Team KCMG began its 2026 SUPER FORMULA campaign with points at Mobility Resort Motegi, as Kenta Yamashita secured seventh place in the second race of the season-opening double header.
A difficult first qualifying session of the weekend made for a tough opening race. However, in wet conditions, Yamashita showed good pace, making progress to finish 13th. Meanwhile, with limited pre-season testing, Nonaka adapted quickly to the task at hand, building strongly throughout despite a 17th-placed finish in the first race.
Both drivers improved on Sunday, with Yamashita making it through to Q2 and starting eighth on the grid. The three-time Super GT champion again moved forwards in the race, this time claiming seventh and the team’s first points of the campaign. Meanwhile, Nonaka had a more difficult day, crossing the line in 19th.
SUPER FORMULA now travels to Autopolis for Round 3 of the 2026 season on 25 April.
#8 KENTA YAMASHITA
“We worked on the set-up during practice, which made the car feel better, but I wasn’t able to warm the tyres up enough in qualifying. In Race 1 I was pleased to make some overtakes, even though we finished outside the points. For the second race, we again improved the set-up and qualified well, starting in eighth. It was tough with the new track surface, but we were still able to make progress and earn valuable points. Looking forward to future races and we will be aiming for more at Autopolis.”
#9 SEITA NONAKA
“Working with the team from Friday onwards, we gradually gained rhythm ahead of qualifying. However, we weren’t able to find the pace we were hoping for but I learned a lot from the team in the race. Sunday was challenging, I only completed one push lap in qualifying and then had a difficult race. Despite the results, I feel I have improved as a driver and gain valuable knowledge, so a big thanks to the team for their help and support.”
RYUJI DOI KCMG HEAD OF MOTORSPORT
“Overall, it was a frustrating weekend as we didn’t get the start to the season we were hoping for. There are many areas to improve on, although we can take some positives from the event. Yamashita made it through to Q2 on Sunday and scored valuable points, which gives us something to build on ahead of Autopolis. On the other side of the garage, Nonaka worked hard, it wasn’t easy for him as it was his first time in a SUPER FORMULA car for a while. For the next round, we will prepare thoroughly to give both cars a strong chance in qualifying to allow them to fight at the front.”
Media enquiries: Cristina Villar
Email address: cristina@kcmg.com.hk
For more information about KCMG please visit www.kcmg.com.hk. To keep track of all the latest updates, please like KCMG’s Facebook page or follow on X and Instagram.
About KCMG
KC Motorgroup Ltd (KCMG) is an international motorsport services group established in 2007 by Paul Ip. The group, with its headquarters located in Hong Kong, has operations reaching across the Asia Pacific region. KCMG operates closely with many partner companies and racing organisations around the world to provide unrivalled motorsport services, equipment, team management and quality distribution in the automotive industry. For more information on all of the team’s activities please visit www.kcmg.com.hk or email info@kcmg.com.hk.
