Japan’s only FIA-certified Formula Regional series enters its sixth season in 2025, and its grid might be the most competitive the series has ever seen. Toyota sends two of its juniors onto the grid, while Super Formula Lights frontrunners B-Max Racing return to the championship after two years out. Feeder Series tells you everything you need to know about the 2025 season of the Formula Regional Japanese Championship. 

By Finjo Muschlien

Michael Sauter became the first international champion of FR Japan last year, having come out on top of a three-way title fight with Sebastian Manson and Jesse Lacey in dominant fashion. Even with all of those drivers leaving the series along with last year’s top three teams, this year’s championship promises to be even more exciting, as Toyota juniors Tokiya Suzuki and Kiyoshi Umegaki join TOM’S and former Toyota junior Kazuhisa Urabe partners Jia Zhanbin at B-Max Racing. 

The calendar

For the first time in the series’ history, Motegi isn’t part of the calendar. Instead, a second round at Suzuka has been added. 

• Round 1: Okayama International Circuit (23–25 May) 
• Round 2: Fuji Speedway (27–29 June)
• Round 3: Suzuka Circuit (11–13 July)
• Round 4: Sportsland Sugo (29–31 August)
• Round 5: Fuji Speedway (25–27 September)
• Round 6: Suzuka Circuit (21–23 November)

The format

Two 45-minute practice sessions kick off the series’ weekends on Friday. On Saturday, there are two 15-minute qualifying sessions in the morning, with the first session setting the grid for the first race and the second session setting the grid for the second race. The first, fourth and sixth rounds will have a third race, for which ‘special regulations’ will be applied to set the grid. 

The first race takes place on Saturday and the final race of the weekend takes place on Sunday. Should a weekend consist of three races, the second race could take place on either of the two days.

The series uses the standard FIA system of 25 points for the winner down to one point for 10th place. There are no bonus points for pole positions or fastest laps. Only the best finisher from each team contributes points to the team’s championship tally.

Where to watch

All races are live-streamed for free on the series’ official YouTube channel. Races feature Japanese commentary and a split-screen display with trackside cameras and live timing. Practices and qualifying sessions likewise have live timing displayed on YouTube.

Teams and drivers

Despite being frontrunners in previous years, 2024 champions Birth Racing Project are not returning to the 2025 championship as things stand, nor are Sutekina Racing Team or Bionic Jack Racing.

Delightworks Racing made their debut in the championship last year. Having entered the final round with Yugo Iwasawa, they were announced to be returning for 2025, but the team did not attend the joint test on 1 April and will also miss the opening round at Okayama this weekend. The series’ secretary told Feeder Series that the team could return in the second half of the season, but they have not yet been contacted.

HELM Motorsports, Yugo Tanabe’s N-Speed outfit, and Sky Motorsports are likewise absent.

TOM’S Formula

The highest-placed returning team in 2025 will be TOM’S, which undergoes its biggest change going into its sixth year in the championship. This year, the team will field two Toyota juniors for the first time. Previously, the team fielded gentlemen drivers as well as young drivers without manufacturer support.

Tokiya Suzuki (#37) enters his second year of single-seater racing in 2025, having made his debut in Japanese F4 last year. The 18-year-old finished 10th overall while racing for the TGR-DC Racing School last year, and he now leads the Japanese F4 standings after the first round. He will also debut in FR Japan as part of Toyota’s new structure in which they field their Japanese F4 sophomore drivers in both F4 and Formula Regional to prepare them for a potential step into Super Formula Lights the following year.

Through that same arrangement, Suzuki will be partnered by Kiyoshi Umegaki (#38), who likewise enters his second Japanese F4 season and his maiden FR Japan campaign in 2025. The 17-year-old came seventh in Japanese F4 last year, and he is fourth after the first round this year.

Rn-sports

Having competed in just three rounds in 2024, Rn-sports are set to run the full season in 2025, fielding Yu Oda (#11) as their only driver. This will be their sixth season in the championship.

Oda previously competed in Super FJ, winning the 2023 All-Japan masters race as well as the 2024 Motegi and Sugo series. The 20-year-old was selected as one of two candidates of team owner Masayuki Ueda’s new scholarship programme, which aims to support drivers stepping up from Super FJ or Formula Beat to FR Japan. A previous version of this scholarship programme, which ran until 2019, supported the careers of F1 driver Yuki Tsunoda as well as Super Formula drivers Tadasuke Makino, Toshiki Oyu and Atsushi Miyake. 

