# 2018 Super GT Series

The 2018 Autobacs Super GT Series was the twenty-sixth season of the Japan Automobile Federation Super GT Championship including the All Japan Grand Touring Car Championship (JGTC) era and the fourteenth season the series has competed under the Super GT name. It was the thirty-sixth overall season of a national JAF sportscar championship dating back to the All Japan Sports Prototype Championship. The season began on April 8 and ended on November 11, after 8 races.
In the GT500 class, Team Kunimitsu won their first-ever championship with the all-star lineup of series veteran Naoki Yamamoto and 2009 Formula One champion Jenson Button, narrowly beating defending champions Ryō Hirakawa and Nick Cassidy at the final race in Motegi to clinch the title after both teams came in to the race tied in points. It was the first championship title for Honda in the GT500 class since 2010. Yamamoto, who had won the 2018 Super Formula title before the season finale, became just the fourth driver to win both the GT500 and Super Formula titles in the same year, while Button became the first rookie to win the GT500 title since Tora Takagi in 2005.
In the GT300 class, the No. 65 LEON CVSTOS AMG fielded by K2 R&D LEON Racing won the championship in Motegi after overcoming a 12-point deficit over the then-points leader No. 55 ARTA BMW, giving series veteran Haruki Kurosawa and Naoya Gamou their first championship title in the series. The No. 55 ARTA team, despite winning two races in the season, were ultimately too inconsistent in their championship challenge, as two races without scoring a point coupled with poor performance in both Sugo and Motegi ultimately cost them the championship over the more consistent LEON AMG. The No. 31 Toyota Prius apr GT of Koki Saga and Kohei Hirate would finish third, just one point behind the ARTA BMW, while defending champions Goodsmile Racing finished fourth after a poor start to the season and a tire issue in Autopolis ultimately cost them the chance to defend the title.

## Schedule

| Round | Race | Circuit | Date |
| 1 | Okayama GT 300 km | Okayama International Circuit | April 7–8 |
| 2 | Fuji GT 500 km | Fuji Speedway | May 3–4 |
| 3 | Suzuka GT 300 km | Suzuka Circuit | May 19–20 |
| 4 | Buriram United Super GT Race 300 km | Chang International Circuit | June 30 – July 1 |
| 5 | Fuji GT 500 miles | Fuji Speedway | August 4–5 |
| 6 | Sugo GT 300 km | Sportsland Sugo | September 15–16 |
| 7 | Autopolis GT 300 km | Autopolis | October 20–21 |
| 8 | Motegi GT 250 km | Twin Ring Motegi | November 10–11 |

### Schedule changes

* On March 4, 2017, Suzuka Circuit, the Stéphane Ratel Organisation, and the GT Association announced that the Suzuka 1000km would become the Suzuka 10 Hours from 2018, and moves to the Intercontinental GT Challenge. The Super GT championship round at Suzuka moves to May 19–20 and will be a 300km race, as it was from 1995 to 2010.
* To replace the Suzuka 1000km as the series' endurance round, the Fuji GT 300km, held in early August, was lengthened to a 500 mile (804 kilometer) race. The Fuji 500 Mile Race was originally held from 1977 to 1992.
* The race at Buriram United International Circuit in Thailand was moved from the seventh to the fourth round of the championship, on June 30 – July 1.
* The race at Sportsland Sugo was moved from the fourth to the sixth round of the championship, on September 15–16.
* The race at Autopolis was moved from the third to the seventh round of the championship, on October 20–21.

