 | |
| Location | Mimasaka, Okayama Prefecture, Japan |
|---|---|
| Time zone | UTC+09:00 |
| Coordinates | 34°54′54″N 134°13′16″E / 34.91500°N 134.22111°E |
| FIA Grade | 2 |
| Owner | Aska Corporation (March 2012–present) Unimat Corporation (April 2004–March 2012) Tanaka International (November 1990–April 2004) |
| Broke ground | 1989 |
| Opened | 18 November 1990 |
| Former names | TI Circuit Aida (November 1990–April 2005) |
| Major events | Current: Super GT (1999–2019, 2021–present) GT World Challenge Asia (2022–present) FRJC (2020–present) Super Formula Lights (1994–1995, 1998–2020, 2022–present) Former: Formula One Pacific Grand Prix (1994–1995) WTCC Race of Japan (2008–2010) Super Formula (2007–2008, 2015–2020) Formula BMW Pacific (2009–2010) Formula V6 Asia (2008) Japan Le Mans Challenge (2006–2007) |
| Website | www |
| Grand Prix Circuit (1990–present) | |
| Length | 3.703 km (2.300 miles) |
| Turns | 13 |
| Race lap record | 1:14.023 ( Michael Schumacher, Benetton B194, 1994, F1) |
| Motorcycle Circuit (2020–present) | |
| Length | 3.747 km (2.328 miles) |
| Turns | 17 |
| Piper Circuit (1990–present) | |
| Length | 1.956 km (1.221 miles) |
| Turns | 8 |
Okayama International Circuit (岡山国際サーキット), formerly known as TI Circuit Aida (TIサーキット英田) before 2005, is a 3.703 km (2.301 mi) private motorsport race track in Mimasaka, Okayama Prefecture, Japan. TI was the abbreviation of "Tanaka International" after the name of the golf club owner, Hajime Tanaka, though the name of the circuit was officially "TI Circuit Aida".
As well as hosting racing events, the circuit has rental facilities including bikes and go karts available.
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Transcription
History
The course was opened in 1990 as a private motor racing track for the wealthy.[2] Soon, it hosted its first race, staged by veteran British drivers.
In 1994 and 1995, the TI Circuit hosted the Formula One Pacific Grand Prix; both events were won by Michael Schumacher in his early title-winning years. This race made Japan one of only nine countries to ever host more than one Formula One event in the same year (Autopolis was planned to host a second Japanese race in 1993, but it never came to fruition). It was discontinued primarily due to its location in a remote area of the country.[3] The event was also planned to host a race of the 1996 International Touring Car Championship season in August to replace the F1 race, but the race was instead moved to Suzuka Circuit, held in November.
In 1999, defending JGTC GT300 champion Shingo Tachi was killed when he tested a GT500 Toyota Supra after he suffered from a technical failure that prevented him from slowing down for the first turn.[4] Although there was no driver fatality in the JGTC or Super GT race events beforehand, the incident occurred almost a year after Tetsuya Ota's near-fatal, fiery accident at Fuji Speedway.
In March 2003, the Tanaka International Company, parent company of the official circuit owner TI Circuit Company, applied for civil rehabilitation. After the application, Unimat Holding Co., Ltd. announced that it would financially support the TI Circuit Company in keeping the facility open. The company was renamed Okayama International Circuit Co., Ltd. on May 1, 2004, and the circuit was renamed Okayama International Circuit on January 1, 2005.