Ponos Racing

A team you should have an eye on in 2025 is Ponos Racing, who field Japanese F4 graduate Kento Omiya (#45) in 2025. Ponos’ best result in FR Japan came in 2021, when the team came third in the teams’ standings with two wins and five second-place finishes courtesy of Riki Okusa.

Twenty-year-old Omiya spent the past two seasons racing for Ponos in Japanese F4, finishing 11th and ninth in the standings respectively and bagging three podium finishes total. Alongside FR Japan, Omiya competes in Super Taikyu. He entered the first roundin the ST-TRC class with M&K Racing and has also been announced for the ST-5R class with Koshido Racing in the Fuji 24 Hours next weekend. 

Abbey Racing

Having entered the first and fifth rounds at last year in his first FR Japan season, “Akita” (#44) returns for his second year in the championship with his own team, Abbey Racing. The Japanese driver impressed on his debut last year by coming fourth in the second race of the weekend at Suzuka, beating eventual series runner-up Manson and fourth-place finisher Lacey.

Eagle Sports

Having returned to the championship in 2024 after a year out, Eagle Sports will field Yuki Tanaka (#14), who already raced for the team in 2021 and 2022. Eagle Sports took a best result of eighth overall with 96 points in the 2022 teams’ standings, all courtesy of Tanaka.

Alongside FR Japan, the 58-year-old competed in the Ligier European Series’ JS P4 class in 2024 with Pegasus Racing. He was 15th overall with 20 points, but that was enough to give him the AM title within the class.

Aiwin

Yutaka Toriba (#13) is set for his debut in FR Japan with debutants Aiwin in 2025. The 61-year-old competed in Japanese F4 with Helm Motorsports from 2022 until 2024, winning the Independent Cup in his first season with the team. Despite not racing in FR Japan previously, Toriba helped his team mate Alfie Briggs to make a one-off appearance in the championship with Bionic Jack Racing last year.

Hitotsuyama Racing

GT racing squad Hitotsuyama Racing will make their debut with Anna Inotsume (#21) in FR Japan. The team, founded in 1990, are currently active in Super Taikyu and have previously competed in Super GT’s GT300 class.

Inotsume made her full-time debut in FR Japan last year, racing for Helm Motorsports and finishing seventh overall with a best result of second in the first race at Fuji. The 30-year-old also competes in Super Taikyu’s ST-X class with Hitotsuyama.

Fujita Pharmacy Racing

Having joined Japanese F4 in 2024, Fujita Pharmacy Racing will expand into FR Japan in 2025, fielding Hideaki Irie (#46) as their only driver. Irie will make his debut in the series, having previously raced in two rounds of Formula Beat in 2023. 

B-Max Racing Team

Having last raced in FR Japan in 2022, B-Max Racing return to the championship with two rookies.

Former Toyota junior Kazuhisa Urabe (#50) made his debut in the final two rounds of the 2024 championship, racing for TGR-DC Racing School. The 20-year-old took two second-place finishes in the final round but couldn’t beat his team mate Yuki Sano, who swept the final two rounds. Alongside FR Japan, Urabe competes in Super Formula Lights with B-Max Racing as well as in Super GT and Porsche Carrera Cup Japan with Hyper Water Racing. 

Chinese driver Jia Zhanbin (#51) will make his debut in FR Japan, stepping up from Chinese F4. Jia came sixth in Chinese F4 last year with a best result of fifth, which he took on four occasions. He also competed in Formula Trophy UAE with Champ Motorsport last year, finishing 21st in the standings. 

Team LeMans

Team LeMans will enter their first FR Japan season since 2022 this year, but the outfit will miss the opening round at Okayama. Lin Chenghua (#48) will be the team’s driver in the second, third and fifth rounds at Fuji, Suzuka and Fuji.

Lin, from China, will make his debut in the series, stepping up from Japanese F4. The 27-year-old currently competes with debutants Ragno Motor Sport, while in 2024, he raced for Akiland Racing and finished 20th overall with one point. 

Buzz Racing

Buzz Racing was announced to be joining FR Japan earlier but has not been spotted in testing activities, nor have they appeared on the entry list for the first round. The team last competed in the championship in 2023’s third round at Okayama, in which Jiei Okuzumi took a best result of third in the second race.

Header photo credit: Birth Racing Project