## Teams and drivers
### GT500

| Team | Car | Engine | Make | No. | Drivers | Tyre | Rounds |
| Lexus Team KeePer TOM'S | Lexus | Lexus LC500 GT500 | Lexus RI4AG 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 1 | Ryō Hirakawa | B | All |
| Lexus Team KeePer TOM'S | Lexus | Lexus LC500 GT500 | Lexus RI4AG 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 1 | Nick Cassidy | B | All |
| Lexus Team au TOM'S | Lexus | Lexus LC500 GT500 | Lexus RI4AG 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 36 | Kazuki Nakajima | B | 1, 3–8 |
| Lexus Team au TOM'S | Lexus | Lexus LC500 GT500 | Lexus RI4AG 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 36 | Yuhi Sekiguchi | B | All |
| Lexus Team au TOM'S | Lexus | Lexus LC500 GT500 | Lexus RI4AG 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 36 | James Rossiter | B | 2 |
| NDDP by B-Max Racing | Nissan | Nissan GT-R NISMO GT500 | Nissan NR20A 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 3 | Satoshi Motoyama | M | All |
| NDDP by B-Max Racing | Nissan | Nissan GT-R NISMO GT500 | Nissan NR20A 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 3 | Katsumasa Chiyo | M | All |
| Lexus Team LeMans Wako's | Lexus | Lexus LC500 GT500 | Lexus RI4AG 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 6 | Kazuya Oshima | B | All |
| Lexus Team LeMans Wako's | Lexus | Lexus LC500 GT500 | Lexus RI4AG 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 6 | Felix Rosenqvist | B | 1–2, 4–8 |
| Lexus Team LeMans Wako's | Lexus | Lexus LC500 GT500 | Lexus RI4AG 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 6 | James Rossiter | B | 3 |
| Autobacs Racing Team Aguri | Honda | Honda NSX-GT | Honda HR-417E 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 8 | Tomoki Nojiri | B | All |
| Autobacs Racing Team Aguri | Honda | Honda NSX-GT | Honda HR-417E 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 8 | Takuya Izawa | B | All |
| Team Impul | Nissan | Nissan GT-R NISMO GT500 | Nissan NR20A 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 12 | Daiki Sasaki | B | All |
| Team Impul | Nissan | Nissan GT-R NISMO GT500 | Nissan NR20A 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 12 | Jann Mardenborough | B | All |
| Team Mugen | Honda | Honda NSX-GT | Honda HR-417E 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 16 | Hideki Mutoh | Y | All |
| Team Mugen | Honda | Honda NSX-GT | Honda HR-417E 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 16 | Daisuke Nakajima | Y | All |
| REAL Racing | Honda | Honda NSX-GT | Honda HR-417E 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 17 | Koudai Tsukakoshi | B | All |
| REAL Racing | Honda | Honda NSX-GT | Honda HR-417E 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 17 | Takashi Kogure | B | All |
| Lexus Team WedsSport Bandoh | Lexus | Lexus LC500 GT500 | Lexus RI4AG 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 19 | Yuji Kunimoto | Y | All |
| Lexus Team WedsSport Bandoh | Lexus | Lexus LC500 GT500 | Lexus RI4AG 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 19 | Kenta Yamashita | Y | All |
| NISMO | Nissan | Nissan GT-R NISMO GT500 | Nissan NR20A 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 23 | Tsugio Matsuda | M | All |
| NISMO | Nissan | Nissan GT-R NISMO GT500 | Nissan NR20A 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 23 | Ronnie Quintarelli | M | All |
| Kondo Racing | Nissan | Nissan GT-R NISMO GT500 | Nissan NR20A 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 24 | João Paulo de Oliveira | Y | All |
| Kondo Racing | Nissan | Nissan GT-R NISMO GT500 | Nissan NR20A 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 24 | Mitsunori Takaboshi | Y | All |
| Lexus Team ZENT Cerumo | Lexus | Lexus LC500 GT500 | Lexus RI4AG 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 38 | Yuji Tachikawa | B | All |
| Lexus Team ZENT Cerumo | Lexus | Lexus LC500 GT500 | Lexus RI4AG 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 38 | Hiroaki Ishiura | B | All |
| Lexus Team SARD | Lexus | Lexus LC500 GT500 | Lexus RI4AG 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 39 | Heikki Kovalainen | B | All |
| Lexus Team SARD | Lexus | Lexus LC500 GT500 | Lexus RI4AG 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 39 | Kamui Kobayashi | B | 1, 3–8 |
| Lexus Team SARD | Lexus | Lexus LC500 GT500 | Lexus RI4AG 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 39 | Sho Tsuboi | B | 2 |
| Nakajima Racing | Honda | Honda NSX-GT | Honda HR-417E 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 64 | Bertrand Baguette | D | All |
| Nakajima Racing | Honda | Honda NSX-GT | Honda HR-417E 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 64 | Kosuke Matsuura | D | All |
| Team Kunimitsu | Honda | Honda NSX-GT | Honda HR-417E 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 100 | Naoki Yamamoto | B | All |
| Team Kunimitsu | Honda | Honda NSX-GT | Honda HR-417E 2.0 L Turbo I4 | 100 | Jenson Button | B | All |

