The all-female Kyojo Cup, based in Japan, returns to Fuji Speedway for its 10th season and its second with F4 machinery. Feeder Series tells you all you need to know about the series’ 2026 season and the drivers and teams set to participate in it.
By Anabelle Bremner
One year on from its move to F4 machinery, the Kyojo Cup is back, shifting focus from transition to refinement. This year’s field tells its own story: six of the 20 drivers hail from outside of Japan and represent the championship’s growing integration with the international motorsport ladder.
The championship will once again use KC Motorgroup’s KC-MG01 chassis. The car, designed specifically for the 2019 and 2022 FIA Motorsport Games F4 Cup, mirrors the formula cars of FIA championships across the world. Before last year, the Kyojo Cup used the Vita-01 sports car, but its switch to single-seaters has allowed it to act as an effective springboard for single-seater careers domestically and abroad.
The calendar
Consistent with last year’s championship, the 2026 season will consist of five rounds, all of which will take place at Fuji Speedway. The track – a four-time Formula 1 grand prix site – also hosts other Japanese feeder series such as Super Formula Lights and Japanese F4.
- Round 1: Fuji Speedway (9–10 May)
- Round 2: Fuji Speedway (18–19 July)
- Round 3: Fuji Speedway (5–6 September)
- Round 4: Fuji Speedway (10–11 October)
- Round 5: Fuji Speedway (31 October–1 November)
Format
The Kyojo Cup race weekend consists of several free practice sessions on Thursday and Friday, a qualifying session, a sprint race and a final race.
Qualifying and the sprint race are held on Saturday, while the final race is held on Sunday. The sprint race grid is determined by the qualifying results, and the final race grid is determined by the sprint race classification. Race distances are not final and will be dependent on the weekend’s timetable.
In qualifying, the driver who takes first receives three points, second two points, and third one point.
In the sprint race, only the first eight racers to cross the line will receive points. 10 points are given to first place, eight points for second, six points for third, and one point fewer from there all the way down to one point for eighth place.
The points system for the final race matches that of Super Formula, in which 20 points are awarded for first, 15 points for second, 11 points for third, eight points for fourth, six points for fifth, and one point fewer until 10th place. Drivers lower than 10th place will not receive points. Points will not be given out for the fastest lap.
There is no team or rookie championship.
Where to watch
Live streams of the races will be broadcast on the Inter Proto Series X Kyojo Cup Channel on YouTube.
Teams and drivers
The Kyojo Cup grid is made up of twelve teams, five of which also compete in Super Formula. Such a prominent professional presence, rare at the F4 level, helps legitimise the championship and offers its drivers the direct connections they need to pursue paid futures in motorsport.
Fourteen drivers on this year’s grid compete under the Japanese flag, with two Americans, two Australians, one Thai driver and one Chinese driver making up the international cohort.
Four drivers on the grid – Rina Ito, Sara Matsui, Joanne Ciconte and Paige Raddatz – competed in the series’ auditions in December of last year. Rather than being a shootout-style contest, the Kyojo Cup auditions act as an opportunity for drivers to try the KC-MG01 and connect with teams.
Kondo Racing
New to the Kyojo Cup grid are Kondo Racing, founded by former racing driver and pop star Masahiko Kondo. The team, who also compete in Super Formula and Super GT, will field the championship’s youngest ever driver in 2026.
Car racing rookie Sara Matsui (#3) is 15 years old and a former member of the Williams Driver Academy. She competed in the Champions of the Future Academy Program in 2025, where she finished ninth in the OKN class, taking one podium at Al Forsan.
Rookie Racing
A sister team of Toyota Gazoo Racing, Rookie Racing compete in Super GT, Super Formula and Super Taikyu alongside the Kyojo Cup.
Rookie Racing will field 29-year-old Mako Hirakawa (#4) for a third season. The younger sister of Haas F1 Team reserve and Toyota Gazoo Racing Hypercar driver Ryo Hirakawa, she finished sixth in the 2025 championship, taking home 37 points with two podiums.
KCMG
The series’ chassis manufacturer also fields a team for a second year in the Kyojo Cup. The Hong Kong–based entity also competes in Super Formula and has experience in the World Endurance Championship in the mid-2010s.
The 2022 Kyojo Cup champion and 2025 runner-up Miki Onaga (#7) returns for her eighth consecutive season. The 28-year-old also competes in Japanese F4 with OTG Motor Sports alongside her Kyojo Cup campaign. She finished 26th last year and currently sits 10th in the standings on six points.
Rami Sasaki (#8) finished fifth in last year’s standings, with a best finish of second place. The Tokyo native, who turns 22 on Sunday, scored 43 points overall in 2025.
Entering her second season in the Kyojo Cup is 22-year-old Kelsey Pinkowski (#9). The American finished 20th in the 2025 standings, not scoring any points. Alongside her rookie Kyojo Cup campaign, she competed in three rounds of the Ligier Junior Formula Championship, finishing 17th on five points.
Seventeen-year-old F1 Academy alumna Joanne Ciconte (#10) will make her Kyojo Cup debut in 2026 after auditioning late last year. The Australian finished 14th in F1 Academy last year on eight points as the youngest full-time driver on the grid.
Fujisan Shizuoka Racing
Formed in 2025 with the sole intention of competing in the Kyojo Cup, Fujisan Shizuoka Racing fielded 16th-placed Yuika Hosokawa last year.
