# 2013 Formula Challenge Japan

The 2013 Formula Challenge Japan was a multi-event motor racing championship for open-wheel formula racing cars, and the eighth and final season of the Formula Challenge Japan racing series, a young driver development series jointly supported by Honda, Toyota, and Nissan. The championship featured a mix of manufacturer-affiliated drivers and independent entries, and commenced on 30 March and ended on 10 November.
The championship was won by Toyota-backed rookie Kenta Yamashita after a season-long battle where the championship lead changed hands numerous times. Yamashita claimed the title after a hat-trick of wins at the final round in Fuji, more than doubling his points tally to emerge victorious in front of Honda-supported Tsubasa Takahashi and fellow Toyota junior Keishi Ishikawa. Hiroki Shinotani, who had led the championship going into the final round, slipped to fourth in the standings. The season saw five winners, with Yamashita claiming four, Takahashi winning thrice, Shinotani and Shō Tsuboi claiming two each, and Shōta Kiyohara dominating a single round.
This was the final season of Formula Challenge Japan before it was replaced by Japan Formula 4 in 2014, and by the FIA F4 Japanese Championship in 2015.

## Teams and drivers

| Team | No. | Driver | Rounds |
| FTRS FCJ Tokyo Toyopet FTRS FTRS Scholarship FCJ Ishiyaki Ramen Volcano FTRS FCJ FTRS PTT FTRS Scholarship SMR FTRS TMC FCJ Binchou & Dohtonbori FTRS Autobacs FTRS FCJ | 1 | Kenta Yamashita | All |
| FTRS FCJ Tokyo Toyopet FTRS FTRS Scholarship FCJ Ishiyaki Ramen Volcano FTRS FCJ FTRS PTT FTRS Scholarship SMR FTRS TMC FCJ Binchou & Dohtonbori FTRS Autobacs FTRS FCJ | 2 | Yūki Nemoto | All |
| FTRS FCJ Tokyo Toyopet FTRS FTRS Scholarship FCJ Ishiyaki Ramen Volcano FTRS FCJ FTRS PTT FTRS Scholarship SMR FTRS TMC FCJ Binchou & Dohtonbori FTRS Autobacs FTRS FCJ | 3 | Hiroki Shinotani | All |
| FTRS FCJ Tokyo Toyopet FTRS FTRS Scholarship FCJ Ishiyaki Ramen Volcano FTRS FCJ FTRS PTT FTRS Scholarship SMR FTRS TMC FCJ Binchou & Dohtonbori FTRS Autobacs FTRS FCJ | 6 | Yuichi Mikasa | All |
| FTRS FCJ Tokyo Toyopet FTRS FTRS Scholarship FCJ Ishiyaki Ramen Volcano FTRS FCJ FTRS PTT FTRS Scholarship SMR FTRS TMC FCJ Binchou & Dohtonbori FTRS Autobacs FTRS FCJ | 7 | Nanin Indra-Payoong | 1–9 |
| FTRS FCJ Tokyo Toyopet FTRS FTRS Scholarship FCJ Ishiyaki Ramen Volcano FTRS FCJ FTRS PTT FTRS Scholarship SMR FTRS TMC FCJ Binchou & Dohtonbori FTRS Autobacs FTRS FCJ | 9 | Shinya Sean Michimi | All |
| FTRS FCJ Tokyo Toyopet FTRS FTRS Scholarship FCJ Ishiyaki Ramen Volcano FTRS FCJ FTRS PTT FTRS Scholarship SMR FTRS TMC FCJ Binchou & Dohtonbori FTRS Autobacs FTRS FCJ | 11 | Shō Tsuboi | All |
| FTRS FCJ Tokyo Toyopet FTRS FTRS Scholarship FCJ Ishiyaki Ramen Volcano FTRS FCJ FTRS PTT FTRS Scholarship SMR FTRS TMC FCJ Binchou & Dohtonbori FTRS Autobacs FTRS FCJ | 12 | Takuma Imai | All |
| FTRS FCJ Tokyo Toyopet FTRS FTRS Scholarship FCJ Ishiyaki Ramen Volcano FTRS FCJ FTRS PTT FTRS Scholarship SMR FTRS TMC FCJ Binchou & Dohtonbori FTRS Autobacs FTRS FCJ | 13 | Shūhei Hayashi | All |
| FTRS FCJ Tokyo Toyopet FTRS FTRS Scholarship FCJ Ishiyaki Ramen Volcano FTRS FCJ FTRS PTT FTRS Scholarship SMR FTRS TMC FCJ Binchou & Dohtonbori FTRS Autobacs FTRS FCJ | 15 | Ren Nagabuchi | 8–9 |
| HFDP Scholarship/SRS-F/Kotira R HFDP ARTA | 4 | Tsubasa Takahashi | All |
| HFDP Scholarship/SRS-F/Kotira R HFDP ARTA | 5 | Keishi Ishikawa | All |
| HFDP Scholarship/SRS-F/Kotira R HFDP ARTA | 8 | Shōta Kiyohara | 1–9 |
| Exedy Racing Team | 10 | Ai Miura | All |
| NDDP FCJ | 14 | Kiyoto Fujinami | All |
| Honda Cars Mie Team SBT | 16 | Ryūnosuke Shibata | 10–12 |
| Le Beausset Racing Academy | 17 | Rintarō Kubo | 10–12 |
| B-MAX | 18 | Yūki Asahara | 10–12 |
| Source ||||