### GT300

| Team | Make | Car | Engine | No. | Drivers | Tyre | Rounds |
| Goodsmile Racing with Team Ukyo | Mercedes-AMG | Mercedes-AMG GT3 | Mercedes-AMG M159 6.2 L V8 | 0 | Nobuteru Taniguchi | Y | All |
| Goodsmile Racing with Team Ukyo | Mercedes-AMG | Mercedes-AMG GT3 | Mercedes-AMG M159 6.2 L V8 | 0 | Tatsuya Kataoka | Y | All |
| Cars Tokai Dream28 | Lotus | Lotus Evora MC | GTA V8 4.5 L V8 | 2 | Kazuho Takahashi | Y | All |
| Cars Tokai Dream28 | Lotus | Lotus Evora MC | GTA V8 4.5 L V8 | 2 | Hiroki Katoh | Y | All |
| Team Mach | Toyota | Toyota 86 MC | GTA V8 4.5 L V8 | 5 | Natsu Sakaguchi | Y | 1–3, 5–8 |
| Team Mach | Toyota | Toyota 86 MC | GTA V8 4.5 L V8 | 5 | Yuya Hiraki | Y | 1–3, 5–8 |
| Team Mach | Toyota | Toyota 86 MC | GTA V8 4.5 L V8 | 5 | Tetsuji Tamanaka | Y | 2 |
| Team Mach | Toyota | Toyota 86 MC | GTA V8 4.5 L V8 | 5 | Kiyoto Fujinami | Y | 5 |
| D'station Racing | Porsche | Porsche 911 GT3 R | Porsche M97/80 4.0 L F6 | 7 | Tomonobu Fujii | Y | All |
| D'station Racing | Porsche | Porsche 911 GT3 R | Porsche M97/80 4.0 L F6 | 7 | Sven Müller | Y | All |
| Pacific with Gulf Racing | Porsche | Porsche 911 GT3 R | Porsche M97/80 4.0 L F6 | 9 | Rintaro Kubo | Y | All |
| Pacific with Gulf Racing | Porsche | Porsche 911 GT3 R | Porsche M97/80 4.0 L F6 | 9 | Keishi Ishikawa | Y | All |
| Pacific with Gulf Racing | Porsche | Porsche 911 GT3 R | Porsche M97/80 4.0 L F6 | 9 | Kyosuke Mineo | Y | 5 |
| GAINER | Nissan | Nissan GT-R Nismo GT3 (2018) | Nissan VR38DETT 3.8 L Twin Turbo V6 | 10 | Kazuki Hoshino | Y | All |
| GAINER | Nissan | Nissan GT-R Nismo GT3 (2018) | Nissan VR38DETT 3.8 L Twin Turbo V6 | 10 | Hiroki Yoshida | Y | All |
| GAINER | Nissan | Nissan GT-R Nismo GT3 (2018) | Nissan VR38DETT 3.8 L Twin Turbo V6 | 11 | Katsuyuki Hiranaka | D | All |
| GAINER | Nissan | Nissan GT-R Nismo GT3 (2018) | Nissan VR38DETT 3.8 L Twin Turbo V6 | 11 | Hironobu Yasuda | D | All |
| Team UpGarage | Toyota | Toyota 86 MC | GTA V8 4.5 L V8 | 18 | Yuhki Nakayama | Y | All |
| Team UpGarage | Toyota | Toyota 86 MC | GTA V8 4.5 L V8 | 18 | Takashi Kobayashi | Y | All |
| Audi Team Hitotsuyama | Audi | Audi R8 LMS | Audi DAR 5.2 L V10 | 21 | Richard Lyons | D | All |
| Audi Team Hitotsuyama | Audi | Audi R8 LMS | Audi DAR 5.2 L V10 | 21 | Ryuichiro Tomita | D | All |
| Audi Team Hitotsuyama | Audi | Audi R8 LMS | Audi DAR 5.2 L V10 | 21 | Takuro Shinohara | D | 2 |
| R'Qs Motor Sports | Mercedes-AMG | Mercedes-AMG GT3 | Mercedes-AMG M159 6.2 L V8 | 22 | Hisashi Wada | Y | 1–3, 5–8 |
| R'Qs Motor Sports | Mercedes-AMG | Mercedes-AMG GT3 | Mercedes-AMG M159 6.2 L V8 | 22 | Masaki Jyonai | Y | 1–3, 5–8 |
| R'Qs Motor Sports | Mercedes-AMG | Mercedes-AMG GT3 | Mercedes-AMG M159 6.2 L V8 | 22 | Masayuki Ueda | Y | 5 |
| Arnage Racing | Mercedes-AMG | Mercedes-AMG GT3 | Mercedes-AMG M159 6.2 L V8 | 50 | Masaki Kano | Y | All |
| Arnage Racing | Mercedes-AMG | Mercedes-AMG GT3 | Mercedes-AMG M159 6.2 L V8 | 50 | Hideto Yasuoka | Y | All |
| Arnage Racing | Mercedes-AMG | Mercedes-AMG GT3 | Mercedes-AMG M159 6.2 L V8 | 50 | Yūya Sakamoto | Y | 2 |
| Tsuchiya Engineering | Toyota | Toyota 86 MC | GTA V8 4.5 L V8 | 25 | Takamitsu Matsui | Y | All |
| Tsuchiya Engineering | Toyota | Toyota 86 MC | GTA V8 4.5 L V8 | 25 | Sho Tsuboi | Y | 1, 3–8 |
| Tsuchiya Engineering | Toyota | Toyota 86 MC | GTA V8 4.5 L V8 | 25 | Tsubasa Kondo | Y | 2, 5 |
| Tsuchiya Engineering | Toyota | Toyota 86 MC | GTA V8 4.5 L V8 | 25 | Takeshi Tsuchiya | Y | 2 |
| Team Taisan | Audi | Audi R8 LMS | Audi DAR 5.2 L V10 | 26 | Shinnosuke Yamada | Y | 1–3, 5–8 |
| Team Taisan | Audi | Audi R8 LMS | Audi DAR 5.2 L V10 | 26 | Shintarō Kawabata | Y | 1–3, 5–8 |
| Team Taisan | Audi | Audi R8 LMS | Audi DAR 5.2 L V10 | 26 | Shinji Nakano | Y | 2 |
| apr | Toyota | Toyota Prius apr GT | Toyota RV8KLM 3.4 L Hybrid V8 | 30 | Hiroaki Nagai | Y | All |
| apr | Toyota | Toyota Prius apr GT | Toyota RV8KLM 3.4 L Hybrid V8 | 30 | Kota Sasaki | Y | 1-5 |
| apr | Toyota | Toyota Prius apr GT | Toyota RV8KLM 3.4 L Hybrid V8 | 30 | Manabu Orido | Y | 6-8 |
| apr | Toyota | Toyota Prius apr GT | Toyota RV8KLM 3.4 L Hybrid V8 | 31 | Koki Saga | B | All |
| apr | Toyota | Toyota Prius apr GT | Toyota RV8KLM 3.4 L Hybrid V8 | 31 | Kohei Hirate | B | All |
| est cola by AAS Motorsport | Bentley | Bentley Continental GT3 (2016) | Bentley EA824 4.0 L Twin Turbo V8 | 32 | Maxime Jousse | M | 4 |
