Nissan will challenge for overall victory in the 50th Suzuka 1000km after Team 5ZIGEN confirmed a factory-supported Pro entry featuring three drivers from the Super GT500 field.
Atsushi Miyake will share the team’s Nissan GT-R NISMO GT3 with Katsumasa Chiyo and Kazuki Hiramine for the Summer Endurance Race on September 11–13. The line-up gives Nissan another opportunity to fight for outright honours at an event it last won overall in 2012.
5ZIGEN already competes successfully with the GT-R in GT World Challenge (GTWC) Asia powered by AWS and Super GT300, while all three drivers bring extensive experience from Japan’s leading domestic championships. The combination of that knowledge, familiarity with the car and the team’s experience on Pirelli tyres places the entry among Nissan’s strongest opportunities for Suzuka success.
Miyake leads familiar 5ZIGEN Nissan challenge
Miyake enters the Suzuka 1000km with considerable familiarity with both 5ZIGEN and the GT-R NISMO GT3.
The Japanese driver already races the car for the team in GT World Challenge Asia alongside his commitments with Kondo Racing in Super GT. His existing relationship with the operation should therefore provide continuity as 5ZIGEN moves into the longer endurance format at Suzuka.
His experience also gives the team a direct link between its regular Asian GT programme and its Suzuka effort. Rather than assembling a completely new driver combination around an unfamiliar car, 5ZIGEN can build its programme around someone already accustomed to its working methods and the behaviour of the Nissan on the Pirelli tyres that the event will use.
That knowledge could become increasingly important during a race as long as the Suzuka 1000km, where outright speed must combine with tyre management, traffic management and consistency across multiple stints.
Hiramine adds Super GT championship experience
Hiramine brings championship-winning Super GT experience to the line-up.
The Team Impul driver claimed the GT500 title in 2022 and continues to compete with the works squad in Super GT’s senior class. He therefore arrives with extensive experience of high-level racing around Suzuka as well as the demands of competing in Nissan machinery.
Hiramine also races the GT3 version of the Nissan in Super Taikyu, giving him useful experience of a car much closer to the one he will drive with 5ZIGEN.
That combination strengthens the team’s Pro entry considerably. While GT500 machinery differs significantly from a GT3 car, Hiramine’s recent experience in both environments should reduce the adaptation required when he joins Miyake and Chiyo for the endurance race.
Chiyo returns with extensive international Nissan history
Chiyo provides the line-up with the most extensive international GT experience.
The 39-year-old currently drives NISMO’s #23 entry in Super GT500, but he has also represented Nissan extensively outside Japan. His international breakthrough came during the 2015 Bathurst 12 Hour, where he helped Nissan claim a memorable overall victory.
That season became one of the most significant of his career. Chiyo also won the Blancpain Endurance Series title in Europe and finished as GT300 runner-up after claiming class victory at the Suzuka 1000km.
His experience with Nissan also extended to the Intercontinental GT Challenge. Chiyo competed regularly with KCMG during Nissan’s official 2019 campaign in SRO’s global GT3 series, giving him considerable knowledge of long-distance GT racing against international opposition.
The 2026 Suzuka programme now gives Chiyo another opportunity to pursue a major endurance victory with Nissan, although this time 5ZIGEN and its drivers will focus solely on the overall race result.
Nissan returns to hunt for first overall Suzuka win since 2012
Nissan has not claimed overall victory in the Suzuka 1000km since 2012, adding significance to 5ZIGEN’s Pro-class entry.
The manufacturer has a long history at the event, while Chiyo’s own GT300 class victory in 2015 provides another connection between the current line-up and previous Nissan success at Suzuka.
However, the 2026 race will feature a highly competitive field containing several manufacturers and professional driver combinations. Consequently, 5ZIGEN will need to maximise both the GT-R’s established strengths and the experience of its driver trio if it wants to challenge for the outright win.
The GT-R NISMO GT3 itself has now been competing for more than a decade, but 5ZIGEN continues to demonstrate that the platform can fight towards the front. The team has already won in GT World Challenge Asia and remains competitive in Super GT300, underlining the car’s continued potential.
Pirelli experience gives 5ZIGEN useful foundation
One of 5ZIGEN’s most valuable advantages could come from its familiarity with the Pirelli tyres mandated for the Suzuka 1000km.
The team already uses the manufacturer’s tyres during its GT World Challenge Asia programme, meaning its engineers and Miyake possess direct experience of how the GT-R responds to the same tyre supplier that will feature at Suzuka.
That knowledge should prove useful when managing performance across different temperatures, fuel loads and stint lengths. Endurance racing also places greater emphasis on maintaining consistent tyre performance rather than producing only a single fast lap.
5ZIGEN’s experience in both SRO competition and Super GT300 therefore provides a strong technical base for the programme, while its three-driver line-up adds considerable professional experience behind the wheel.
5ZIGEN joins growing list of Suzuka victory contenders
The Pro-class Nissan strengthens an increasingly competitive field for the 50th running of the Summer Endurance Race.
Miyake brings direct 5ZIGEN GT3 experience, Hiramine adds the credentials of a former Super GT500 champion and Chiyo contributes a lengthy record of international Nissan success. Together, the trio gives the team a line-up capable of targeting outright honours.
For Nissan, the race presents an opportunity to end a 14-year wait for another overall Suzuka 1000km victory. For 5ZIGEN, it provides a chance to translate its strong form in Asian GT competition into success at one of Japan’s most prestigious endurance events.
The GT-R may rank among the older GT3 platforms on the grid, but 5ZIGEN’s recent competitiveness, Pirelli knowledge and factory-supported Super GT driver roster ensure Nissan will enter the September 11–13 event as another serious contender for the top step.
