Three Super GT teams could go head to head with competitors from the World Endurance Championship if a challenge the Japanese series plans to issue is accepted. Just before the Fuji 300km race GTA boss Masaaki Bandoh, revealed that he is considering making a request that three GT500 teams are allowed to race in the Fuji 6 Hours as unclassified runners. One team from each manufacturer would take part and run in the race with the WEC regulars. SuperGT’s relationship with the Asian Le Mans Series is also under review.

At Fuji Speedway in the early season low drag trim the GT500 cars were more than capable of matching the LMP1 runners, with a fastest single lap in qualifying slightly faster than that achieved by the Audi R18’s (though slower than the pace of the Toyota and Porsches) and significantly faster than the privateer LMP1’s. It is likely that at least two of the three GT500 manufacturers would be very keen to take part in the race, Nissan and Honda would other wise be unrepresented at the front of the race, while Toyota’s Lexus brand would also get global coverage it would otherwise miss out on.

The FIA WEC organisation has pointed out that under the sporting regulations such a move would not be possible due to art 16A which states – “The Events are reserved exclusively for “Le Mans Prototype”cars (hereinafter LMP1 and LMP2) and “Le Mans Grand Touring Endurance” cars (hereinafter LMGTE Pro and LMGTE Am) as defined in the applicable Technical Regulations and homologated by the FIA and/or the ACO, in accordance with the 2015 Technical Regulations.” However it would not be the first time such regulations have been overturned in an FIA series, or overlooked after manufacturer lobbying.

Bandoh also made a direct challenge to Mercedes, Audi and BMW to pit their cars against the GT500 teams at Fuji in 2017, it is expected that the Germans will accept and offer a challenge in return. It comes as little surprise that Bandoh, a long time Toyota partner, favours Toyota’s home track for these showdowns where Super GT currently races twice a season (and will limey return to three times a year in 2016 or 2017), rather than the Honda owned Suzuka where Super GT races only once a season. In the past Bandoh has lobbied the FIA to allow a GT500 car to race at Le Mans.

The full Fuji 300km race can be viewed below – as can all other 2015 Super GT races.