On October 26, 2008, the circuit hosted a round of the Formula V6 Asia and FIA World Touring Car Championship. The WTCC race was the first FIA world championship race since 1995. However, it was announced on June 21, 2010 that Suzuka Circuit would host the Japan round of the 2011 WTCC season instead of the Okayama International Circuit.[5]
On March 3, 2012, Unimat sold the circuit to Aska Corporation, an auto parts manufacturing company.[1]
Events
- Current
- April: Super GT
- June: Formula Regional Japanese Championship Okayama Challenge Cup Race, TCR Japan Touring Car Series
- August: GT World Challenge Asia Fanatec Japan Cup, GT4 Asia Series
- September: Super Formula Lights, MFJ Superbikes
- October: Super Taikyu
- Former
- Asian Le Mans Series 1000 km of Okayama (2009)
- F4 Japanese Championship (2015–2019)
- Formula BMW Pacific (2009–2010)
- Formula One Pacific Grand Prix (1994–1995)
- Formula Toyota (2005–2006)
- Formula V6 Asia (2008)
- Japan Le Mans Challenge (2006–2007)
- Super Formula Championship (2007–2008, 2015–2020)
- World Touring Car Championship FIA WTCC Race of Japan (2008–2010)
Lap records
The outright unofficial all-time track record is 1:10.218, set by triple-world champion Ayrton Senna in a Williams FW16, during qualifying for the 1994 Pacific Grand Prix. As of September 2022, the fastest official race lap records at the Okayama International Circuit are listed as:
Notes
- ^ 2009 1000 km of Okayama Race 2 - Stint Summary for Car 87 - Car Stint Report
- ^ 2009 1000 km of Okayama Race 2 - Stint Summary for Car 24 - Car Stint Report
- ^ 2009 1000 km of Okayama Race 2 - Stint Summary for Car 50 - Car Stint Report
- ^ 2009 1000 km of Okayama Race 2 - Stint Summary for Car 92 - Car Stint Report
References
- ^ a b 株式会社岡山国際サーキットの株式取得（子会社化）についてのお知らせ [We resolved on the acquiation of whole stock in Okayama International Circuit Co., Ltd.] (PDF) (Press release) (in Japanese). Aska Corporation. March 12, 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 21, 2013. Retrieved April 24, 2012.
- ^ "Course guide" (in Japanese). Okayama International Circuit website. Retrieved 2012-12-28.
- ^ Cooper, Adam (April 17, 2020). "Why Japan's second F1 race didn't take off". Motorsport.com. Retrieved October 28, 2020.
- ^ O'Connell, R.J. "Remembering Shingo Tachi, 20 Years Later". Dailysportscar. Retrieved 19 October 2020.
- ^ "FIA WTCC TO RACE AT SUZUKA IN 2011". fiawtcc.com. 2010-06-21. Retrieved 2010-07-20.
- ^ "2020 Super Formula Okayama Race Statistics". Retrieved 26 March 2023.
- ^ "2008 TI-Aida Formula Nippon". Retrieved 20 May 2022.
- ^ "2018 Super GT Round 1 Okayama GT500 Results". Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ a b c d "Asian Le Mans Series Okayama, Japan 30 October–1 November 2009" (PDF). Asian Le Mans Series. 1 November 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 July 2011. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
- ^ "Okayama 1000 Kilometres 2006". Retrieved 9 November 2022.
- ^ "2017 Okayama Japanese F3 - Round 2". Retrieved 20 May 2022.
- ^ "2022 Okayama Super Formula Lights Race 2 Statistics". Retrieved 25 September 2022.
- ^ "2018 Super GT Round 3 Suzuka GT300 Results". Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ "2021 FRJC Okayama Round 1 Results" (PDF). 26 June 2021. Retrieved 7 August 2021.
- ^ "2022 Fanatec GT World Challenge Asia Powered by AWS Okayama Race 1 - Classification - Final" (PDF). 24 September 2022. Retrieved 24 September 2022.
- ^ "First lap spin denies dominant Yuki Tsunoda Japanese F4 double win at Okayama". 8 April 2018. Retrieved 27 July 2022.
- ^ "Super F3 Race in Okayama 2005 ESSO Formula Toyota Series Round 4". Retrieved 29 November 2022.
- ^ "GT Aida 2003". Retrieved 24 January 2023.
- ^ "Victory for Regalia as Haryanto closes in on 2009 title". 31 October 2009. Retrieved 17 July 2022.
- ^ "1993 TI Circuit Aida Group A 300 Km Race". Retrieved 20 May 2022.
- ^ "2019 Okayama Round 1 Results" (PDF). 28 September 2019. Retrieved 7 August 2021.
- ^ "2022 Fanatec GT World Challenge Asia Powered by AWS Okayama Race 2 - Classification - Final" (PDF). 25 September 2022. Retrieved 25 September 2022.
- ^ "WTCC 2008 » Okayama Round 22 Results". Retrieved 26 March 2023.
External links
This page was last edited on 28 March 2023, at 06:43