| est cola by AAS Motorsport | Bentley | Bentley Continental GT3 (2016) | Bentley EA824 4.0 L Twin Turbo V8 | 32 | Kantadhee Kusiri | M | 4 |
| Modulo Drago Corse | Honda | Honda NSX GT3 | Honda JNC1 3.5 L Twin Turbo V6 | 34 | Ryo Michigami | Y | All |
| Modulo Drago Corse | Honda | Honda NSX GT3 | Honda JNC1 3.5 L Twin Turbo V6 | 34 | Hiroki Otsu | Y | All |
| Arto Panther Team Thailand | Lexus | Lexus RC F GT3 | Lexus 2UR-GSE 5.4 L V8 | 35 | Nattavude Charoensukhawatana | Y | All |
| Arto Panther Team Thailand | Lexus | Lexus RC F GT3 | Lexus 2UR-GSE 5.4 L V8 | 35 | Nattapong Horthongkum | Y | All |
| Arto Panther Team Thailand | Lexus | Lexus RC F GT3 | Lexus 2UR-GSE 5.4 L V8 | 35 | Koji Yamanishi | Y | 5 |
| Dijon Racing | Nissan | Nissan GT-R Nismo GT3 (2017) | Nissan VR38DETT 3.8 L Twin Turbo V6 | 48 | Masaki Tanaka | Y | 1–3, 5–8 |
| Dijon Racing | Nissan | Nissan GT-R Nismo GT3 (2017) | Nissan VR38DETT 3.8 L Twin Turbo V6 | 48 | Taiyō Iida | Y | 1–2, 5 |
| Dijon Racing | Nissan | Nissan GT-R Nismo GT3 (2017) | Nissan VR38DETT 3.8 L Twin Turbo V6 | 48 | Richard Bradley | Y | 2–3, 7–8 |
| Dijon Racing | Nissan | Nissan GT-R Nismo GT3 (2017) | Nissan VR38DETT 3.8 L Twin Turbo V6 | 48 | Hiroshi Takamori | Y | 6 |
| Saitama Toyopet GreenBrave | Toyota | Toyota Mark X MC | GTA V8 4.5 L V8 | 52 | Taku Bamba | Y | All |
| Saitama Toyopet GreenBrave | Toyota | Toyota Mark X MC | GTA V8 4.5 L V8 | 52 | Shigekazu Wakisaka | Y | All |
| Autobacs Racing Team Aguri | BMW | BMW M6 GT3 | BMW S63B44 4.4 L Twin Turbo V8 | 55 | Shinichi Takagi | B | All |
| Autobacs Racing Team Aguri | BMW | BMW M6 GT3 | BMW S63B44 4.4 L Twin Turbo V8 | 55 | Sean Walkinshaw | B | All |
| LM Corsa | Lexus | Lexus RC F GT3 | Lexus 2UR-GSE 5.4 L V8 | 60 | Hiroki Yoshimoto | Y | All |
| LM Corsa | Lexus | Lexus RC F GT3 | Lexus 2UR-GSE 5.4 L V8 | 60 | Ritomo Miyata | Y | All |
| K-tunes Racing LM Corsa | Lexus | Lexus RC F GT3 | Lexus 2UR-GSE 5.4 L V8 | 96 | Morio Nitta | B | All |
| K-tunes Racing LM Corsa | Lexus | Lexus RC F GT3 | Lexus 2UR-GSE 5.4 L V8 | 96 | Yuichi Nakayama | B | All |
| R&D Sport | Subaru | Subaru BRZ R&D Sport | Subaru EJ20 2.0 L Turbo F4 | 61 | Takuto Iguchi | D | All |
| R&D Sport | Subaru | Subaru BRZ R&D Sport | Subaru EJ20 2.0 L Turbo F4 | 61 | Hideki Yamauchi | D | All |
| K2 R&D LEON Racing | Mercedes-AMG | Mercedes-AMG GT3 | Mercedes-AMG M159 6.2 L V8 | 65 | Haruki Kurosawa | B | All |
| K2 R&D LEON Racing | Mercedes-AMG | Mercedes-AMG GT3 | Mercedes-AMG M159 6.2 L V8 | 65 | Naoya Gamou | B | All |
| JLOC | Lamborghini | Lamborghini Huracán GT3 | Lamborghini DFJ 5.2 L V10 | 87 | Kimiya Sato | Y | All |
| JLOC | Lamborghini | Lamborghini Huracán GT3 | Lamborghini DFJ 5.2 L V10 | 87 | Yuya Motojima | Y | All |
| JLOC | Lamborghini | Lamborghini Huracán GT3 | Lamborghini DFJ 5.2 L V10 | 87 | Tsubasa Takahashi | Y | 2 |
| JLOC | Lamborghini | Lamborghini Huracán GT3 | Lamborghini DFJ 5.2 L V10 | 88 | Kazuki Hiramine | Y | All |
| JLOC | Lamborghini | Lamborghini Huracán GT3 | Lamborghini DFJ 5.2 L V10 | 88 | Marco Mapelli | Y | 1–3, 6–8 |
| JLOC | Lamborghini | Lamborghini Huracán GT3 | Lamborghini DFJ 5.2 L V10 | 88 | Andrea Caldarelli | Y | 4 |
| EIcars Bentley | Bentley | Bentley Continental GT3 | Bentley EA824 4.0 L Twin Turbo V8 | 117 | Yuji Ide | Y | 1–3, 5–8 |
| EIcars Bentley | Bentley | Bentley Continental GT3 | Bentley EA824 4.0 L Twin Turbo V8 | 117 | Ryohei Sakaguchi | Y | 1–3, 5–8 |
| EIcars Bentley | Bentley | Bentley Continental GT3 | Bentley EA824 4.0 L Twin Turbo V8 | 117 | Jules Gounon | Y | 5 |
| Tomei Sports | Nissan | Nissan GT-R Nismo GT3 (2017) | Nissan VR38DETT 3.8 L Twin Turbo V6 | 360 | Yusaku Shibata | Y | 1–2, 5–8 |
| Tomei Sports | Nissan | Nissan GT-R Nismo GT3 (2017) | Nissan VR38DETT 3.8 L Twin Turbo V6 | 360 | Takayuki Aoki | Y | 1–3, 6, 8 |
| Tomei Sports | Nissan | Nissan GT-R Nismo GT3 (2017) | Nissan VR38DETT 3.8 L Twin Turbo V6 | 360 | Atsushi Tanaka | Y | 3, 5, 7 |
| Tomei Sports | Nissan | Nissan GT-R Nismo GT3 (2017) | Nissan VR38DETT 3.8 L Twin Turbo V6 | 360 | Masataka Yanagida | Y | 5 |
| CarGuy Racing | Honda | Honda NSX GT3 | Honda JNC1 3.5 L Twin Turbo V6 | 777 | Naoki Yokomizo | Y | 1–3, 5, 7–8 |
| CarGuy Racing | Honda | Honda NSX GT3 | Honda JNC1 3.5 L Twin Turbo V6 | 777 | Takeshi Kimura | Y | 1–3, 5, 7–8 |
| CarGuy Racing | Honda | Honda NSX GT3 | Honda JNC1 3.5 L Twin Turbo V6 | 777 | Kei Cozzolino | Y | 2 |

