On April 12–13, the first round of the 2025 SUPER GT season took place at Okayama International Circuit.

This season, Astemo REAL RACING welcomes rookie driver Syun Koide, who gained attention by winning last year’s All-Japan Super Formula Lights Championship. He joins forces with veteran driver Tsukakoshi, forming a new driver duo aiming for the series title. The team will continue to drive the Civic Type R-GT, which was introduced last year and helped deliver strong results in the final round. Now in its second year, the machine saw various updates. With an enhanced car and refreshed driver lineup, the team is determined to compete for the top position right out the gate.
This season, the qualifying format has been revised. The previous system, which combined lap times from Q1 and Q2, has been replaced by a knockout format. Under the new rules, only the top 10 cars from Q1 advance to Q2. In Q1 on Saturday, April 12, Tsukakoshi took the wheel. He entered the track slightly early and recorded a lap time of 1:17.740 on his fifth lap, temporarily placing him 7th. However, toward the end of the session, three other drivers posted faster times, pushing him down to 11th to narrowly miss out on Q2 qualification.
Despite the setback, the time gap to the top was only 0.578 seconds, leaving the team optimistic about a strong comeback in the race.

On Sunday, April 13, the 82-lap final race began under challenging conditions due to heavy rain just before noon. The race started at 13:10 behind the safety car. Tsukakoshi, starting driver of the #17 Astemo Civic Type R-GT, is known for his skill on wet surfaces. When the race officially began on lap 5, a multi-car crash occurred due to the slippery track, but Tsukakoshi skillfully avoided the incident. After the race resumed following a red flag, he steadily climbed the ranks.

By lap 14, he had moved up to 6th. Despite the difficult conditions, Tsukakoshi continued to push forward, overtaking the #19 WedsSport ADVAN GR Supra and #24 Realize Corporation ADVAN Z to move into 4th. He completed a flawless stint until lap 46, then pitted for new wet tires and handed the wheel over to Koide.
Koide maintained a consistent pace and pitted again on lap 61 to switch to dry tires as the tarmac began to dry. The team executed a quick tire change, and Koide continued to drive strongly.
In the closing stages, the safety car was deployed again due to a car going off track. The race resumed with 10 laps remaining. At that point, the #37 Deloitte TOM’S GR Supra, running in 3rd, had been handed a 10-second time penalty, giving our #17 a potential shot at the podium if they could maintain their position. With a radio message from Team Director Kaneishi urging, “Hold your position!” Koide pressed on. However, as he passed a GT300 class car, a small gap was left open. The #39 DENSO KOBELCO SARD GR Supra and #8 ARTA MUGEN CIVIC TYPE R-GT seized the opportunity to attempt overtaking. In the ensuing battle, our machine made contact with the #8 car, resulting in an off-track excursion.
Ultimately, our #17 finished in 8th place (the #8 car was later given a 40-second penalty for the contact).

Although the opening round of the 2025 season ended without a podium finish, the team demonstrated a strong pace and resilience, running as the highest placed Honda entry through the closing stages of the race. Their performance clearly showcased the strength and competitiveness of the team heading into the new season.
The second round, the "FUJI GT 3 Hours RACE," will take place at Fuji Speedway on May 3–4. We look forward to your continued support and hope you’re as excited as we are to see what the Astemo Civic Type R-GT can achieve this season.