“It’s gonna be a tough one”: Kaku Ohta on the Fuji rounds, Super Formula title fight and more

Credit: Super Formula

In the 14 years since Japan’s premier single seater series changed its name to Super Formula, only three drivers have won the two opening rounds of a season, the most recent one being Kakunoshin Ohta this year. 

He won the wet season opener at Motegi after a decisive move on reigning champion Ayumu Iwasa in the few minutes of green flag racing that took place. Ohta then won the following race the same weekend, fending off a rapidly charging Sena Sakaguchi. 

In doing so, he became the only driver in the series’ 53 year history to complete two weekend sweeps after completing one previously at Suzuka in 2024.

Two rounds and a podium later, he currently leads the standings by 14 and a half points. He was interviewed by DIVEBOMB after the official test sessions held at Fuji.

The day before testing began, he finished second alongside his teammates in the No.93 Meyer Shank Racing Acura in the IMSA WeatherTech Sportscar Championship’s Six Hours of The Glen. He flew over to Japan the night the race concluded and landed in Haneda to do some testing.

“This testing, just after the race in Watkins Glen, it was a bit tough for me. I landed at Haneda yesterday morning, like 5 AM, then directly moved to the track. Definitely, I had jet lag. So I was a bit worried about my performance in this testing because of the jet lag.”

Credit: Super Formula

Despite this jet lag from travelling halfway across the globe, Ohta topped two of the four sessions and set the fastest lap of the week.

These were the final major test sessions of the season, and with five races left at Fuji, it is going to be very crucial to get the perfect balance for this circuit, especially for someone like Ohta who is in contention for the title. The most important feature of this circuit is the 1.475km long start/finish straight, making straight line speed vital.

“The straight line speed is pretty important for the race and also for the quali. So like, yeah, just maximize the straight speed and also need to be fast in sector two. It has  quite fast corners, so it balances everything in this track.”

Despite the importance of straight line speed, Ohta reveals their setup was contrary to what the other teams were running:

“We used to use high downforce setups compared to other teams in the previous races here, actually. We tried to find some good low drag setups. We have to look at the data later. Then, just need to decide for the race.”

The Fuji rounds are taking place this weekend and will be a triple-header, meaning that three races take place across the weekend. Ohta sees this as one of the most crucial rounds for his bid for this year’s title.

“[I want to] at least win one race in three races. So definitely this round will be the key, like the turning point for the season. You know, after three races, if I win all three races, then probably I'm gonna almost become the champion after Fuji.”

While looking at the championship trophy, he believes the competition for the Fuji rounds is going to be extremely tight and winning all three races would be difficult.

“The gap is quite tight. 10 cars in like only three, four tenths. Every driver is getting faster and faster in each session. It's gonna be a tough one for sure…we won the race in Fuji last year as well. So hopefully we can win this year as well. So I have confidence actually.”

Credit: Super Formula

Ohta’s biggest target across the weekend is to expand his championship lead of 14 and a half points to something larger, giving him a bigger margin to the next car going into the next round.

“Definitely try to extend the gap, actually. The Mugen is quite fast in Suzuka at the moment. So I have to make the gap bigger before the Suzuka round to Iwasa, actually. It's only like 16 points, and then it's not that big. So I have to maintain the gap at least and also try to make it bigger. Then that's my main target.”

The grid for one of the three races this weekend, Round 3, has already been decided. Since it is the replacement for the cancelled Autopolis race, the grid for Round 3 will follow the qualifying results from that weekend. 

It is confirmed that Ohta will be starting behind championship rival Iwasa for that race.

“I'm gonna start from P2, then Iwasa gonna start from P1. So that race will be the important one for us. Through turn one, just try to overtake him. Three races, it's gonna be a fun one.”

The three races will be held this weekend. Round 6 will go green at 16:15 JST on Saturday while Rounds 3 and 7 will take place on Sunday at 10:05 JST and 15:35 JST, respectively.

Edited by Liam Ploetner