#### Notes
### Vehicle Changes
#### GT300

* Panther Team Thailand switched from the Dome-built Toyota 86 MC to the Lexus RC F GT3.
* GAINER switched to a full-on effort with Nissan, fielding two brand-new 2018 Nissan GT-R NISMO GT3s.
* Arnage Racing separated from INGING Motorsport after one season, and also switch vehicles to the Mercedes-AMG GT3.

### Entrant changes
#### GT500

* Honda:
** 2009 Formula 1 World Champion Jenson Button, who made his series debut with Team Mugen at the 2017 Suzuka 1000km, will run full-time with Honda and Team Kunimitsu in 2018.
** Takuya Izawa moves from Team Kunimitsu to Autobacs Racing Team Aguri, replacing Takashi Kobayashi.
* Toyota:
** Former F1, and current WEC and Super Formula driver Kamui Kobayashi will make his full-time GT500 debut with Lexus Team SARD
** James Rossiter stepped away from full-time Super GT racing in 2018, but will continue to race in Japan in the Super Formula championship. Yuhi Sekiguchi replaces Rossiter at Lexus Team au TOM's
** Toyota young driver Kenta Yamashita moves up to GT500 full-time with Lexus Team WedsSport BANDOH, replacing Sekiguchi.
** Formula E standout Felix Rosenqvist will make his Super GT debut in the GT500 class for Lexus Team Wako's LeMans. Replaces Andrea Caldarelli who confirmed that he would leave Toyota and Super GT this season, focusing solely on his commitments as a factory driver at Lamborghini Squadra Corse.
* Nissan:
** Reigning All-Japan Formula 3 Champion Mitsunori Takaboshi steps up to GT500 full-time with Kondo Racing, replacing Daiki Sasaki, who moves over to Team Impul to drive the Calsonic GT-R.
** NDDP Racing moved up to the GT500 class for 2018, entering as NDDP Racing with B-Max. They take the place of MOLA, who withdrew from the series at the end of 2017. Satoshi Motoyama and Katsumasa Chiyo stays to the new team.

#### GT300

* Former GT500 driver Hironobu Yasuda and two-time GT300 champion Kazuki Hoshino move to Gainer, from Team Impul and NDDP Racing respectively, to drive their new Nissan GT-R NISMO GT3s.
* Takashi Kobayashi moves to Team UpGarage, replacing Shintaro Kawabata.
* VivaC Team Tsuchiya reverted to their original name, Tsuchiya Engineering, following the withdrawal of their title sponsor VivaC. Toyota young driver Sho Tsuboi will replace Kenta Yamashita at Tsuchiya Engineering.
* Akira Iida will step away from full-time driving duties, and became team director of the #60 LM Corsa Lexus RC F GT3. Two-time FIA F4 Japanese Champion Ritomo Miyata makes his series debut with LM Corsa.
* The #51 LM Corsa Lexus RC F GT3 changes its number to #96, and has a new title sponsor in Okayama Toyopet / K-Tunes Racing. The team will be officially known as K-Tunes Racing LM Corsa from 2018. Three-time GT300 champion Morio Nitta moves to K-Tunes LM Corsa Lexus RC F GT3 to replace Sho Tsuboi.
* Jono Lester was released from Pacific with Gulf Racing after the 2017 season, and will not return to Super GT in 2018. Pacific with Gulf Racing recruit Rintaro Kubo from apr, and Keishi Ishikawa who moves from Rn-sports. Kyosuke Mineo become the third driver.
* Two-time GT500 champion Kohei Hirate moves out of GT500 to drive the #31 Toyota Prius for apr Racing. And two-time GT300 champion Manabu Orido joined apr Racing midseason to replace Kota Sasaki.
* Drago Corse, who competed from 2015 to 2016 as Drago Modulo Honda Racing, return to the series in GT300 with another Honda NSX GT3. They will be known as Modulo Drago Corse. 2000 GT500 Champion Ryo Michigami returns to the series as a full-time driver owner, after racing in the World Touring Car Championship in 2017. Former All-Japan Formula 3 race winner Hiroki Otsu makes his series debut with Modulo Drago Corse.
* FIA F4 Japanese graduate Yuya Hiraki makes his series debut with Team Mach, replacing Kiyoto Fujinami as Natsu Sakaguchi's co-driver.
* Audi Team Hitotsuyama recruit Ryuichiro Tomita to replace Masataka Yanagida
* Masaki Kano and Hideto Yasuoka both return to the series with Arnage Racing.
* CarGuy Racing makes their Super GT debut with the all-new Honda NSX GT3. They previously competed in the Super Taikyu Series and Blancpain GT Series Asia. Gentleman racer Takeshi Kimura makes his series debut with CarGuy Racing. Naoki Yokomizo, the 2012 GT300 Champion, returns after a year-long hiatus to drive for the new CarGuy Racing team.
* BMW Team Studie, the 2011 GT300 class Champion (by then co-joint with Goodsmile Racing) announced in January that they would switch to the Blancpain GT Series Asia GT4 category, and suspended operations in Super GT for the foreseeable future.
* Bentley factory driver Jules Gounon makes his Super GT debut in a one-off for EIcars Bentley at the Fuji 500-mile race.

