Tsukuba Circuit
LocationShimotsuma, Ibaraki, Japan
Time zoneUTC+09:00
Coordinates36°09′6″N 139°55′17″E / 36.15167°N 139.92139°E / 36.15167; 139.92139
Capacity8,500
Broke ground1966
Opened22 June 1970 (1970-06-22)
Major eventsCurrent:
MFJ Superbike
Former:
Japanese F3 (1994–2004)
JTCC (1985–1994)
Car Circuit (1970–present)
Length2.045 km (1.271 miles)
Turns12
Race lap record0:52.149 (Fábio Carbone, Dallara F304, 2004, F3)
Bike Circuit (1990–present)
Length2.070[1] km (1.286 miles)
Turns13
Home straight of Tsukuba Circuit

Tsukuba Circuit (Japanese: 筑波サーキット, Tsukuba Sа̄kitto) is a motorsport race track located in Shimotsuma, a neighboring city of Tsukuba, Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan, about 60 km (37 mi) north of central Tokyo. It is 2.045 km (1.271 mi) long, with 32 pit garages and a 437 m (0.272 mi) long back straight.[1] There is a small chicane used only for motorcycle racing that increases the track's total length to 2.070 km (1.286 mi).

The track was established in 1966 with the aim of attracting young people to participate in motor sports, but was not actually completed until 1970.[2] At the present time, an event is held every week.[3] The track has a large variety of corners, ranging from wide sweepers to hairpins.[2] The circuit accommodates 8500 spectators on the track, 3000 in the stands, 5000 on lawn seats, and 500 standing over the pits.[2]

The illustration of the course guide shows that there are various courses other than the main course.

  • Course 1000

In 2001, the minibike course that had been called the "East Course" was completely renovated and opened as Course 1000 (TC1000), which is almost 1,000 meters in circumference. The TC1000 is a safe course that is open to cars and motorcycles, and features excellent visibility, making it ideal for beginners.

  • Gymkhana track

The trapezoid-shaped area just outside the last corner of the main course is the Gymkhana track. Gymkhana is a popular motor sport in Japan, and the All Japan Gymkhana Championships are held by JAF. Practice sessions and Gymkhana competitions are held at the Gymkhana track.

  • Oval Course

The Oval Course, located between the first corner and the second hairpin of the main course, is a course for training Auto Race drivers. Auto Race is a unique form of public gambling motor sport in Japan.

Admission is free on weekdays and ¥500 on weekends, but only when there are no scheduled events. Visitors are allowed to drive on the track with a license. Tsukuba Circuit is not convenient to public transportation, so it is best accessed by a private car. The nearest station can only provide access via lengthy taxi ride.

A satellite image of Tsukuba Circuit in 1990

Time Attack

Tsukuba's "Time Attack" event (alternatively known as Super Lap or Tuner Battles) originated in Japan when the tuning media organized the event on race circuits such as Tsukuba, as a proving ground for street tuned cars built at a large budget by highly respected tuning companies. As a result of the quick rise in popularity, tuners developed specialized cars to beat the competition,[4] including the purpose-built HKS CT230R Lancer Evolution with a body made entirely out of carbon fibre.

Unlike other timed motorsport disciplines such as sprinting and hillclimbing, the car is required to start off under full rolling start conditions following a warm-up lap, where they will have to accelerate out as fast as possible to determine how fast they enter their timed lap.[4] Commonly, as competing cars consist of modified road-going models, that are required to wear tires authorized for road use. Although as time attack cars have gotten fast, due to safety concerns with aerodynamic loads, slicks in faster classes are now common place.

