On Sunday, August 3, the 2025 FIM Endurance World Championship “Coca-Cola” Suzuka 8 Hours Endurance Road Race 46th Edition (hereinafter referred to as the Suzuka 8 Hours) will be held at Suzuka Circuit (in Suzuka City, Mie Prefecture). The Suzuka 8 Hours is Japan’s largest motorcycle endurance race held annually in the peak of summer and is positioned as a round of the FIM Endurance World Championship (EWC).
The race starts at 11:30 AM and the checkered flag waves at 7:30 PM, with the team completing the most laps in this 8-hour window declared the winner. Each team has 2-3 riders sharing a single machine, pitting approximately once every hour for rider swaps, refueling, and tire changes. With sweltering air and track temperatures typical of Suzuka in August, the race puts teams’ machine durability, rider technique and stamina, as well as teamwork including strategy, to the ultimate test.
Dubbed the “Midsummer Festival of Motorcycles” in Japan, the event has drawn crowds as large as 160,000 at its peak in 1990, and still attracts between 50,000 and 80,000 spectators in recent years. The intense atmosphere and unified energy of the fans have made it a legendary race, producing countless star riders over the decades. Honda has racked up 30 victories to date.
This year’s event features strong domestic and international teams with diverse machinery from Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki, Kawasaki, Ducati, BMW, and more. Factory teams boasting riders from the MotoGP World Championship and World Superbike Championship (WSBK), as well as teams centered around All Japan Road Race Championship (JRR) riders, will face off against EWC full-season teams, who have become regular threats in the battle for overall victory. For these full-season EWC teams, this race represents a crucial battle in the championship standings, as it’s one of only four rounds in the annual series.
The Honda factory team “Honda HRC”, assembled specifically for the Suzuka 8 Hours, features three riders: test rider Takumi Takahashi, MotoGP competitor Johann Zarco, and WSBK competitor Iker Lecuona. Takahashi, a mainstay and the face of the team, helped secure a third consecutive victory last year, bringing his personal tally to a record-breaking six Suzuka 8 Hours wins—the most in history. This year, he aims for a fourth straight win and to extend his record even further. Zarco, currently racing in MotoGP for CASTROL Honda LCR, claimed a historic win at his home French GP earlier this season—France’s first premier class GP win by a French rider since 1954, and Honda’s first premier class victory since 2023. After winning Suzuka on his debut last year, he returns aiming for back-to-back titles. Lecuona, part of the 2022 Suzuka-winning trio, completes the lineup, giving Honda HRC a trio of proven race winners as they target a fourth consecutive victory.
“SDG Team HARC-PRO. Honda” will be represented by Teppei Nagoe, Yuki Kunii, and Keito Abe. HARC-PRO is a prestigious team with Suzuka 8 Hours victory experience, having secured a second-place podium finish in 2023. Nagoe contributed to Honda’s victory as a factory team rider last year. Kunii, last season’s champion in both the JRR ST1000 class and the FIM Asia Road Race Championship (ARRC) ASB1000 class, is now competing in Moto2. Abe, meanwhile, is a back-to-back ST600 champion in the JRR and is currently racing in the ASB1000 class. All three riders have the potential to contend at the front.
The full-season EWC team “F.C.C. TSR Honda France”, a two-time EWC champion, is tackling this season with a revamped lineup. Alan Techer returns, joined by newcomers Corentin Perolari and Taiga Hada. After taking victory at Round 2 of the EWC season—the 8 Hours of Spa Motos—they currently sit fourth in the overall standings. Based in Suzuka, the team has three Suzuka 8 Hours wins to their credit. While they naturally aim for victory on home soil, this race also represents a crucial battle in their quest for the EWC title.
“Honda Asia-Dream Racing with Astemo” enters with Nakarin Atiratphuvapat and Andi Farid Izdihar, who both competed in last year’s Suzuka 8 Hours, joined by newcomer Azroy Hakeem Anuar. Atiratphuvapat, whose main battleground is the ASB1000 class, achieved a double win at the ARRC season opener in his home country of Thailand. He also began competing in the ST1000 class this season, finishing second in Round 2 at Sportsland SUGO (the ST1000 class opener). With substitute appearances in Moto2 under his belt, he’s aiming for a breakthrough at Suzuka. First-time entrant Anuar won both Race 1 and Race 2 at Round 2 of the ARRC in his home country of Malaysia, while Izdihar, a top ARRC contender, returns to Suzuka seeking redemption after retiring from last year’s race.
Under the leadership of Shinichi Ito—himself a four-time Suzuka 8 Hours winner and seven-time polesitter—“Astemo Pro Honda SI Racing” fields a lineup of Kohta Nozane, Kohta Arakawa, and Ryusei Yamanaka. Nozane, a JSB1000 class competitor, narrowly missed victory in Race 1 of Round 2 at Sportsland SUGO by just 0.004 seconds. The team centers around Nozane while employing two promising young riders: Arakawa, who competes in the ST1000 class, and Yamanaka, who races in Moto3. Despite being a Suzuka rookie, Yamanaka impressed during testing to earn his place. With three riders known for their outright speed, the team is aiming high.
“Team ATJ with docomo business”, a team that competes in the JSB1000 class, will enter with regulars Satoru Iwata and Kouki Suzuki, alongside Takuma Kunimine who currently competes in the ST1000 class for TOHO Racing. The squad finished 14th last year despite a setback in the pits, and will be eyeing a top 10 result this time around.
“Honda Dream RT Sakurai Honda” will tackle the Suzuka 8 Hours with three riders: Kazuki Ito, Daijiro Hiura, and Joshua Brookes. Ito, who competes in the JSB1000 class, has shown podium-threatening pace, including a fourth-place finish in Race 2 of Round 2 at Sportsland SUGO. Hiura is known as a supermoto specialist but is also a skilled rider who often makes spot appearances in JRR and finishes in the top positions. This year, he competed in Round 2 at Sportsland SUGO and secured a third-place podium finish in the JSB1000 class. Brookes, a veteran of the British Superbike Championship (BSB), is also an experienced Suzuka 8 Hours racer. Sakurai Honda is a powerhouse team that won the 2003 Suzuka 8 Hours and finished sixth last year. They will be gunning for another strong finish.
As of July 11, a total of 55 teams are slated to compete in the 2025 Suzuka 8 Hours—nine more than last year—setting the stage for one of the most competitive editions in recent memory.