## Results

| Round | Circuit | Date | Class | Pole Position | Race Winner |
| 1 | Okayama International Circuit Report | 7–8 April | GT500 | No. 17 REAL Racing | No. 17 REAL Racing |
| 1 | Okayama International Circuit Report | 7–8 April | GT500 | Koudai Tsukakoshi Takashi Kogure | Koudai Tsukakoshi Takashi Kogure |
| 1 | Okayama International Circuit Report | 7–8 April | GT300 | No. 88 JLOC | No. 18 Team UpGarage |
| 1 | Okayama International Circuit Report | 7–8 April | GT300 | Kazuki Hiramine Marco Mapelli | Yuhki Nakayama Takashi Kobayashi |
| 2 | Fuji Speedway Report | 3–4 May | GT500 | No. 38 Lexus Team ZENT Cerumo | No. 23 NISMO |
| 2 | Fuji Speedway Report | 3–4 May | GT500 | Yuji Tachikawa Hiroaki Ishiura | Tsugio Matsuda Ronnie Quintarelli |
| 2 | Fuji Speedway Report | 3–4 May | GT300 | No. 55 Autobacs Racing Team Aguri | No. 55 Autobacs Racing Team Aguri |
| 2 | Fuji Speedway Report | 3–4 May | GT300 | Shinichi Takagi Sean Walkinshaw | Shinichi Takagi Sean Walkinshaw |
| 3 | Suzuka Circuit Report | 19–20 May | GT500 | No. 8 Autobacs Racing Team Aguri | No. 8 Autobacs Racing Team Aguri |
| 3 | Suzuka Circuit Report | 19–20 May | GT500 | Tomoki Nojiri Takuya Izawa | Tomoki Nojiri Takuya Izawa |
| 3 | Suzuka Circuit Report | 19–20 May | GT300 | No. 96 K-Tunes LM Corsa | No. 96 K-Tunes LM Corsa |
| 3 | Suzuka Circuit Report | 19–20 May | GT300 | Yuichi Nakayama Morio Nitta | Yuichi Nakayama Morio Nitta |
| 4 | Chang International Circuit Report | 30 June-1 July | GT500 | No. 16 Team Mugen | No. 39 Lexus Team SARD |
| 4 | Chang International Circuit Report | 30 June-1 July | GT500 | Hideki Mutoh Daisuke Nakajima | Heikki Kovalainen Kamui Kobayashi |
| 4 | Chang International Circuit Report | 30 June-1 July | GT300 | No. 65 K2 R&D LEON Racing | No. 11 GAINER |
| 4 | Chang International Circuit Report | 30 June-1 July | GT300 | Haruki Kurosawa Naoya Gamou | Katsuyuki Hiranaka Hironobu Yasuda |
| 5 | Fuji Speedway Report | 4–5 August | GT500 | No. 23 NISMO | No. 36 Lexus Team au TOM'S |
| 5 | Fuji Speedway Report | 4–5 August | GT500 | Tsugio Matsuda Ronnie Quintarelli | Kazuki Nakajima Yuhi Sekiguchi |
| 5 | Fuji Speedway Report | 4–5 August | GT300 | No. 25 Tsuchiya Engineering | No. 55 Autobacs Racing Team Aguri |
| 5 | Fuji Speedway Report | 4–5 August | GT300 | Takamitsu Matsui Sho Tsuboi Tsubasa Kondo | Shinichi Takagi Sean Walkinshaw |
| 6 | Sportsland Sugo Report | 15–16 September | GT500 | No. 100 Team Kunimitsu | No. 100 Team Kunimitsu |
| 6 | Sportsland Sugo Report | 15–16 September | GT500 | Jenson Button Naoki Yamamoto | Jenson Button Naoki Yamamoto |
| 6 | Sportsland Sugo Report | 15–16 September | GT300 | No. 61 R&D Sport | No. 61 R&D Sport |
| 6 | Sportsland Sugo Report | 15–16 September | GT300 | Takuto Iguchi Hideki Yamauchi | Takuto Iguchi Hideki Yamauchi |
| 7 | Autopolis Report | 20–21 October | GT500 | No. 8 Autobacs Racing Team Aguri | No. 1 Lexus Team KeePer TOM'S |
| 7 | Autopolis Report | 20–21 October | GT500 | Tomoki Nojiri Takuya Izawa | Nick Cassidy Ryō Hirakawa |
| 7 | Autopolis Report | 20–21 October | GT300 | No. 25 Tsuchiya Engineering | No. 96 K-Tunes Racing LM Corsa |
| 7 | Autopolis Report | 20–21 October | GT300 | Takamitsu Matsui Sho Tsuboi | Yuichi Nakayama Morio Nitta |
| 8 | Twin Ring Motegi Report | 10–11 November | GT500 | No. 8 Autobacs Racing Team Aguri | No. 8 Autobacs Racing Team Aguri |
| 8 | Twin Ring Motegi Report | 10–11 November | GT500 | Tomoki Nojiri Takuya Izawa | Tomoki Nojiri Takuya Izawa |
| 8 | Twin Ring Motegi Report | 10–11 November | GT300 | No. 88 JLOC | No. 65 K2 R&D LEON Racing |
| 8 | Twin Ring Motegi Report | 10–11 November | GT300 | Kazuki Hiramine Marco Mapelli | Haruki Kurosawa Naoya Gamou |

## Championship standings
### Drivers' championships
#### Scoring system

| Position | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | 7th | 8th | 9th | 10th | Pole |
| Points | 20 | 15 | 11 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Fuji 500 mile | 25 | 18 | 13 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |

