Tsukuba Circuit, Racing Circuit

Tsukuba Circuit is a compact racing facility in Shimotsuma, Ibaraki Prefecture, on the Japanese island of Honshu, roughly 60 to 80 kilometres north of Tokyo. Conceived in 1966, it took several years to complete and finally opened for racing in June 1970. Its proximity to the vast Tokyo metropolitan area, and the endless stream of car enthusiasts on its doorstep, has been key to its enduring success and longevity. The main 2.045 km Course 2000 is U-shaped, folding back on itself through a series of hairpins and medium-speed bends before a long, seemingly never-ending final curve sweeps back to the start-finish line, and is famed for being billiard-table smooth. In its heyday the circuit hosted rounds of the All-Japan Formula 3 and Japanese Touring Car championships, and it continues to welcome top-level motorcycle racing in the form of the MFJ All Japan Road Race Championship. Above all, Tsukuba is celebrated as the spiritual home of time attack, where Japan's tuners have chased the fastest lap since the mid-1990s as a badge of honour. In 2001 a second, shorter course was built alongside the original, prompting the main track to be renamed the 2000 course; the smaller 1000 course suits testing, beginners and amateur club racing. Immortalised in video games such as Gran Turismo, Tsukuba has achieved near-mythical status well beyond Japan. The outright Course 2000 lap record stands to Kamui Kobayashi, who lapped in 44.088 seconds in a Super Formula car during a 2015 time-attack run.

Operated by: Japan Automobile Federation (JAF)