On 27th January 2023 Yoshiki 'Fire' Ando with the Escort Drag Racing Service Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX became the first driver to break through the 50-second barrier at Tsukuba. This was the first time that a tuner car with a production chassis had gone sub-50 seconds on street semi-slick tires.[5][6] HKS and Nobuteru Taniguchi had gone sub-50 seconds before Ando, with a time of 49.445 seconds and a top speed of 238.253 km/h in the HKS Toyota 86 TRB-03 on slick tires.[7] However, this was largely disputed as a traditional tuner car record since it was set on slick tires. HKS maintains a time of 50.259 seconds in the TRB-03 on traditional semi-slick street tires.[8][9]

Time Attack top 50 rankings

The following is the top 50 ranking for tuning car on street tires, as of 12th of February 2023:

Pos Team Driver Car Time (s) Top speed (km/h) Drivetrain
1 HKS Nobuoteru 'NOB' Taniguchi Toyota 86 (HKS TRB-03) 49.445 238.253[9][8] FR
2Escort Drag Racing Service Yoshiki 'Fire' AndoMitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX49.897253.938[10] 4WD
3Scorch Racing / ADVAN Tomohiko 'Under' SuzukiNissan Silvia (S15)50.366243.847 FR
4Top Fuel Drag & Street Shop Nobuoteru 'NOB' TaniguchiHonda S2000 (AP1)51.762233.060[11] FR
5Garage G-Force Nobuoteru 'NOB' TaniguchiMitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX52.391223.927 4WD
6AutoBahn / Joyo Kunihiko BandoToyota Soarer (JZZ30)52.454248.447[12] FR
7PZ Tuning / Vibrant Performance Will Au-YeungHonda Civic (FG4)53.071237.781[13] FF
8Esprit Nobuoteru 'NOB' TaniguchiHonda NSX (NA1)53.474239.734[14] MR
9Car Shop Dream / KJM / Vortex Testuhiro KurokawaMazda RX-7 (FD3S)53.489225.894 FR
10 Arvou Yusaku Shibata Honda S2000 (AP1) 53.571 210.608 FR
11HKS Nobuoteru 'NOB' TaniguchiMitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX (HKS CT230R)53.589228.xxx[15] 4WD
12Revolution Yasushi KikuchiMazda RX-7 (FD3S)53.673225.894[16] FR
13Friends Racing Toru InoseNissan Silvia (S15)53.821223.602 FR
14Seyamax Admix Kyushu DanjiHonda NSX (NA1)53.915219.601 MR
15 Autobahn / Joyo Kunihiko Bando Nissan Skyline GT-R (BNR33) 54.010 246.070[17] 4WD
16 RGN CTA Daisuke Aoki Mazda RX-7 (FD3S) 54.035 205.950 FR
17 Kyushu Danji / Tomiyoshi Racing Tsutomu Hanita Honda NSX (NA2) 54.101 222.635 MR
18 Garage S Complete Mitsuyoshi Nishio Nissan Onevia 54.124 234.324 FR
19DLanguage Yasushi KikuchiSubaru Impreza R205 (GR)54.115225.282 4WD