#### GT500

Driver Ranking GT500 2018 Series :
| Rank | Driver | Team | OKA | FUJ | SUZ | CHA | FUJ | SUG | AUT | MOT | Points |
| 1 | Naoki Yamamoto Jenson Button | No. 100 Team Kunimitsu | 2 | 9 | 2 | 11 | 5 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 78 |
| 2 | Ryō Hirakawa Nick Cassidy | No. 1 Lexus Team KeePer TOM'S | 3 | 7 | 3 | 8 | 2 | 14 | 1 | 4 | 75 |
| 3 | Tomoki Nojiri Takuya Izawa | No. 8 Autobacs Racing Team Aguri | 11 | 8 | 1 | Ret | 4 | 2 | 12 | 1 | 71 |
| 4 | Yuji Tachikawa Hiroaki Ishiura | No. 38 Lexus Team ZENT Cerumo | 8 | 3 | 8 | 4 | 8 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 59 |
| 5 | Yuhi Sekiguchi | No. 36 Lexus Team au TOM'S | 13 | 4 | 5 | 10 | 1 | 12 | 2 | 13 | 55 |
| 6 | Kazuki Nakajima | No. 36 Lexus Team au TOM'S | 13 | | 5 | 10 | 1 | 12 | 2 | 13 | 47 |
| 7 | Koudai Tsukakoshi Takashi Kogure | No. 17 REAL Racing | 1 | 11 | 11 | 7 | 3 | 9 | 6 | 15 | 45 |
| 8 | Tsugio Matsuda Ronnie Quintarelli | No. 23 NISMO | 5 | 1 | 6 | 12 | 9 | 7 | 15 | 7 | 43 |
| 9 | Heikki Kovalainen | No. 39 Lexus Team SARD | 12 | 2 | Ret | 1 | 11 | 10 | 8 | 8 | 42 |
| 10 | Kazuya Oshima | No. 6 Lexus Team LeMans Wako's | 4 | 5 | 12 | 2 | 7 | 11 | 9 | 6 | 41 |
| 10 | Felix Rosenqvist | No. 6 Lexus Team LeMans Wako's | 4 | 5 | | 2 | 7 | 11 | 9 | 6 | 41 |
| 11 | Yuji Kunimoto Kenta Yamashita | No. 19 Lexus Team WedsSport Bandoh | 9 | 12 | 13 | 3 | 10 | Ret | 3 | 5 | 32 |
| 12 | Daiki Sasaki Jann Mardenborough | No. 12 Team Impul | 14 | 6 | 4 | 6 | 12 | 3 | 11 | 11 | 29 |
| 13 | Kamui Kobayashi | No. 39 Lexus Team SARD | 12 | | Ret | 1 | 11 | 10 | 8 | 8 | 27 |
| 14 | Joao Paulo de Oliveira Mitsunori Takaboshi | No. 24 Kondo Racing | 6 | 13 | 9 | Ret | 6 | 6 | 7 | 10 | 23 |
| 15 | Hideki Mutoh Daisuke Nakajima | No. 16 Team Mugen | 10 | 14 | Ret | 5 | 14 | 4 | 14 | 14 | 16 |
| 16 | Sho Tsuboi | No. 39 Lexus Team SARD | | 2 | | | | | | | 15 |
| 17 | Satoshi Motoyama Katsumasa Chiyo | No. 3 NDDP by B-Max Racing | 7 | 10 | 7 | 13 | 15 | 8 | 13 | 9 | 14 |
| 18 | James Rossiter | No. 6 Lexus Team LeMans Wako's | | 4 | 12 | | | | | | 8 |
| 19 | Bertrand Baguette Kosuke Matsuura | No. 64 Nakajima Racing | 15 | Ret | 10 | 9 | 13 | 13 | 10 | 12 | 4 |
| Rank | Driver | Team | OKA | FUJ | SUZ | CHA | FUJ | SUG | AUT | MOT | Points |
| Colour | Result |
| Gold | Winner |
| Silver | Second place |
| Bronze | Third place |
| Green | Points finish |
| Blue | Non-points finish |
| Blue | Non-classified finish (NC) |
| Purple | Retired (Ret) |
| Red | Did not qualify (DNQ) |
| Red | Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ) |
| Black | Disqualified (DSQ) |
| White | Did not start (DNS) |
| White | Withdrew (WD) |
| White | Race cancelled (C) |
| Blank | Did not practice (DNP) |
| Blank | Did not arrive (DNA) |
| Blank | Excluded (EX) |

