Alesi Admits Not Winning Fuji Would Be “Disappointment”

Giuliano Alesi has conceded that anything other than a win for the No. 37 TOM’S Toyota in next month’s fourth round of the SUPER GT season at Fuji Speedway would be a “disappointment” as it heads into the race with zero success ballast.

The No. 37 Toyota GR Supra that Alesi shares with Ukyo Sasahara has failed to score points so far in 2026 following back-to-back non-scores in the opening two races of the campaign at Okayama in April and then at Fuji at the start of May.

Engine issues in both qualifying and the race left Alesi and Sasahara a distant 14th in the opener, before electrical trouble cut short at promising run at Fuji, with the sister No. 36 TOM’S car conversely going on to win both races.

As the championship prepares to resume after its extended mid-season break, doubled in length by the cancellation of the Sepang round in June, Alesi says he is maintaining a positive frame of mind in spite of the team’s reliability woes.

“It’s frustrating, that’s for sure,” Alesi told Sportscar365. “Not just for us [drivers] but the whole team.

“I went out there and I really gave it my everything and we couldn’t finish the race, knowing that we had two hours left with probably the best pace, the fastest pace out there. So we also feel like a victory wouldn’t have been out of reality.

“Obviously now to catch up the No. 36 that has done back-to-back wins, if we’re talking realistically, maybe not. But we’re sure we can still win the next race.

“Then if we always finish in the top five in the ones after that, and I’m sure something good can happen. So we’re not giving up on anything.

“Mechanical issues, they can happen to anyone. It’s frustrating, but I’m not too worried because I know how hard the team and Toyota are working.”

With Alesi and Sasahara set to be the lightest Toyota crew at a circuit where the GR Supra tends to excel, the Frenchman acknowledged that the expectation is that the No. 37 car will be in a good position to capitalize on its lack of ballast.

“At this point, without wanting to put too much pressure on ourselves, but anything other than a win would be a disappointment,” he said.

“We’re not going to leave anything out there at any cost; we’ll try to be aggressive but measured at the same time, and we’re just going to do the best we can.”

TOM’S team boss Jun Yamada meanwhile described the electrical trouble that struck the No. 37 car at Fuji, the cause for which remains yet to be fully established, as “just bad luck” as he backed Alesi and Sasahara to challenge for victory next time.

“It’s a real shame,” Yamada told Sportscar365. “We haven’t had two consecutive retirements in a long time, and the No. 37 car’s pace was also pretty good.

“The team is responsible for running the car at the end of the day, so we have to take some share of the blame. We are using the same components on both cars, so it’s just a coincidence the problem hit car No. 37. I think it’s just bad luck.

“Of course, the No. 37 is light, so it should be capable of winning. But qualifying is the biggest unknown, so the drivers just need to take on that challenge.”

On the other hand, Yamada pledged not to get complacent at a strong early points lead for No. 36 duo Sho Tsuboi and Nirei Fukuzumi, who go into the next race with a nominal 80 kg of success ballast and a 16-points lead at the head of the order.

“I wasn’t expecting it at all,” he said of Tsuboi and Yamashita’s Fuji win. “I thought second would be enough. The fact we were able to win was a pleasant surprise.

“We have won both races so far, but the goal is to score consistently until the end of the season. I want to avoid a scenario like the one we had at Autopolis last year, where we scored zero points, so we need to stay focused and not let our guard down.”