Kiyoto Fujinami (藤波清斗, Fujinami Kiyoto, born 13 April 1995) is a Japanese professional racing driver who currently competes in Super GT for Team Mach. He is a two-time champion in the series, having won the GT300 class title with Kondō Racing in 2020 and 2022.

Career

Following success in karting, headlined by the 2010 CIK-FIA Asia Pacific KF2 Championship, Fujinami entered the Formula Challenge Japan in 2012 as a member of the Nissan Driver Development Programme (NDDP). He scored 2 points in his first season on the way to 13th in the championship. Returning for 2013, he scored 5 pole positions and 3 podiums over the 12 races, ending with 29 points and 6th in the championship.[citation needed]

Fujinami transitioned to sports car racing in 2014, racing in the ST-3 class of the Super Taikyu Series with Techno First Racing Team. He scored his first class win at Autopolis aboard the #34 Nissan Fairlady Z34. In 2015, Fujinami moved up to the ST-X (GT3) class with Team Mach, and won at Okayama in the #5 Nissan GT-R NISMO GT3. The entry was acquired by GTNET Motor Sports in 2016 where Fujinami continued to race in the ST-X class.[citation needed]

He helped lead GTNET Motor Sports to consecutive ST-X championships in 2018 and 2019, with overall victories in the Fuji Super TEC 24 Hours in each of these seasons. Fujinami added a third Fuji 24 Hours win in 2021.[citation needed]

For 2018, Fujinami returned to single-seaters with B-Max Racing in the Japanese Formula 3 Championship, but over seven races scored no points finishes.[1] He fared better in the 2019 F3 Asian Championship, with 14 points in three races for the team.[2][3]

Super GT (2017-2022, 2024)

Fujinami made his Super GT debut in 2017 with Team Mach, driving the #5 Toyota 86 MC (MC86). That season, he earned three points in seven races, and finished 22nd in the standings with a best finish of eighth at Autopolis. He did not receive a full season contract for 2018, but returned to Team Mach as a third driver at the Fuji GT 500 Mile Race.

Fujinami earned another part-time contract in 2019, this time driving for JLOC in their #87 Lamborghini Huracan GT3. At the Fuji GT 500 Mile Race, Fujinami, Andre Couto, and Tsubasa Takahashi took the GT300 class win, ending a five-year winless drought for JLOC.[4][5]

In 2020, Fujinami signed a full-time contract and won the Super GT GT300 class championship alongside Joao Paulo de Oliveira in their #56 Nissan GT-R. Fujinami and Oliveira won two races at Twin Ring Motegi and Fuji Speedway, securing a further podium and finishing with 71 points.[6] In 2021, Fujinami and Oliveira fell short of a repeat championship, despite winning at Okayama and two further podiums at Sugo and Motegi.[7][8][9] They finished second in the standings to the Subaru R&D Sport team of Takuto Iguchi and Hideki Yamauchi.

Fujinami continued racing with Oliveira and Kondo Racing in 2022.[10] For the second straight season, the pair won the opening round at Okayama and led the championship at the half way point of the season.[11] In the final round at Motegi, Fujinami and Oliveira won their second title in three years, despite Oliveira losing a wheel late in the race. They won the championship after championship rival Riki Okusa's teammate Ryuichiro Tomita conceded fifth place on the last lap.[12]

After missing the 2023 season entirely, Fujinami returned to Super GT in 2024 with Team Mach alongside new co-driver Yusuke Shiotsu.[13]

2022-23 off-season controversy

After two championships in three seasons, Fujinami tested a Nissan Z GT500 at Fuji Speedway in December 2022.[14] Fujinami then joined Kondo Racing for a private manufacturers test in their GT500 car on 24 January at Suzuka Circuit, with the expectation that he would be named as a GT500 driver for the upcoming season.[15] But when Nissan announced its 2023 driver line-ups, Fujinami was omitted from the list of drivers.[16]

It later emerged that Fujinami, who also owns a privateer team , KF Motorsport that competes in the FCR-Vita Series, had physically attacked a member of his team.[17] On 17 February, the same day that Nissan confirmed Teppei Natori as his replacement at the Kondo Racing GT300 team,[18] Fujinami apologised for the incident through his social media accounts. Fujinami signed a GT500 reserve driver contract with Nissan for the 2023 season, and was retained at GTNET Motor Sports in the Super Taikyu Series.[19] He left Nissan after the 2023 season, ending a 12-year affiliation with the manufacturer.

