# Cerumo

Cerumo Co., Ltd. (stylized as CERUMO) is a Japanese racing team headquartered in Oyama, Shizuoka Prefecture. The competed in Super Formula together with INGING Motorsport, and participated in Super GT GT500 Class. In January 2016, former Bridgestone Scuderia Ferrari engineer Hirohide Hamashima joined the team and became general manager in both the Super GT and Super Formula categories. At the shareholders' meeting in February 2019, founder Masayuki Sato resigned as president, and Hamashima also resigned as general manager. In his place, Haruhisa Urabe will become president and chairman, and Hiroaki Ishiura will become a director. After that Yuji Tachikawa picked as the director.

## History

The founder, Masayuki Sato, is a famous engineer known as "Bate-san" in the domestic racing world. As Tadashi Sakai's chief mechanic, he was in charge of machines such as the Fuji GC, and in 1981 he took over Sakai Engineering and established Cerumo. The company name is derived from the Italian word for steady. While operating as a maintenance garage, then formed the team in 1991. Since then, he has competed in SUPER GT (formerly All Japan GT Championship JGTC) and Formula Nippon then the current Super Formula.

### Super Formula

At the end of 2007, Haruhisa Urabe, the owner of INGING, became the new owner, and the integration of INGING and the factory is underway. The team has run with Roberto Streit, Yuji Tachikawa, Takuto Iguchi. In 2011 Project mu joined the team as the main sponsor for the team. Their success was during the Dallara SF14 era where Hiroaki Ishiura and Yuji Kunimoto won the drivers title from 2015 to 2017, with Ishiura won in 2015 & 2017 and Kunimoto in 2016. The team also won constructor champion in 2016 & 2017. Sho Tsuboi replaces Kunimoto in 2019. And he clinched third place in 2020 in which the highest position he achieved in the series to date. Hiroaki Ishiura stepped down from racing in Super Formula, and he worked with Tachikawa. His replacement was Sena Sakaguchi. For 2023, INGING acquired a new title sponsor in finance advisory firm Vertex Partners, with the team now named Vertex Partners Cerumo・INGING. Toshiki Oyu joined Toyota and drive for INGING, replacing Sho Tsuboi who moves to TOM'S.

### Super GT GT500

Cerumo has competed in the All Japan GT Championship (JGTC) since 1995 and in SUPER GT since 2005, winning the Driver's Championship three times in 2001, 2005, and 2013 which Yuji Tachikawa won it all, with Hironori Takeuchi, Toranosuke Takagi, and Kohei Hirate each won respectively. Cerumo participating in SUPER GT under the entrant name "TGR Team ZENT Cerumo" from 2020, but already with sponsorship from the pachinko and amusement chain ZENT since 2009. The director was Takeuchi in 2008 and 2009, Takagi from 2010 to 2017, Hirohide Hamashima in 2018, and Tachikawa has been appointed general director since 2019. In 2021, Junichi Murata will remain the general manager of Tachikawa and become the team manager. Kotaro Tanaka will lead the team in 2022, and Junichi Murata will lead the team again from 2023. Tachikawa retired from the series after the 2023 season and he returns to the team as team director. Tachikawa's replacement at Cerumo will be Toshiki Oyu who moves from Honda. Cerumo's long time sponsor ZENT will not be the main sponsor and KeePer will replace it.