Australian Paige Raddatz (#11) joins the Kyojo Cup grid with Fujisan Shizuoka Racing having also participated in the auditions. The 21-year-old made her single-seater debut in 2025, contesting the last three rounds of Indian F4 with a best finish of eighth.
Rina Ito (#12) returns to the championship after a two-year hiatus. The Kanagawa native finished eighth in the 2023 season of the Kyojo Cup. The 39-year-old has been active in international rallying since 2011.
Team ReFa with AiWin
The popular Japanese hair and beauty brand ReFa has teamed up with two-time champion Ai Miura to launch a racing team dedicated to supporting women in motorsport.
Itsumo Shiraishi (#17) joins Team ReFa with AiWin for her third season in the championship. Originally from Kobe, the 19-year-old finished eighth in last year’s standings, taking home 27 points.
Alongside her, Ai Miura (#18), the series’ 2020 and 2023 champion, steps back into the car after a two-season hiatus, returning with her own team. The 36-year-old Nara native, a class winner in Japanese F3 in 2014 and 2015, competed in both Japanese F4 and FRegional Japan in 2025.
Mihara Racing Team
Founded in 2023, Mihara Racing enter their third season in the Kyojo Cup, running the same driver from the previous seasons.
Kilei Kanemoto (#32) finished 11th in last year’s standings. Originally from Osaka, the 25-year-old will contest her sixth season in the championship.
Fukuda Racing
Tokyo-born Marie Iwaoka (#33) enters her fifth season in the Kyojo Cup as Fukuda Racing’s sole entry. The 33-year-old finished 13th in last year’s standings, scoring five points overall.
Cerumo Inging
Entering their second season in the Kyojo Cup is the joint Cerumo and Inging team, who also compete in Super Formula.
Thailand’s Sitarvee Limnantharak (#35), also known as Minnie Limnantharak, will contest her second season in the Kyojo Cup with Cerumo Inging. The 21-year-old finished her debut season 15th in the standings and took home two points.
Eighteen-year-old Kokoro Sato (#38) enters her third season in the championship with Cerumo Inging. The Hyogo native finished fourth in the 2025 standings with the team, ending the season with two podiums and 57 points overall.
Riona Tomishita (#39) returns to Cerumo Inging for her fourth Kyojo Cup challenge and her second with the team. The 19-year-old from Chiba finished seventh in 2025 with 36 points, taking three podiums over the course of the season.
TOM’S
Repeat winners in the Super GT Series and no strangers to success in Super Formula, TOM’S return to the Kyojo Cup for a second season with an unchanged line-up from 2025.
Aimi Saito (#36), the series’ 2024 champion, stays with TOM’S for a second season. The 31-year-old won one race last year and took four further podiums, finishing the season on 74 points and clinching third place.
Japanese-American driver Hana Burton (#37), ninth in last year’s championship, will stay with the team for 2026. The 28-year-old, who creates motorsport content alongside her racing career, will also compete in the Super Taikyu ST-5 class, in which her team finished sixth in 2025.
Buzz Racing
Buzz Racing are a known quantity in Japanese motorsport, supporting drivers in domestic championships and even partnering with Carlin’s F3 squad when Teppei Natori ran for the team. They also name the third Kondo Racing car driven by Roman Staněk in Super Formula this year.
In the Kyojo Cup, Buzz Racing will field China’s Zhao Yun Qing (#57), also known as Emily Zhao, for her second season in the series. The 18-year-old, Buzz Racing’s sole entry, finished 19th in the 2025 standings.
Dr. Dry Racing with Impul
Dr. Dry Racing have been competing in the Kyojo Cup since 2024. They are entering their fourth season of Japanese F4 and their first in FR Japan this year.
Reigning Kyojo Cup champion Rio Shimono (#86) continues as their sole entry after a dominant 2025 that saw her take eight race wins and two further podiums. The 25-year-old competed in four seasons of Japanese F4 from 2022 to 2025, and she will contest her first season of FR Japan this year, also with Dr. Dry. She was also one of five Kyojo Cup drivers who finished second in the TC class in the 24 Hours of Dubai earlier this year, joining Onaga, Sasaki, Saito and Sato.
Autolook Racing
Kyojo Cup veteran Ryu Yamamoto (#87) stays with Autolook Racing to contest her 10th season in the championship. The 51-year-old lawyer finished 14th in the 2025 standings, scoring two points.
The grid at a glance
| Team | # | Driver |
| Kondo Racing | 3 | Sara Matsui |
| Rookie Racing | 4 | Mako Hirakawa |
| KCMG | 7 | Miki Onaga |
| 8 | Rami Sasaki | |
| 9 | Kelsey Pinkowski | |
| 10 | Joanne Ciconte | |
| Fujisan Shizuoka Racing | 11 | Paige Raddatz |
| 12 | Rina Ito | |
| Team ReFa with AiWin | 17 | Itsumo Shiraishi |
| 18 | Ai Miura | |
| Mihara Racing Team | 32 | Kilei Kanemoto |
| Fukuda Racing | 33 | Marie Iwaoka |
| Cerumo Inging | 35 | Sitarvee Limnantharak |
| 38 | Kokoro Sato | |
| 39 | Riona Tomishita | |
| TOM’S | 36 | Aimi Saito |
| 37 | Hana Burton | |
| Buzz Racing | 57 | Zhao Yunqing |
| Dr. Dry Racing | 86 | Rio Shimono |
| Autolook Racing | 87 | Ryu Yamamoto |
Header photo credit: Kyojo Cup
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