Racing record

Career summary

Season Series Team Races Wins Poles F/Laps Podiums Points Position
2012 Formula Challenge Japan NDDP 12 0 0 0 0 2 13th
2013 Formula Challenge Japan NDDP FCJ 12 0 5 1 3 2 13th
2017 Super Taikyū - ST-X GTNET Motor Sports 6 1 0 0 2 68.5‡ 5th‡
Super GT - GT300 Team Mach 6 0 0 0 0 3 22nd
2018 Japanese Formula 3 Championship B-Max Racing 7 0 0 0 0 0 NC
Super GT - GT300 Team Mach 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC
2019 F3 Asian Championship B-Max Racing 3 0 0 0 0 14 16th
Super GT - GT300 JLOC 2 1 0 0 1 25 13th
2020 Super Formula Lights B-Max Racing 3 0 0 0 0 2 13th
Super GT - GT300 Kondō Racing 8 2 0 0 3 71 1st
2021 Super GT - GT300 Kondō Racing 8 1 0 0 3 55 2nd
Super Taikyu - ST-X GTNET Motor Sports 6 1 0 3 2 82‡ 4th‡
2022 Super GT - GT300 Kondō Racing 8 1 0 0 2 52 1st
GT World Challenge Asia - GT3 Yogibo Racing 8 2 2 0 3 88 4th
Super Taikyū - ST-X GTNET Motor Sports 7 1 0 5 3 97.5‡ 4th‡
2023 Super Taikyū - ST-X GTNET Motor Sports 6 0 0 2 2 95‡ 5th‡
Super GT - GT500 Nismo Reserve Driver
2024 Super GT - GT300 Team Mach 8 0 0 0 0 0 NC
Super Taikyū - ST-X Team Daishin
Porsche Carrera Cup Japan BINGO Racing
GT World Challenge Asia Porsche Centre Okazaki 2 0 0 ? 0 0 NC
SRO Japan Cup - GT3 Seven x Seven With KFM 2 1 1 ? 1 0 NC†
2025 Super GT - GT300 Seven x Seven Racing
SRO Japan Cup - GT3
Super Taikyū - ST-X
Middle East Trophy - 992

‡ Teams' standings.

Complete Super GT results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Team Car Class 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 DC Pts
2017 Team Mach Toyota 86 MC GT300 OKA
17
FSW
19
AUT
8
SUG
12
FSW
28
SUZ
22
CHA TRM
15
22nd 3
2018 Team Mach Toyota 86 MC GT300 OKA FSW SUZ CHA FSW
19
SUG AUT TRM NC 0
2019 JLOC Lamborghini Huracán GT3 GT300 OKA FSW
11
SUZ CHA FSW
1
AUT SUG TRM 13th 25
2020 Kondo Racing Nissan GT-R NISMO GT3 GT300 FSW
4
FSW
5
SUZ
9
TRM
20
FSW
1
SUZ
16
TRM
1
FSW
2
1st 74
2021 Kondo Racing Nissan GT-R NISMO GT3 GT300 OKA
1
FUJ
7
SUZ
26
MOT
8
SUG
3
AUT
11
MOT
3
FUJ
5
2nd 55
2022 Kondo Racing Nissan GT-R NISMO GT3 GT300 OKA
1
FUJ
7‡
SUZ
3
FUJ
6
SUZ
13
SUG
4
AUT
5
MOT
19
1st 52
2024 Team Mach Toyota 86 MC GT300 OKA
22
FUJ
18
SUZ
25
FUJ
15
SUG
17
AUT
Ret
MOT
22†
SUZ
12
NC 0
2025 Seven x Seven Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) GT300 OKA
FUJ
SEP
FUJ
SUZ
SUG
AUT
MOT

