Igor Omura Fraga secured his second consecutive pole position with a 1:22.266 in Q2, edging Iwasa, who qualified second after a major setup change. O’Sullivan took third, ahead of Ohta in fourth. Ohta qualified with a used left-front tyre after a pit error saw Tadasuke Makino’s tyre fitted to his car.
Iwasa took the lead at the start after Fraga struggled for traction out of Turn 2. Ohta moved into second on Lap 4 with a late-braking pass on Fraga at Turn 1. The first Safety Car followed on Lap 5 after contact between Toshiaki Oyu and Yuto Nomura left Nomura with suspension damage.
The race unravelled during the pit window. Ohta and Oyu made contact at Coca-Cola Corner on Lap 17, before Ohta and Fraga collided at GR-GT Corner a lap later. Ohta retired, while Fraga pitted for sidepod repairs, bringing out the second Safety Car. Further pit-lane incidents saw Luke Browning, Shun Koide and Rikuto Kobayashi retire after a collision, while Nirei Fukuzumi later received a 30-second penalty for an unsafe release.
After the second restart, Matsushita challenged Iwasa at Turn 1 on Lap 24 but could not pass. A brake failure for Sho Tsuboi on Lap 25 led to a collision with Kenta Yamashita, ending both drivers’ races and triggering the third Safety Car. At the Lap 31 restart, Iwasa caught Matsushita off guard by delaying his acceleration, while Oyu moved into third.
O’Sullivan then climbed through the order, passing Makino for fourth on Lap 34 and Oyu for third two laps later. On the final lap, he pressured Matsushita at Dunlop before making the decisive move at 2317 Corner, with light contact, to secure second. Matsushita held on for his second podium of the season, while Iwasa completed his first win of 2026.
Ohta’s retirement leaves the championship undecided heading to Suzuka Circuit on November 20–22. He retains a 32.5-point lead over Iwasa, with Fraga also looking to mount a final challenge at the season finale.