## Racing Results
### Complete JGTC results

Source: (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Car | Tyres | Class | No. | Drivers | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | Pos | Pts |
| 1995 | Toyota Supra | B | GT1 | 38 | Érik Comas | SUZ 5 | FUJ 14 | SEN 15 | FUJ Ret | SUG 11 | MIN DSQ | | | 12th | 8 |
| 1996 | Toyota Supra | B | GT500 | 37 | Érik Comas Hidetoshi Mitsusada Hironori Takeuchi | SUZ 16 | FUJ 4 | SEN 1 | FUJ Ret | SUG 4 | MIN 2 | | | 2nd | 68 |
| 1997 | Toyota Supra | B | GT500 | 38 | Hironori Takeuchi Katsutomo Kaneishi | SUZ 4 | FUJ 9 | SEN 4 | FUJ 8 | MIN 5 | SUG 10 | | | 1st | 79 |
| 1997 | Toyota Supra | B | GT500 | 510 | Bertrand Gachot Paul Belmondo | SUZ | FUJ | SEN 8 | FUJ 5 | MIN Ret | SUG 11 | | | 9th | 11 |
| 1998 | Toyota Supra | B | GT500 | 38 | Hironori Takeuchi Takayuki Kinoshita | SUZ 9 | FUJ C | SEN Ret | FUJ Ret | MOT 5 | MIN 12 | SUG 3 | | 9th | 22 |
| 1999 | Toyota Supra | B | GT500 | 32 | Masahiko Kondo Takayuki Kinoshita | SUZ 8 | FUJ 6 | SUG 8 | MIN Ret | FUJ Ret | OKA 11 | MOT 15 | | 11th | 12 |
| 1999 | Toyota Supra | B | GT500 | 38 | Hironori Takeuchi Yuji Tachikawa | SUZ 7 | FUJ 2 | SUG Ret | MIN 8 | FUJ 6 | OKA 8 | MOT 12 | | 8th | 31 |
| 2000 | Toyota Supra | B | GT500 | 32 | Masahiko Kondo Takayuki Kinoshita | MOT 11 | FUJ Ret | SUG 16 | FUJ 19 | OKA 13 | MIN Ret | SUZ 10 | | 15th | 1 |
| 2000 | Toyota Supra | B | GT500 | 38 | Hironori Takeuchi Yuji Tachikawa | MOT 4 | FUJ 3 | SUG 12 | FUJ Ret | OKA 1 | MIN 6 | SUZ 11 | | 5th | 48 |
| 2001 | Toyota Supra | B | GT500 | 33 | Masahiko Kondo Ukyo Katayama Shigekazu Wakisaka | OKA 12 | FUJ 14 | SUG 13 | FUJ 14 | MOT 9 | SUZ Ret | MIN 13 | | 3rd | 58 |
| 2001 | Toyota Supra | B | GT500 | 38 | Hironori Takeuchi Yuji Tachikawa | OKA Ret | FUJ 2 | SUG 3 | FUJ 4 | MOT 2 | SUZ 6 | MIN 16 | | 3rd | 58 |
| 2002 | Toyota Supra | B | GT500 | 1 | Hironori Takeuchi Yuji Tachikawa | OKA 4 | FUJ 1 | SUG 17 | SEP 9 | FUJ 1 | MOT 13 | MIN 9 | SUZ 6 | 4th | 69 |
| 2002 | Toyota Supra | B | GT500 | 33 | Masahiko Kondo Ukyo Katayama Hayanari Shimoda | OKA 15 | FUJ | SUG 9 | SEP 7 | FUJ 16 | MOT 12 | MIN 11 | SUZ 13 | 4th | 69 |
| 2003 | Toyota Supra | B | GT500 | 38 | Hironori Takeuchi Yuji Tachikawa | OKA DNS | FUJ DSQ | SUG 10 | FUJ 3 | FUJ 3 | MOT 9 | AUT 3 | SUZ 13 | 7th | 64 |
| 2004 | Toyota Supra | B | GT500 | 38 | Seiji Ara Yuji Tachikawa | OKA 5 | SUG 1 | SEP 7 | TOK 14 | MOT 10 | AUT 11 | SUZ 4 | | 6th | 45 |
| 2004 | Toyota Celica | D | GT300 | 52 | Hironori Takeuchi Seigo Nishizawa | OKA 17 | SUG 20 | SEP 8 | TOK 23 | MOT 8 | AUT 18 | SUZ 9 | | 13th | 9 |
Note: in 1996 and 1997 Cerumo and TOM's entered the Team's Championship together under the Toyota Castrol Team banner.

