First held in 2001, the JOY TAI was supposed to celebrate its 20th event in 2020, but it was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, making the 2021 JOY TAI the 20th commemorative event.

The Joy TAI, which has returned after two years, has given birth to the "Joy TAI Challenge" to make it more enjoyable for everyone!
It will feature qualifying rounds and a 3-hour endurance race on Saturday with numbered vehicles. A total of 13 vehicles have entered the inaugural Joy TAI Challenge.

In the qualifying round, driver Hiroki Ishigaki of the JOY TAI ND5 secured pole position with an overwhelming speed, finishing more than 5 seconds ahead of the second place. Following him were the Adrenalin Roadster, Ken Auto Moty's☆ND5, JiN Roadster, and West Hill ND5 Roadster, with the Vitz group continuing from the 6th place LOTAS CLUB Vitz.

On Saturday, the blue sky spread from the morning, and we were hit by summer-like heat from the morning. Then, the JOY TAI qualifying began. First up was the time attack for Class 1, 2, 3, and FIT 1.5 A drivers. The top time was marked by #63 K+UPSEEKERMVFIT's Kuniyuki Haga, who recorded a time of 2 minutes 21.888 seconds, becoming the only driver to enter the 2 minute 21 second range. In second place was Kenji Kashikura from #81 PUTO G Kurihara Auto EP82DL with a time of 2 minutes 22.111 seconds, making him the top driver in Class 3.

In the Class 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, and 10 A driver session, Yuji Takahashi of #375 TVC Sunako Juku M2CSR marked a time of 2 minutes 11.796 seconds, showcasing the speed unique to Class 10. Masato Kanaoka of #20 M-Racing S2000 took second place with a time of 2 minutes 12.879 seconds, while Mamoru Wakabayashi of #84 SEV・ADVAN・2-11 followed in third place with a time of 2 minutes 13.354 seconds, setting a Course Record for Class 4.

In the Class 1, 2, 3, and FIT 1.5 driver session, Ryohei Yasui of PUTO updated the team best with a time of 2 minutes 21.637 seconds. Without a doubt, he took the top spot in FIT 1.5. In second place was Takumi Kuroiwa of G/M☆SSRスノコWMFIT with a time of 2 minutes 23.536 seconds, followed by Shigeo Takenoya of Class 3's ポップG栗原オートEP82DL with a time of 2 minutes 23.640 seconds.

In the Class 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, and 10 B Driver sessions, Kyosuke Inomata from Class 9 [#82 Poor Man's R☆Rider☆DC5] topped the leaderboard with a time of 2 minutes 14.162 seconds. Yasu Kondo from [#375 TVC Sunako Juku M2CSR] came in second with a time of 2 minutes 15.152 seconds, but with the combined time, [#375 TVC Sunako Juku M2CSR] secured the pole position.

"I was able to achieve my personal best in the qualifying round, and everything has been going smoothly so far. Since it's a long race of 7 hours, I want to escape as much as I can from the start," said Driver A, Hiroshi Takahashi. "Thanks to Takahashi, we were able to secure pole position. It's been two years since the last race, but it's fun to race together with everyone," said Driver B, Yasushi Kondo.

[#82 PUTO R☆Lia☆DC5] is in the second grid. [#20 M-Racing S2000] experienced a drive system issue when B driver Tsuyoshi Funano was at the wheel, causing the machine to stop on the home straight, but secured the third grid with the time recorded before that. In fourth place is [#80 Motegi Uncle and Daughters with Rumirumi], and in fifth place is [#84 SEV・ADVAN・2-11], resulting in a qualifying result with the class top continuing.

The top of FIT 1.5 is #63 K+UPSEEKERMVFIT in 19th place. The #6 versus racing Urawa Kousan FIT, which won the 2019 JOY TAI, will start from the 21st grid.

And in the afternoon, the Mote tai (Mote endurance) Joy TAI Challenge final will be held for the first time!
The formation lap is scheduled to start at 13:55, and at 13:59:44, they will all start simultaneously with a rolling start, aiming for the finish line 3 hours ahead.

The #23 ASM JOY TAI ND5, which had shown speed since the qualifiers, took the lead and quickly established a solo run. Behind them, the #16 Adrenalin Roadster, #20 Ken Auto Moty's☆ND5, and #128 JiN Roadster were engaged in a fierce battle for the top position in the Roadster class.

Due to the length of 3 hours, most teams refueled only once. Many teams refueled around the halfway point at 1 hour and 30 minutes. The leading team, #23 ASM joy ND5, also headed to the refueling area after 1 hour and 29 minutes had passed.

Even as the race entered its final stages, the solo run of JOY TAI remained unchanged.
In second place was the top Roadster class car, Adrenalin Roadster.

In the background, the Vitz class car #6 KYC Wako's Hirovitz entered the pit, allowing #628 Inafoto & Team Lavitz to rise to the top with 20 minutes remaining. #6 KYC Wako's Hirovitz wanted to catch up again, but received a 30-second penalty stop for running off the track.

And with 10 minutes remaining, the #16 Adrenalin Roadster made its second pit stop. It returned to the course still in the lead of its class. The #20 Ken Auto Moty's☆ND5, which was running in second place in the Roadster class, ran out of gas just 2 minutes before the finish and had to slow down. It resulted in a regrettable retirement.

Running at the top, [#23 ASM joy ND5] marked the fastest lap with 2 laps remaining. They completed the 3-hour race with stable speed and crossed the finish line in first place, winning the All Other class.
"I got my A license to participate in the Joy TAI Challenge and made my racing debut. I was in the lead, but I had enough of a gap, so I was relaxed. I just did what I was told," said B driver Sato.

The next to cross the finish line was the #16 Adrenalin Roadster, which completed 67 laps and won the Roadster class.
"In the beginning, I was overtaken, but I was running while keeping my distance and observing the situation. I was calculating fuel consumption accurately, so I had no worries, and I was able to complete 67 laps as planned. It seems that being good at math was a big advantage," he said, indicating that he had a solid grasp of fuel efficiency.

Finishing in 5th place overall was the team that dominated the Vitz class, #628 Inaphoto & Team Lavitz.
"We participated with members who were racing in the Vitz series thanks to Inagaki's encouragement. We know everything about the Vitz, so we understood that as long as we refueled once, fuel efficiency wouldn't be an issue. I knew that if we kept the gap to about 40 seconds, we would have to pit again, so I thought we could overtake," said the team, who seized victory through experience and teamwork.