20ATTKD Super Mitsuhiro KinoshitaNissan Skyline GT-R (BNR32)54.145232.909[18] 4WD
21Sakamoto Engineering Hiroki SakamotoMazda RX-7 (FD3S) 54.252225.282[19] FR
22Garage HRS / Sun Automobile Tarzan YamadaMitsubishi Lancer Evolution VII (CyberEVO)54.392 4WD
23 ARIOS Okuyama Yoshiaki Itagaki Mazda RX-7 (FD3S) 54.476 206.936 FR
24M Speed Tetsuya TanakaNissan Skyline GT-R (BNR34)54.481 4WD
25Endless / ADVAN Atsushi ShimayaMazda RX-7 (FD3S) 54.483212.014[20] FR
26 Wacky Mate Masayoshi Kato Nissan Skyline GT-R (BNR32) 54.571 239.150 4WD
27 TFR Mukaishima Kiyotaka Ejima Mazda RX-7 (FD3S) 54.585 224.439 FR
28 ADMIX / SHORIN / CHEMITEC Shoichiro Masumoto Nissan Skyline GT-R (BNR32) 54.828 233.817 4WD
29 Exceed Moat Tsumotu Hirokoshi Nissan 240SX S14 54.882 230.868 FR
30 JDMYard / Hardrace Adam Casmiri Honda Civic (EG6) 54.901 241.827 FF
31 DKOS GG-R Aso Daimajin Nissan Skyline GT-R (BNR34) 54.917 224.859 4WD
32 RACK / INTEC Takataka Subaru Impreza (GF8) 55.071 210.158 4WD
33 Auto Rescue Izu / Scoot Sports Yasuhiro 'Yabatan' Ando Mazda RX-7 (FD3S) 55.109 213.65 FR
34 Moty's t-one Kazuyuki '01.t' Takahashi Mazda RX-7 (FD3S) 55.237 214.328 FR
35 Panspeed Kota Sasaki Mazda RX-7 (FD3S) 55.320 212.976 FR
36 Ti Racing Tomohiro Ido Lotus Exige S2 55.402 217.962 MR
37 Phoenix Power Yui Tsutsumi Nissan GTR (R35) 55.455 237.885 4WD
38 Nobuemon / Joyo Nobuemon Toyota Supra (JZA80) 55.458 233.615 FR
39 HKS Nobuoteru 'NOB' Taniguchi Suzuki Swift (HKS TRB-04) 55.498 227.225 FF
40 M's Machine Works Yuta Uemura Porsche Cayman (987) 55.509 205.089 MR
41 Wacky Mate Kengo 'Lock' Suzuki Mazda RX-7 (FD3S) 55.510 221.538 FR
42 Full Stage / ENDLESS Hiroyuki 'Shark' Iiri Mazda RX-7 (FD3S) 55.595 200.632 FR
43 Anshin / Lucas Oil Anshin Manabe Nissan Skyline GT-R (BNR32) 55.811 239.521 4WD
44 Ti Racing Tomohiro Ido Lotus Exige S2 55.824 MR
45 Racing Project Bandoh Manabu "Max" Orido Toyota GT86 (ZN6) 55.927 212.797 FR
46 R-Magic Pink Mitsuhiro Kinoshita Mazda RX-7 (FD3S) 55.947 217.742 FR
47 GNR Racing / Garage Rise-Up Koji Asai Honda Civic (EK9) 55.964 201.831 FF
48 JUN Mitsuhiro Kinoshita Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution V 55.976 4WD
49 BT Racing Ootori Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IV 55.979 197.08 4WD
50 Yellow Factory / RF KEW Ryo Kaneko Honda Civic (EG6) 55.984 187.826 FF
51 New Type Racing Nyan Mazda RX-7 (FD3S) 56.015 237.102 FR

