Triple Tree Racing | 37 | +1’16.497 | 1:02’05.620 | 16.864 | 2 | – | – |
| S. Fenestraz | Vantelin Team TOM’S | 28 | +9 Laps | 50’16.620 | 9 Laps | 3 | – | Retirement |
| R. Kobayashi | KDDI TGMGP TGR-DC | 1 | +36 Laps | 1’50.899 | 27 Laps | – | – | Retirement |
