Toyota Names GT500 Lineups as Fenestraz Joins SARD

Toyota has named its GT500 lineups for the upcoming SUPER GT season, which includes confirmation of Sacha Fenestraz joining Yuhi Sekiguchi at Team SARD.

As predicted last week by Sportscar365, Fenestraz will pilot the No. 39 Toyota GR Supra for SARD as he makes his return to the domestic Japanese scene for the first time since 2022, having previously driven for TOM’S between 2020 and 2022.

The Argentinian will share a car with Sekiguchi as he replaces Yuichi Nakayama, who loses his place on the Toyota GT500 roster after six seasons with SARD.

Nakayama confirmed via social media that he will no longer be racing in SUPER GT, but the 33-year-old was named as part of an extensive Toyota driver pool that will participate in Super Taikyu and its revived Nürburgring 24 program.

TOM’S, Cerumo, Rookie Racing and Racing Project Bandoh meanwhile all head into the 2025 campaign with identical lineups to this season.

Sho Tsuboi and Kenta Yamashita will defend their title in what will now run as the No. 1 Toyota GR Supra at TOM’S, with the team’s No. 37 car retaining Ukyo Sasahara and Giuliano Alesi after a much-improved second season for the pair.

Kazuya Oshima and Nirei Fukuzumi remain a pairing in Rookie’s No. 14 car, Hiroaki Ishiura and Toshiki Oyu will contest a second season together in Cerumo’s No. 38 car, and Racing Project Bandoh retains Yuji Kunimoto and Sena Sakaguchi.

Bandoh’s No. 19 GR Supra will continue to run on Yokohama tires, with the other five cars all using Bridgestones, as was the case this year.

In the GT300 class, apr’s No. 31 Lexus LC500h will have an entirely new lineup as Kazuto Kotaka has been named as the reserve driver for the Toyota GT500 teams, while Jin Nakamura exits SUPER GT to race in the Formula Regional European Championship.

Toyota junior Miki Koyama will  be part of the apr setup for 2025, with a specific car and teammate yet to be announced, while Rikuto Kobayashi, who drove apr’s No. 30 car this year, will stay in the GT300 ranks but with a team not yet confirmed.

Elsewhere in the Toyota junior ranks, Seita Nonaka will continue to drive for Saitama Green Brave, and Hibiki Taira stays at Inging.

Esteban Masson has been named as an official Toyota junior driver, and will contest a season of Super Formula Lights in Japan alongside a program in the LMP2 class of the European Le Mans Series with a team yet-to-be confirmed.

Further details on Toyota’s GT300 roster are expected early in the new year.