Porsche Carrera Cup Japan 2026 – Round 1 (Suzuka) Race Report
The opening round of the 2026 Porsche Carrera Cup Japan season was held as a support race for the Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka Circuit. Following the official qualifying session held on the morning of Saturday, March 28, the starting grid was determined. Overall pole position was claimed by #66 Robert de Haan, the 2025 Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland (PCCD) Champion, who set a new circuit record of 2:00.920. He was joined on the front row by teammate #99 Taichi Watarai, the 2025–2026 Porsche Carrera Cup Middle East Overall Champion. Four-time PCCJ Champion #57 Tsubasa Kondo qualified third, while #36 Dylan Pereira, the 2022 Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup Champion and 2025 Porsche Carrera Cup Asia (PCCA) Champion, secured fourth. Pole position in the Pro-Am class went to #16 Hiro, while #91 Henry Kay, currently competing in PCCA, claimed pole in the Am class.
The Round 1 race got underway at 10:55 a.m. on Sunday with the formation lap. After completing one lap to bring the tires up to temperature, the field returned to the grid. As the starting lights went out, the race began.
Starting from pole, #66 de Haan made an excellent launch and led the field into Turn 1, with #99 Watarai giving chase. Behind them, #57 Kondo lost ground at the start, allowing #36 Pereira to move up to third. De Haan immediately increased his pace in an effort to break away, extending his advantage from 0.9 seconds at the end of Lap 1 to 2.5 seconds by Lap 4.
Meanwhile, defending PCCJ Champion #78 Iori Kimura, who started from the back of the grid, made a remarkable charge through the field with a series of overtakes from the opening lap, closing in on the podium positions by the latter stages of the race. The opening laps featured intense battles throughout the field with frequent position changes. However, an incident at the high-speed 200R corner on Lap 5 brought out the red flag. As the race could not be resumed, the results were declared based on the running order at the end of Lap 3.
In the overall classification, #66 Robert de Haan converted pole position into victory, winning on his PCCJ debut.
"It was my first time racing at Suzuka, but thanks to the fantastic car and the excellent work by the team, everything went smoothly from Friday's free practice. That led to yesterday's pole position and today's victory. I'm truly grateful to everyone involved, and I hope to carry this momentum through the rest of the season."
Second-place finisher #99 Taichi Watarai commented:
"I think I made a good start, but after that I couldn't stay with the leader. It really showed me the level of competition on the world stage. This is my second season in PCCJ, and my goal is to fight for the championship, so I hope everyone looks forward to the rest of the season."
#36 Dylan Pereira finished third overall, followed by #57 Tsubasa Kondo in fourth.
In the Pro-Am class, #88 Tiger Wu, who started second in class, moved into the lead on the opening lap and maintained the position until the race was red-flagged, taking the class victory. #16 Hiro finished second, with #84 Masa TAGA completing the podium in third.
In the Am class, the finishing order remained unchanged from qualifying. #91 Henry Kay took the class win, ahead of #23 Eric Kay in second and #17 IKEDA in third.
Rounds 2 and 3 of the Porsche Carrera Cup Japan will be held at Okayama International Circuit (Okayama Prefecture) on May 16–17, 2026. Qualifying and the Round 2 race will take place on May 16, followed by the Round 3 race on May 17. The starting grid for Round 2 will be determined by each driver's fastest qualifying lap, while the Round 3 grid will be based on each driver's second-fastest qualifying lap.
Weather: Sunny Track Conditions: Dry Air Temperature: 19°C Track Temperature: 29°C (at race start)
