Toranosuke Takagi
In 2000, Motoyama changed teams to Team Impul, driving for Kazuyoshi Hoshino as he did in the JGTC. Motoyama finished a distant third in the championship behind Toranosuke Takagi, taking one win, two poles, and four podiums in the final four races. The 2001 season started with Motoyama taking three pole positions through the first four rounds, and a victory at Miné, but two retirements and a non-scoring finish saw him trail championship leader Naoki Hattori by 22 points after four races. However, Motoyama took victories in three of the following four rounds, taking the championship lead as Hattori began to struggle, and eventually clinching his second Formula Nippon title with a second-place finish at Motegi. In 2002, the first year in which Formula Nippon went to a spec chassis, Motoyama had another fantastic season, winning five out of the ten races that season. Despite winning more races than any other driver that year, Motoyama would end up losing the championship by just two points to Ralph Firman.