Complete Japanese Formula 3 Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Team Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 Pos Points
2018 B-Max Racing Team Volkswagen SUZ
1
SUZ
2
SUG1
1
SUG1
2
FUJ1
1
FUJ1
2
OKA1
1
OKA1
2
OKA1
3
MOT
1

9
MOT
2

8
MOT
3

10
OKA2
1
OKA2
2
OKA2
3
SUG2
1

9
SUG2
2

14
SUG2
3

7
SUG2
4

7
FUJ2
1
FUJ2
2
14th 0

Complete Super Formula Lights Championship Results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 Points Rank
2020 B-Max Racing Team MOT
1

6
MOT
2

6
MOT
3

8
OKA
1
OKA
2
SUG
1
SUG
2
SUG
3
AUT
1
AUT
2
AUT
3
SUZ
1
SUZ
2
SUZ
3
FSW
1
FSW
2
FSW
3
13th 2

References

  1. ^ "Kiyoto Fujinami". DriverDB. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
  2. ^ "Iconic Suzuka presents biggest challenge yet as F3 Asian Championship makes Japan debut". Automobilsport. Archived from the original on 19 February 2022. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
  3. ^ "2019 F3 Asian Championship Standings". DriverDB. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
  4. ^ "Lamborghini Records First Super GT300 Victory at Fuji 500 Miles". Yahoo News. Archived from the original on 12 August 2022. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
  5. ^ "COME-FROM-BEHIND CONSECUTIVE SUPER GT WINS FOR WAKO'S 4CR LC500 AT FUJI". sportscarracingnews.com. 4 August 2019. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
  6. ^ "YOKOHAMA-equipped car won the GT300 class series championships". Yokohama. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
  7. ^ "Can Kondo Racing make a piece of SUPER GT history?". Motorsport. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
  8. ^ "Subaru wins its first-ever Super GT title with all-new Subaru BRZ GT300 in Japan". Subaru Japan. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
  9. ^ "GT300 Standings 2021". Super GT. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
  10. ^ "Fujinami and Oliveira Retained By Kondo Racing For 2022 GT300 Effort". dailysportscar.com. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
  11. ^ "Super GT Okayama: Rookie Toyota holds off Kunimitsu Honda". Autosport. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
  12. ^ "Calsonic Team Impul & Kondo Racing Secure Championship Double For Nissan | dailysportscar.com". www.dailysportscar.com. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  13. ^ "Team Mach, Fujinami, Shiotsu Form New Combination". www.dailysportscar.com. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
  14. ^ "SUPER GT: Nissan trials youngsters in GT500 audition test". us.motorsport.com. 6 December 2022. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  15. ^ "SUPER GT: Kenta Yamashita taken to hospital after test crash". www.motorsport.com. 24 January 2023. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  16. ^ "Nissan Announces 2023 SUPER GT Teams & Drivers | dailysportscar.com". www.dailysportscar.com. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  17. ^ "Kiyoto Fujinami Apologises After Incident with Vita Race Team Member | dailysportscar.com". www.dailysportscar.com. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  18. ^ "Nissan Announces Full Range of SUPER GT Programmes For 2023 | dailysportscar.com". www.dailysportscar.com. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  19. ^ "SUPER GT: Kiyoto Fujinami handed 2023 Nissan reserve role". www.motorsport.com. 9 March 2023. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
Sporting positions
Preceded by Super GT
GT300 Champion

2020
With: João Paulo de Oliveira
Succeeded by
Preceded by Super GT
GT300 Champion

2022
With: João Paulo de Oliveira
Succeeded by
Incumbent
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