Ohta Poised for Return to Honda GT500 Stable

Honda factory driver Kaku Ohta looks poised for a return to SUPER GT competition in 2026 as part of a wider shuffle of the Sakura brand’s GT500 roster.

Ohta was a fixture of Honda’s GT500 lineup in 2023 and ‘24, but took a step away from Japan’s top sports car racing competition to enable him to focus on his new IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship duties for Acura Meyer Shank Racing.

However, the 26-year-old was in the paddock for the Motegi season finale and appears likely to be part of Honda’s title assault next year with the all-new Prelude-GT.

It was announced this month that Ohta will participate in two rounds of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship for MSR, the Rolex 24 at Daytona and the Sahlen’s Six Hours of the Glen, having done three races in GTP machinery this year.

HRC US President David Salters indicated that Ohta’s reduced GTP commitments are linked to the fact he is likely to contest a double program in Japan next season, which also includes another assault on the Super Formula single-seater series.

“He’s done a superb job,” Salters told Sportscar365. “He hasn’t put a foot wrong. He’s a great member of our team but he also has other commitments.

“He’s done very well here, so I think they want him in SUPER GT with their lovely new Prelude. It’s a real compliment to him. He has fit in well and has been part of the team. With scheduling and stuff, that’s how it works.”

Salters suggested additional WeatherTech Championship races could be added to Ohta’s 2026 program later.

“Let’s see where we get to,” he said. “Obviously it makes sense for the endurance races and then [we’ll see] how it works with his schedule.”

Paddock speculation has suggested Ohta’s return to the Honda GT500 fold could take the form of a drive at the semi-works Team Kunimitsu squad, where he would most likely pair up with his current Super Formula teammate Tadasuke Makino.

Should such a move become reality, what it would mean for Makino’s current teammate Naoki Yamamoto, as well as the remaining drivers across Honda’s others Bridgestone teams, ARTA and Real Racing, remains uncertain.

However, one driver change within the Honda stable that appears highly likely is that Nakajima Racing will welcome Igor Fraga as Riki Okusa’s new co-driver aboard its Dunlop-shod Prelude, replacing the retiring Takuya Izawa.

Brazilian driver Fraga has been part of the Anest Iwata Racing outfit in the GT300 class for the past three seasons, but already drives for Nakajima in Super Formula.

Honda is not expected to make any official communication on its 2026 GT500 driver lineups until December.

Fraga is unlikely to be the only GT500 rookie next season as Rikuto Kobayashi looks poised for a step up to the top class with Toyota after an impressive second season in the GT300 class driving for CarGuy MKS Racing alongside Zak O’Sullivan.

It has been suggested that Kobayashi could be promoted directly to a Bridgestone-shod GR Supra, which in practice would most likely mean filling the slot freed up at Cerumo by Hiroaki Ishiura’s decision to step down from GT500.

That would force Sena Sakaguchi to stay at Racing Project Bandoh on Yokohama tires for yet another season, with the two-car TOM’S squad as well as Rookie Racing and SARD currently looking unlikely to change drivers.

John Dagys contributed to this report