8 replies to this topic

[O Volante]

Looking through some older material, I noted a discrepancy in the sources: According to Paul Sheldon's "Black Books" and TNFer Stefan Ornerdal's homepage, the Japanese 2000 Championship became the Japanese F2 Championship in 1977. The Bridgestone Racing Database homepage, however, says the All Japan F2 Championship started in 1978. A look into the contemporary reports of AUTOSPORT doesn't help ... Who knows how it really was? Many thanks in advance!!!

[fines]

Definitely 1978!;)


__________________
When our worlds they fall apart
When the walls come tumbling in
You know we may deserve this
It will be worth it!

Halo - Depeche Mode (2001 ?)

[Rob29]

A Japanese F2 series (not sure it was officially a championship) was going before 1976. The F2 Japanese GP at Suzuka I believe was the reason that the F1WC race at Fuji in 1976 was called 'F1 Race in Japan' and not Japanese Grand Prix.

[fines]

I'm pretty sure the 1976 Japan GP was run to F2000 rules, which were almost identical to International F2. There was an additional option for rotary (600cc) and single cam engines (2,400cc), which to my finite knowledge nobody took up.

[Elford68]

And before 76, were there any single-seater series in Japan?

[fines]

F2000 had a championship running from 1973 onwards, and some isolated races to the same or a similar formula were held from the late sixties. FJ1300 also ran from 1973, iirc. There were other Japanese single-seater formulae, including Formula Junior (similar or identical to International FJ?) in the sixties already, but I don't think they had championships for these.

[Frank Verplanken]

Wasn't there something called FL500 too ? First name of FJ1300 perhaps ?

[D-Type]

FR500 could be the old motorcycle engined 500cc Formula 3. On the other hand, F1500 could be a 1500cc national formula to suit a generally available engine.

[ghinzani]

When the right went gleen?