## Race calendar and results

| Round | Circuit | Date | Pole position | Fastest lap | Winning driver |
| 1 | Fuji Speedway, Oyama | 30 March | Kiyoto Fujinami | Keishi Ishikawa | Shō Tsuboi |
| 2 | Fuji Speedway, Oyama | 31 March | Kiyoto Fujinami | Shō Tsuboi | Tsubasa Takahashi |
| 3 | Twin Ring Motegi, Motegi | 11 May | Nanin Indra-Payoong | Kenta Yamashita | Kenta Yamashita |
| 4 | Twin Ring Motegi, Motegi | 12 May | Shinya Sean Michimi | Hiroki Shinotani | Tsubasa Takahashi |
| 5 | Fuji Speedway, Oyama | 22 June | Kiyoto Fujinami | Hiroki Shinotani | Hiroki Shinotani |
| 6 | Fuji Speedway, Oyama | 22 June | Kiyoto Fujinami | Kiyoto Fujinami | Hiroki Shinotani |
| 7 | Fuji Speedway, Oyama | 23 June | Kiyoto Fujinami | Hiroki Shinotani | Tsubasa Takahashi |
| 8 | Fuji Speedway, Oyama | 24 August | Shōta Kiyohara | Shōta Kiyohara | Shōta Kiyohara |
| 9 | Fuji Speedway, Oyama | 25 August | Shinya Sean Michimi | Keishi Ishikawa | Shō Tsuboi |
| 10 | Suzuka Circuit, Suzuka | 9 November | Kenta Yamashita | Kenta Yamashita | Kenta Yamashita |
| 11 | Suzuka Circuit, Suzuka | 9 November | Kenta Yamashita | Kenta Yamashita | Kenta Yamashita |
| 12 | Suzuka Circuit, Suzuka | 10 November | Kenta Yamashita | Tsubasa Takahashi | Kenta Yamashita |

## Championship standings
### Drivers' Championship

Points were awarded to the top six classified finishers, with one point awarded for pole position and fastest lap respectively.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | PP | FL |
| 10 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Pos. | Driver | FUJ | FUJ | MOT | MOT | FUJ | FUJ | FUJ | FUJ | FUJ | SUZ | SUZ | SUZ | Points |
| 1 | Kenta Yamashita | 5 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 10 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 65 |
| 2 | Tsubasa Takahashi | 12 | 1 | 8 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 10 | 9 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 54 |
| 3 | Keishi Ishikawa | 2 | 2 | 3 | 8 | 5 | 2 | 13 | 8 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 48 |
| 4 | Hiroki Shinotani | 6 | 6 | 9 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 8 | 46 |
| 5 | Shō Tsuboi | 1 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 5 | 36 |
| 6 | Kiyoto Fujinami | 4 | Ret | 5 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 15† | 14 | 10 | 8 | 7 | 29 |
| 7 | Shinya Sean Michimi | 9 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 13 | 11 | 2 | 13 | 9 | 7 | 12 | 26 |
| 8 | Shōta Kiyohara | 3 | 11 | WD | WD | 8 | 8 | 8 | 1 | 5 | | | | 19 |
| 9 | Yuichi Mikasa | 7 | 4 | Ret | 9 | 7 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 12 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 16 |
| 10 | Nanin Indra-Payoong | Ret | 8 | 2 | 5 | 13 | 12 | 12 | 14 | 7 | | | | 10 |
| 11 | Yūki Nemoto | 10 | 12 | 7 | 10 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 6 | 4 | 12 | 15 | 4 | 7 |
| 12 | Shūhei Hayashi | 8 | 10 | 10 | 11 | DSQ | 9 | 6 | 13 | 8 | 8 | 10 | Ret | 1 |
| - | Takuma Imai | 11 | 13 | 11 | 13 | 11 | 14 | Ret | 11 | 11 | 7 | 11 | 13 | 0 |
| - | Ai Miura | 13 | 9 | Ret | 12 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 15 | 13 | 12 | 11 | 0 |
| - | Ryūnosuke Shibata | | | | | | | | | | 11 | 9 | 9 | 0 |
| - | Ren Nagabuchi | | | | | | | | 12 | 10 | | | | 0 |
| - | Rintarō Kubo | | | | | | | | | | Ret | 13 | 10 | 0 |
| - | Yūki Asahara | | | | | | | | | | 14 | 14 | 14 | 0 |
| Pos. | Driver | FUJ | FUJ | MOT | MOT | FUJ | FUJ | FUJ | FUJ | FUJ | SUZ | SUZ | SUZ | Points |
Key :
| Colour | Result |
| Gold | Race winner |
| Silver | 2nd place |
| Bronze | 3rd place |
| Green | Points finish |
| Blue | Non-points finish |
| Blue | Non-classified finish (NC) |
| Purple | Did not finish (Ret) |
| Black | Disqualified (DSQ) |
| Black | Excluded (EX) |
| White | Did not start (DNS) |
| White | Race cancelled (C) |
| White | Withdrew (WD) |
| Blank | Did not participate |