### Complete Super GT Results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Car | Tyres | Class | No. | Drivers | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Pos | Points |
| 2005 | Toyota Supra | B | GT500 | 38 | Toranosuke Takagi Yuji Tachikawa | OKA 14 | FUJ 1 | SEP 11 | SUG 11 | MOT 12 | FUJ 1 | AUT 7 | SUZ 1 | | 4th | 67 |
| 2005 | Toyota Celica | K | GT300 | 52 | Hironori Takeuchi Katsuyuki Hiranaka | OKA 11 | FUJ 14 | SEP 12 | SUG 8 | MOT 14 | FUJ Ret | AUT 8 | SUZ 18 | | 12th | 7 |
| 2006 | Lexus SC430 | B | GT500 | 1 | Toranosuke Takagi Yuji Tachikawa Ronnie Quintarelli | SUZ 5 | OKA 5 | FUJ Ret | SEP 12 | SUG 1 | SUZ 7 | MOT 3 | AUT 5 | FUJ Ret | 7th | 58 |
| 2006 | Toyota Celica | K | GT300 | 52 | Hironori Takeuchi Koki Saga Keita Sawa | SUZ 11 | OKA 12 | FUJ 12 | SEP | SUG 11 | SUZ 1 | MOT Ret | AUT 13 | FUJ 21 | 13th | 25 |
| 2007 | Lexus SC430 | B | GT500 | 38 | Toranosuke Takagi Yuji Tachikawa | SUZ 1 | OKA 11 | FUJ 6 | SEP 4 | SUG 11 | SUZ 7 | MOT 14 | AUT Ret | FUJ 4 | 7th | 61 |
| 2008 | Lexus SC430 | B | GT500 | 38 | Yuji Tachikawa Richard Lyons | SUZ 4 | OKA 7 | FUJ 1 | SEP Ret | SUG 3 | SUZ 9 | MOT 9 | AUT 4 | FUJ 2 | 2nd | 93 |
| 2009 | Lexus SC430 | B | GT500 | 38 | Yuji Tachikawa Richard Lyons | OKA 6 | SUZ 1 | FUJ 9 | SEP 10 | SUG 10 | SUZ 3 | FUJ 10 | AUT 11 | MOT 13 | 9th | 63 |
| 2010 | Lexus SC430 | B | GT500 | 38 | Yuji Tachikawa Richard Lyons | SUZ 9 | OKA 2 | FUJ 4 | SEP 6 | SUG 9 | SUZ 6 | FUJ C | MOT Ret | | 9th | 52 |
| 2011 | Lexus SC430 | B | GT500 | 38 | Yuji Tachikawa Kohei Hirate | OKA 5 | FUJ 8 | SEP 5 | SUG 11 | SUZ 14 | FUJ 1 | AUT 3 | MOT 10 | | 6th | 68 |
| 2012 | Lexus SC430 | B | GT500 | 38 | Yuji Tachikawa Kohei Hirate | OKA 1 | FUJ 8 | SEP 2 | SUG 5 | SUZ 9 | FUJ 8 | AUT 7 | MOT 1 | | 2nd | 95 |
| 2013 | Lexus SC430 | B | GT500 | 38 | Yuji Tachikawa Kohei Hirate | OKA 4 | FUJ 2 | SEP 14 | SUG 11 | SUZ 11 | FUJ 1 | AUT 2 | MOT 3 | | 1st | 89 |
| 2014 | Lexus RC F | B | GT500 | 1 | Yuji Tachikawa Kohei Hirate | OKA 14 | FUJ 2 | AUT 12 | SUG 1 | FUJ 14 | SUZ 8 | BUR 11 | MOT 7 | | 7th | 61 |
| 2015 | Lexus RC F | B | GT500 | 38 | Yuji Tachikawa Hiroaki Ishiura | OKA 3 | FUJ Ret | CHA Ret | FUJ 2 | SUZ 2 | SUG 10 | AUT 4 | MOT 5 | | 5th | 75 |
| 2016 | Lexus RC F | B | GT500 | 38 | Yuji Tachikawa Hiroaki Ishiura | OKA 6 | FUJ 14 | SUG 3 | FUJ 7 | SUZ 1 | CHA 15 | MOT 6 | MOT 9 | | 6th | 72 |
| 2017 | Lexus LC500 GT500 | B | GT500 | 38 | Yuji Tachikawa Hiroaki Ishiura | OKA 4 | FUJ 1 | AUT 10 | SUG 13 | FUJ 3 | SUZ 10 | CHA 4 | MOT 3 | | 4th | 81 |
| 2018 | Lexus LC500 GT500 | B | GT500 | 38 | Yuji Tachikawa Hiroaki Ishiura | OKA 8 | FUJ 3 | SUZ 8 | CHA 4 | FUJ 8 | SUG 5 | AUT 4 | MOT 2 | | 4th | 82 |
| 2019 | Lexus LC500 GT500 | B | GT500 | 38 | Yuji Tachikawa Hiroaki Ishiura | OKA 8 | FUJ 1 | SUZ 6 | BUR 7 | FUJ Ret | AUT 4 | SUG 11 | MOT 4 | | 4th | 65.5 |
| 2020 | Toyota GR Supra GT500 | B | GT500 | 14 | Kazuya Oshima Sho Tsuboi | FUJ 3 | FUJ 3 | SUZ 9 | MOT 4 | FUJ 2 | SUZ 12 | MOT 12 | FUJ Ret | | 6th | 68 |
| 2020 | Toyota GR Supra GT500 | B | GT500 | 38 | Yuji Tachikawa Hiroaki Ishiura | FUJ 4 | FUJ 7 | SUZ Ret | MOT 2 | FUJ 9 | SUZ 5 | MOT 10 | FUJ 8 | | 9th | 60 |
| 2021 | Toyota GR Supra GT500 | B | GT500 | 38 | Yuji Tachikawa Hiroaki Ishiura | OKA 6 | FUJ Ret | MOT 8 | SUZ 8 | SUG Ret | AUT 2 | MOT 9 | FUJ 5 | | 12th | 52 |
| 2022 | Toyota GR Supra GT500 | B | GT500 | 38 | Yuji Tachikawa Hiroaki Ishiura | OKA 4 | FUJ 12 | SUZ Ret | FUJ Ret | SUZ 15 | SUG 4 | AUT 15 | MOT 10 | | 14th | 29.5 |
| 2023 | Toyota GR Supra GT500 | B | GT500 | 38 | Yuji Tachikawa Hiroaki Ishiura | OKA 5 | FUJ 13 | SUZ 10 | FUJ 5 | SUZ 6 | SUG Ret | AUT 4 | MOT 11 | | 12th | 46 |
| 2024 | Toyota GR Supra GT500 | B | GT500 | 38 | Hiroaki Ishiura Toshiki Oyu | OKA 4 | FUJ 5 | SUZ Ret | FUJ 3 | SUG 2 | AUT 10 | MOT 3 | SUZ 9 | | 4th | 75 |
$^‡$ Half points awarded as less than 75% of race distance was completed. * Season still in progress.