Think of endurance racing and your mind probably turns to the World Endurance Championship, in which bespoke hypercars rub wings with some of the world’s ultimate sports cars.
It makes for stellar viewing but, given the sheer cost and complexity of the cars involved, can feel a bit samey once you’ve followed it for a couple of years.
It’s pretty much a given that a Porsche, Toyota or Ferrari will win overall, while the GT3 class is a toss-up between Porsche (again) and BMW.
Plus, the professionalism on display around the paddock matches – and maybe even exceeds – that in Formula 1, which can make it all feel a bit cold.
The antidote is Japan’s Super Taikyu series, a pro-am championship aimed at attracting all comers from around the country.
It has a whopping eight classes and 56 cars out on track at once, covering everything from your common-or-garden Honda Jazz right the way up to Toyota GR Yarises and Mercedes-AMG GT3s.
A few cult classics are sprinkled throughout the grid too: my favourite is the pair of modded Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution Xs that run in the ST-2 class against the GRs and Type Rs.
The gulf in pace between the front and back of the grid, both in terms of mechanical potency and the skill of the drivers, is massive, so there’s never a dull moment.
It isn’t uncommon to see such absurdities as a Nissan GT-R trying to pass a Porsche Cayman trying to pass a Honda Civic trying to pass a Jazz, all through the same bend. It often goes well but doesn’t always, then all hell breaks loose.
But it isn’t just the novelty of the line-up that makes Super Taikyu genuinely interesting. It’s also an unexpected technical hotbed, with the ST-Q class hosting various manufacturers’ latest experiments.
The current focus is on sustainable fuels: there’s a hydrogen-combustion Toyota GR Corolla, a biodiesel-fuelled Mazda 3 and a Mazda MX-5, a Toyota GR86, a Subaru WRX and a Honda Civic Type R all burning carbon-neutral petrol.
Cars running in the ST-Q class aren’t awarded points, the focus instead being on putting each of their innovations to the ultimate test, but still get involved in a bit of friendly competition.
You also see some big names taking part – Toyota chairman Akio Toyoda most notably, taking the helm of the GR Corolla.
The calendar ensures that any such innovations are properly tested: a four-hour season opener at Sportsland Sugo is followed by a 24-hour race at Fuji Speedway and then five hours at Autopolis.
It may only be a seven-round season, but I would wager that manufacturers learn about as much as they would fielding a vastly more expensive WEC effort.
As much as anything else, it’s the road relevance that stokes my love of Super Taikyu.
Not only is it great fun – with some of the most passionate fans and competitors on the planet – but it’s also helping to keep combustion engines around a little longer. For that I am grateful.