Lap records

The outright all-time unofficial track record is 50.230 seconds, set by Kazuyoshi Hoshino in a March 792 Formula Two car, during qualifying for the 1979 Tsukuba Champions race.[21] The fastest official race lap records at the Tsukuba Circuit are listed as:

CategoryTimeDriverVehicleEvent
Car Circuit: 2.045 km (1970–present)
Formula Three0:52.149[22]Fábio CarboneDallara F3042004 Tsukuba Japanese F3 round
Formula Toyota0:54.942[23]Mitsuharu KawazuTom's FT202001 Tsukuba Formula Toyota round
Group A0:58.726[24]Kazuyoshi HoshinoNissan Skyline GT-R BNR321992 Tsukuba JTCC round

Tsukuba Circuit has appeared in numerous video games, including iRacing, Forza Motorsport, 2, 3, and 4, Gran Turismo 4, PSP, 5, 6, 7 and Sport, Tourist Trophy, Enthusia Professional Racing, rFactor, and D1 Grand Prix.

The track is commonly used for tuner events and has appeared in the final installment of the Shuto Kousoku Trial series, SKT Max. The circuit has also gained popularity because of its use by Best Motoring to test and race a variety of vehicles.

References

  1. 1 2 "Tsukuba Circuit". Moto Racing Japan. Retrieved 6 November 2006.
  2. 1 2 3 "Go! Go! Speed Racer!". Ibaraki Prefecture. Retrieved 2006-11-06.
  3. ↑ "What is the Tsukuba Circuit?". She Japan. Retrieved 2006-11-06.
  4. 1 2 Time Attack FAQ's Archived 2007-09-12 at the Wayback Machine
  5. ↑ "Watch: Fire Ando's 49-Second Tsukuba Lap". Speedhunters. 2023-01-30. Retrieved 2023-02-17.
  6. ↑ Gilboy, James (2023-01-31). "Watch a Modified Mitsubishi Evo IX Smash Tsukuba's 50-Second Barrier on Street Tires". The Drive. Retrieved 2023-02-17.
  7. ↑ "New Record Set by HKS TRB-03 in Tsukuba Circuit Course 2000 | NEWS | HKS". www.hks-power.co.jp. Retrieved 2023-02-17.
  8. 1 2 "Does HKS's New Tsukuba Record Count?". Speedhunters. 2018-02-16. Retrieved 2023-02-17.
  9. 1 2 "HKS TRB-03 Sets New Tsukuba Record". 2018-03-05. Archived from the original on 2023-02-17. Retrieved 30 May 2023 – via PressReader.
  10. ↑ Tsukuba Circuit TC2000 Top Time Ranking
  11. ↑ "BT Racing on Twitter: "#ProT走 運営の方々お疲れ様でした！ BT1 は2秒7 BT2 は55秒9でした 2号はオプションランキングに掲載されました！ https://t.co/FiU6vXfNSs" / Twitter". 2023-02-15. Archived from the original on 2023-02-15. Retrieved 2023-02-15. {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
  12. ↑ 52.454sec 2019/12/15 ZUMMY super lap. 坂東邦彦. 2019-12-15. Archived from the original on 2021-12-13. Retrieved 2021-08-04 – via YouTube.
  13. ↑ Attack Tsukuba 2019-0223「William Au-Yeung//Vibrant Civic」FG4. Attack Official Movie Channel. 2019-03-07. Archived from the original on 2021-12-13. Retrieved 2021-08-04 – via YouTube.
  14. ↑ エスプリ NSX 筑波 53秒474 2019/03/14. Sugimori Takuya. 2019-03-19. Archived from the original on 2021-12-13. Retrieved 2021-08-04 – via YouTube.
  15. ↑ HKS CT230R hypermax in Tsukuba ¨0.53.589¨. TheMarcelodmr. 2012-05-14. Archived from the original on 2020-12-27. Retrieved 2021-08-04 – via YouTube.
  16. ↑ Revolution FD3S RX-7 laps Tsukuba in 53.6 (HD). Yokohama Australia. 2010-12-12. Archived from the original on 2021-12-13. Retrieved 2021-08-04 – via YouTube.
  17. ↑ "BT Racing on Twitter: "#ProT走 運営の方々お疲れ様でした！ BT1 は2秒7 BT2 は55秒9でした 2号はオプションランキングに掲載されました！ https://t.co/FiU6vXfNSs" / Twitter". 2023-02-15. Archived from the original on 2023-02-15. Retrieved 2023-02-15. {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
  18. ↑ 筑波スピードXサウンド・トロフィー２０１６　Sタイヤver. ATTKD Attackers. 2017-02-05. Archived from the original on 2021-12-13. Retrieved 2021-08-04 – via YouTube.
  19. ↑ 54秒252！サカモトエンジニアリング RX-7 FD3S 筑波サーキットコース2000. サカモトエンジニアリング. 2018-03-18. Archived from the original on 2021-12-13. Retrieved 2021-08-04 – via YouTube.
  20. ↑ 【Attack筑波】ENDLESS ADVAN RX-7 54秒483. Atsushi Shimaya. 2019-02-25. Archived from the original on 2021-12-13. Retrieved 2021-08-04 – via YouTube.
  21. ↑ "Formula 2 1979 - Tsukuba". Retrieved 18 March 2023.
  22. ↑ "2004 Tsukuba Japanese F3". Motorsport Magazine. Retrieved 2 January 2023.
  23. ↑ "2001 Tsukuba Charenji Cup Race Round 1". Retrieved 21 January 2023.
  24. ↑ "92 Race de Nippon". Retrieved 11 January 2023.
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