#### GT300

Driver Ranking GT300 2018 Series :
| Rank | Driver | Team | OKA | FUJ | SUZ | CHA | FUJ | SUG | AUT | MOT | Points |
| 1 | Haruki Kurosawa Naoya Gamou | No. 65 K2 R&D LEON Racing | 4 | 4 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 5 | 1 | 68 |
| 2 | Shinichi Takagi Sean Walkinshaw | No. 55 ARTA | 6 | 1 | 20 | 11 | 1 | 10 | 4 | 9 | 62 |
| 3 | Koki Saga Kohei Hirate | No. 31 apr | Ret | 2 | 9 | 2 | 3 | 25 | 10 | 2 | 61 |
| 4 | Nobuteru Taniguchi Tatsuya Kataoka | No. 0 Goodsmile Racing with Team Ukyo | 8 | 5 | 8 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 19 | 3 | 56 |
| 5 | Katsuyuki Hiranaka Hironobu Yasuda | No. 11 GAINER | 5 | 3 | 16 | 1 | 22 | 19 | 6 | 5 | 48 |
| 6 | Morio Nitta Yuichi Nakayama | No.96 K-tunes Racing LM Corsa | 14 | 14 | 1 | 10 | 10 | 14 | 1 | 10 | 45 |
| 7 | Takamitsu Matsui | No. 25 Tsuchiya Engineering | 3 | Ret | 2 | 19 | 5 | 24 | 24 | 8 | 39 |
| 7 | Sho Tsuboi | No. 25 Tsuchiya Engineering | 3 | | 2 | 19 | 5 | 24 | 24 | 8 | 39 |
| 8 | Takuto Iguchi Hideki Yamauchi | No. 61 R&D Sport | 18 | Ret | 3 | Ret | Ret | 1 | 15 | 6 | 37 |
| 9 | Tomonobu Fujii Sven Müller | No. 7 D'station Racing | 2 | 6 | 11 | 8 | 7 | 12 | 8 | 7 | 35 |
| 10 | Kazuki Hiramine | No. 88 JLOC | 7 | 9 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 13 | 27 | 33 |
| 11 | Kimiya Sato Yuya Motojima | No. 87 JLOC | 12 | 16 | 12 | 5 | Ret | 13 | 2 | 4 | 29 |
| 12 | Yuhki Nakayama Takashi Kobayshi | No. 18 Team UpGarage | 1 | 13 | 6 | 18 | 9 | 11 | 27 | Ret | 28 |
| 13 | Marco Mapelli | No. 88 JLOC | 7 | 9 | 4 | | 6 | 5 | 13 | 27 | 28 |
| 14 | Ryo Michigami Hiroki Otsu | No. 34 Modulo Drago Corse | Ret | 8 | 26 | 9 | DNS | 4 | 3 | 14 | 24 |
| 15 | Ritomo Miyata Hiroki Yoshimoto | No. 60 LM Corsa | 17 | 7 | 5 | 3 | Ret | 9 | 12 | 24 | 23 |
| 16 | Kazuki Hoshino Hiroki Yoshida | No. 10 GAINER | 13 | 11 | 10 | Ret | 8 | 2 | 9 | 15 | 22 |
| 17 | Rintaro Kubo Keishi Ishikawa | No. 9 Pacific with Gulf Racing | 16 | 17 | 15 | 16 | 15 | 6 | 11 | 12 | 5 |
| 18 | Andrea Caldarelli | No. JLOC | | | | 6 | | | | | 5 |
| 19 | Taku Bamba Shigekazu Wakisaka | No. 52 Saitama Toyopet GreenBrave | 11 | 19 | 14 | 17 | Ret | 7 | 17 | 13 | 4 |
| 20 | Natsu Sakaguchi Yuya Hiraki | No. 5 Team Mach | Ret | 12 | Ret | | 19 | 22 | 7 | 18 | 4 |
| 21 | Shintaro Kawabata Shinnosuke Yamada | No. 26 Team Taisan | 9 | 15 | 28 | | Ret | 20 | 20 | 16 | 2 |
| 22 | Richard Lyons Ryuichiro Tomita | No. 21 Audi Team Hitotsuyama | Ret | 10 | 23 | Ret | 14 | 23 | 14 | 11 | 1 |
| 23 | Masaki Kano Hideto Yasuoka | No. 50 Arnage Racing | 10 | 20 | 19 | 13 | 11 | 17 | 16 | 20 | 1 |
| 24 | Tsubasa Kondo | No. 25 Tsuchiya Engineering | | Ret | | | 5 | | | | 1 |
| - | Takuro Shinohara | No. 21 Audi Team Hitotsuyama | | 10 | | | 14 | | | | 0 |
| - | Yuya Sakamoto | No. 50 Arnage Racing | | 20 | | | 11 | | | | 0 |
| - | Kazuho Takahashi Hiroki Katoh | No. 2 Cars Tokai Dream28 | 23 | 23 | 13 | 12 | 20 | Ret | 21 | 22 | 0 |
| - | Yusaku Shibata | No. 360 Tomei Sports | Ret | | | | 12 | Ret | 23 | 17 | 0 |
| - | Takayuki Aoki | No. 360 Tomei Sports | Ret | Ret | 27 | | 12 | Ret | | 17 | 0 |
| - | Masataka Yanagida | No. 360 Tomei Sports | | | | | 12 | | | | 0 |
| - | Tetsuji Tamanaka | No. 5 Team Mach | | 12 | | | | | | | 0 |
| - | Yuji Ide Ryohei Sakaguchi | No. 117 EIcars Bentley | 21 | 22 | 18 | | 13 | 15 | 18 | 19 | 0 |
| - | Jules Gounon | No. 117 EIcars Bentley | | | | | 13 | | | | 0 |
| - | Maxime Jousse Kantadhee Kusiri | No. 32 est cola by AAS Motorsport | | | | 14 | | | | | 0 |
| - | Nattavude Charoensukhawatana Nattapong Horthongkum | No. 35 Arto Panther Team Thailand | 24 | 24 | 24 | 15 | 16 | 18 | 22 | 25 | 0 |
| - | Takeshi Kimura Naoki Yokomizo | No. CarGuy Racing | 15 | 26 | 21 | | 17 | | Ret | 23 | 0 |
| - | Kyosuke Mineo | No. 9 Pacific with Gulf Racing | | | | | 15 | | | | 0 |
| - | Shinji Nakano | No. 26 Team Taisan | | 15 | | | Ret | | | | 0 |
| - | Hiroaki Nagai | No. 30 apr | 20 | 18 | 17 | Ret | Ret | 16 | 26 | 21 | 0 |
| - | Manabu Orido | No. 30 apr | | | | | Ret | 16 | 26 | 21 | 0 |
| - | Koji Yamanishi | No. 35 Arto Panther Team Thailand | | | | | 16 | | | | 0 |
| - | Tsubasa Takahashi | No. 87 JLOC | | 16 | | | Ret | | | | 0 |
| - | Kota Sasaki | No. 30 apr | 20 | 18 | 17 | Ret | Ret | | | | 0 |
| - | Masaki Tanaka | No. 48 Dijon Racing | 22 | 21 | 22 | | 18 | 21 | 28 | 26 | 0 |
| - | Richard Bradley | No. 48 Dijon Racing | | 21 | 22 | | 18 | | 28 | 26 | 0 |
| - | Taiyou Iida | No. 48 Dijon Racing | 22 | 21 | | | 18 | | | | 0 |
| - | Masaki Jyonai Hisashi Wada | No. 22 R'Qs Motor Sports | 19 | 25 | 25 | | 21 | | 25 | 28 | 0 |
| - | Kiyoto Fujinami | No. 5 Team Mach | | | | | 19 | | | | 0 |
| - | Masayuki Ueda | No. 22 R'Qs Motor Sports | | | | | 21 | | | | 0 |
| - | Hiroshi Takamori | No. 48 Dijon Racing | | | | | | 21 | | | 0 |
| - | Atsushi Tanaka | No. 360 Tomei Sports | | Ret | 27 | | | | 23 | | 0 |
| - | Kei Cozzolino | No. 777 CarGuy Racing | | 26 | | | | | | | 0 |
| - | Takeshi Tsuchiya | No. 25 Tsuchiya Engineering | | Ret | | | | | | | 0 |
| Rank | Driver | Team | OKA | FUJ | SUZ | CHA | FUJ | SUG | AUT | MOT | Points |