The Suzuka 1000km marks the fourth round of the Intercontinental GT Challenge calendar, with SRO releasing an entry list featuring some big names and teams, while also revealing a noticeable number of absences ahead of the September 13 race.
In what will serve as the 50th running of the historic Japanese enduro, we’re set for a 28-car grid and 9 Pro class entries, highlighted by the dual-car effort of Absolute Racing and AO By Absolute Racing, which will see DTM champion Ayhancan Güven, Alessandro Ghiretti and Dorian Boccolacci will share the No. 7 Porsche, while the AO By Absolute Racing entry will sport the latest iteration of Rexy’s incredible string of livery designs as ‘Bushi Rexy’ will be piloted by none other than Laurin Heinrich, along with Alessio Picariello and Julien Andlauer.
Right off the bat, that trio will be really hard to beat if this already legendary No. 8 Porsche can avoid any setbacks during the 6+ hours of racing.
We’re also getting a return of the Johor Motorsports Racing Corvette, with Nicky Catsburg, Alexander Sims and IndyCar legend Scott McLaughlin reprising their entry from last season.
The fun continues with the noticeable debut of the Mustang GT3 at Suzuka Circuit via a three-way partnership between Australian powers Miedecke Motorsport and Team MPC with Ford Racing, That Ford Racing entry will see Dennis Olsen, Christopher Mies and Frederic Vervisch link back up after the three-man team won the 2025 Rolex 24 in GTD Pro.
Ford Racing have been steadfast in their commitments to race the Mustang GT3 and GT4 around the world, and a huge focal point for this 2026 season was to have representation at all five rounds of the IGTC season. With three rounds complete, two remain: Suzuka and the Indy 8 Hour in October.
We’re set for two Mercedes-AMG entries in Pro, with one serving as Craft-Bamboo Racing with Luca Stolz, Maxime Martin and Kakunoshin Ohta, while IGTC regulars and 75 Express will race with Kenny Habul, Mikael Grenier and Philip Ellis as Habul will aim to replicate 2018 and 2019 class victories at the circuit.
In an awesome wrinkle for this year’s rendition, a Lexus RC F and a Nissan GT-R Nismo will both be present via strong Japanese-based outfits K-tunes Racing and Team Szigen, respectively.
As for other drivers being sprinkled throughout, we have Mathieu Jaminet in a Porsche with EBM Giga Racing, Augusto Farfus in a BMW with Team KRC, and Ferrari factory talent Thomas Neubauer in a Ferrari 296 with Maezawa Racing.
For some of the notable absentees, last year’s race winner Team WRT will not race as a factory team, meaning Kelvin van der Linde, Raffaele Marciello and Charles Weerts will not be present to defend their victory. Team WRT will still be present on the grid but dressed up as a Bronze Cup entry with a trio of Anthony McIntosh, Parker Thompson and Dan Harper, which on their own is still a real great car on the grid.
GruppeM, winners of the season-opening Bathurst 12 Hour, will not be on the grid. Maro Engel, who currently leads the IGTC championship, will instead be in Germany fulfilling his DTM commitments. The DTM round at Sachsenring will also rule out KVDL, as well as all three drivers from Lionspeed GP: Thomas Preining, Ricardo Feller, and Bastian Buus, who won the Spa 24 Hours.
Additionally, last year’s second place finishers Kévin Estre, Laurens Vanthoor, and Patrick Pilet will all not be present.
The last major absence from the grid comes from Goodsmile Racing, who will miss the Suzuka 1000km for the first time since 2008 as they’re remaining solely focused on their Super GT campaign in 2026.
Overall, the 28 initial entries—down from 33 last season—represent eight different brands and should still produce an engaging event that you won’t want to miss. Regardless of which drivers or teams may be absent, this year’s Suzuka 1000km should still deliver peak GT3 racing. Don’t miss it.