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YOKOHAMA, Japan – The 2026 SUPER GT Series kicked off at Okayama International Circuit, where three Nissan Z NISMO GT500s lined up for the opening round of the season. The highlight of the weekend came from the #12 TRS IMPUL with SDG Z, as Kazuki Hiramine and Bertrand Baguette delivered a strong performance to secure a 3rd-place podium finish. The #23 MOTUL Niterra Z, driven by Katsumasa Chiyo and Mitsunori Takaboshi, found stronger pace in the latter half of the race to finish 8th, while the #24 Realize Corporation Z of Teppei Natori and Atsushi Miyake secured a 9th-place finish. With all three Nissan Z NISMO GT500 cars securing points, the squad opened the 2026 season with a solid and encouraging result.
During the off-season, Nissan/NISMO worked extensively on vehicle development through intensive testing, preparing for the seven-round championship with the goal of reclaiming the series title. This season, the GT500 class has adopted new rules, introducing a single-engine allocation per car for the entire season and mandating the use of E10 fuel, an environmentally friendly blend of unleaded gasoline and bioethanol.
Nissan/NISMO will be competing with three Nissan Z NISMO GT500s: the #12 Z, the #23 Z led by newly appointed Team Director Tsugio Matsuda, and the #24 Z, which features a new driver lineup and a switch to Bridgestone tires.
Detailed race report:
Race day on Sunday, April 12, with ambient temperatures reaching 24°C and track temperatures climbing as high as 39°C, the 82-lap race got underway at 1:25 p.m.
Starting from 7th place on the grid, Baguette in the #12 Z immediately set a strong pace, moving up to 5th place by the end of the opening lap. He continued to apply pressure on the cars ahead, advancing to 4th place with a clean overtake on lap 2 before making another decisive move around the outside of the Hairpin on lap 7 to claim 3rd place. Starting 9th and 10th place respectively, Miyake in the #24 Z and Takaboshi in the #23 Z maintained their positions through the early stages.
Pit stops for the GT500 class began around lap 29. The #23 Z pitted first at the end of lap 29, followed by the #24 Z on lap 32, both completing tire changes, refueling and driver changes. Extending its opening stint, the #12 Z pitted after lap 35 and rejoined the race smoothly thanks to a precise pit stop that preserved its position among the leaders.
On lap 48, when all GT500 cars had completed their mandatory pit stops, the #12 Z Hiramine was positioned 3rd, while Natori ran 9th in the #24 Z and Chiyo 10th in the #23 Z. Hiramine pushed hard in an effort to close the gap to second place, but traffic from GT300-class cars on the narrow circuit made overtaking particularly challenging, resulting in a closely fought battle.
Behind him, the #24 Z and #23 Z ran nose-to-tail and swapped positions on lap 59. In the closing laps, the #12 Z closed to within 2 seconds to the 2nd place but ultimately crossed the line in 3rd place. The improving #23 Z moved up to 8th place with a late overtake on lap 69, while the #24 Z advanced to 9th place on lap 79.
The race concluded without any major incidents, with all three Nissan Z NISMO GT500s securing points in the opening race of the season. Despite the unexpectedly high temperatures making tire management particularly demanding, the opening round confirmed the effectiveness of the team’s off-season improvements, providing positive momentum heading into the next race.
Driver Comments
Kazuki Hiramine (#12 TRS IMPUL with SDG Z)
“Bertrand’s opening stint really highlighted his strengths and gave the entire team confidence. His driving was impressive and very motivating to watch. During my stint, tire warm-up was strong, but I had to work hard to build consistent pace. I tried different approaches to regain track performance and focused on chasing the cars ahead. At Fuji, our target is clear – we want to fight for at least another podium finish.”
Bertrand Baguette (#12 TRS IMPUL with SDG Z)
“The car felt very strong in the opening laps, and I could feel that we had an advantage over our competitors, which allowed me to make several overtakes in quick succession. We were able to show that we can compete on equal terms, making this a very positive start to the season. Of course, there are still areas of improvement , but overall, I’m very satisfied and we learned a lot from this race. We’ll review this race carefully and aim to be even more competitive at Fuji. It was a good start to our championship campaign.”
GT300 class
In the GT300 class, four Nissan GT‑R NISMO GT3 cars and two Fairlady Z entries built to GTA GT300 regulations competed in the race. Starting from 8th place on the grid, the #56 Realize Nissan Mechanic Challenge GT‑R, driven by João Paulo de Oliveira and Iori Kimura, finished in 14th place, with all Nissan-based GT300 cars running to the checkered flag.