The 20th edition of the JOY TAI has arrived. Although there was a forecast of rain due to the approach of Typhoon No. 5, clear blue skies spread from the morning, and the race proceeded in dry conditions. Although the sky became cloudy in the afternoon, the weather held up until the awards ceremony, and many teams enjoyed the long-awaited JOY TAI after two years, engaging in a fierce competition.

As scheduled, it started at 9:15:14 from the rolling start. First, the pole position car #375 TVC Sunako Juku M2CSR led the race as expected. Following this, #82 PUTO Man's R☆Raiya☆DC5 and #84 SEV・ADVAN・2-11 were running solo, while #80 Motegi's Uncle and Daughters with Rumirumi, #20 M-Racing S2000, and #5 POTENZA WAKO'S MART MR2 were in a three-way battle behind them.

An incident occurred in the 5th corner of the opening lap where #6 versus racing Urawa Kousan FIT collided with #19 Shiooka SP Sunoco ACRE Levin and went off the course!
#19 Shiooka SP Sunoco ACRE Levin managed to return to the course, but #6 versus racing Urawa Kousan FIT retired immediately. A team that was considered a favorite to win has already left the race.

In no time, #375 TVC Sunako Juku M2CSR had established a solo lead, but made its first pit stop after about 30 minutes. #82 Poor Man's R☆Ria☆DC5 also entered the pit, allowing the fuel-efficient class to move ahead.

After an hour and a half from the start, a machine went off course at the 4th corner and the V corner, leading to the introduction of the safety car. It was also the perfect timing for refueling, causing the refueling area to be extremely crowded. The line for the safety car run was long, so the pit road exit was not opening quickly, resulting in many teams losing time here, which divided fortunes depending on the timing.

After a 5-lap safety car run, #14 K2 Racing Starlet is leading the race. Following that, #986 TOYOTA Automobile Division AE86 and #75 ACELINE'S 137EG6 swap the lead as they pit in.

At the point of 4 hours after passing the halfway mark, #5 POTENZA WAKO'S MART MR2 was in 1st place with 89 laps. #75 ACELINE'S137EG6 was in 2nd place, while #63K+UPSEEKERMVFIT and #95 Nikkō WM FIT3 were on the same lap. However, at the 4.5-hour mark, #888 SELECT HOTELS GROUP FIT took the lead, with #7 versus racing FIT, #63K+UPSEEKERMVFIT, and #95 Nikkō WM FIT3 making up the top positions among the FIT competitors.

It seemed that the FIT group would continue to compete for the overall top position, but #5 POTENZA WAKO'S MART MR2 also showed its determination, and when #888 Select Hotels Group FIT pitted on the 112th lap, it rose to the top!
It maintained the top position for 11 laps before heading to the pits.

With one hour remaining, the top position is held by #888 Select Hotels Group FIT. In second place is #63K+UPSEEKERMVFIT, and in third place is #95 Nikko WM FIT3, making it a top 3 dominated by FIT vehicles. In fourth place is the top of Class 4, #5 POTENZA WAKO'S MART MR2, followed by the top of Class 5, #75 ACELINE'S137EG6 in fifth place.

And with 50 minutes remaining, the #888 Select Hotels Group FIT enters for its fourth pit stop, allowing the #63K+UPSEEKERMVFIT to take the lead for the first time on lap 134. Following this, the #95 Nikko WM FIT3 is in second place, about 36 seconds behind, and the #5 POTENZA WAKO'S MART MR2 is in third, about 19 seconds behind.

The #5 POTENZA WAKO'S MART MR2 completed laps approximately 5 seconds faster than the #95 NIKKO WM FIT3. By the end of 137 laps, it had closed the gap to 6 seconds and 410 milliseconds, then reduced it to 2 seconds and 959 milliseconds on the 138th lap, and on the 139th lap, the #5 POTENZA WAKO'S MART MR2 moved up to second place. With 33 minutes remaining, the gap to the leader, #63K+UPSEEKERMVFIT, was 37 seconds and 588 milliseconds. #63K+UPSEEKERMVFIT was in the 2 minute 29 second range, while the chasing #5 POTENZA WAKO'S MART MR2 was in the 2 minute 23 second range. With 30 minutes left, the gap narrowed to about 31 seconds, but the #5 POTENZA WAKO'S MART MR2 had to pit for the final driver change, dropping it to fourth place. The #95 NIKKO WM FIT3 moved up to second place, while the #75 ACELINE'S 137EG6 held third place.

With 20 minutes remaining, the third place car #75 ACELINE'S137EG6 and fourth place car #5 POTENZA WAKO'S MART MR2 showed a performance that updated their team best, and with less than 7 minutes to go, car #75 ACELINE'S137EG6 overtook car #95 NIKKO WM FIT3 to rise to second place.

Leading the pack, #63K+UPSEEKERMVFIT showed stable speed and crossed the checkered flag first, completing 154 laps.
"Everyone was a winner in the 1.5 Challenge Cup, so everyone was fast, and the ability to adjust fuel consumption effectively was the key to our victory. During the safety car period, I believe that choosing not to refuel and only changing drivers did not result in any time loss," said D driver and team manager Yoshihiko Nakamura.

In 2nd place overall was [#75 ACELINE'S137EG6], winning Class 5. [#95 Nikkō WM FIT3] took 3rd place overall, followed by [#38 Abura Soba Kasugatetei Racing Team] in 4th place, who showed a strong push in the latter part of the race. Finally, [#5 POTENZA WAKO'S MART MR2], which slowed down due to running out of gas, finished in 5th place overall, achieving victory in Class 4.

The #32 Repro East Japan & RSF Stage finished in 1st place overall, winning Class 3. In Class 2, the #14 K2 Racing Starlet and #78 SPM Komine Process EP engaged in a fierce battle for the top until the end of the race, but #78 SPM Komine Process EP ran out of gas and slowed down. The #14 K2 Racing Starlet moved ahead and finished in 9th place overall, achieving class victory.

Class 6 achieved 1st place overall with [#246 Yuki&Obocchama's DC5], Class 8 achieved 22nd place overall with [#101 FWG Kosaric One NSX], Class 1 achieved 39th place overall with [#29 TNS FIT4 e:HEV], Class 9 achieved 48th place overall with [#82 Poor Man's R☆Lia☆DC5], and Class 10 achieved 49th place overall with [#375 TVC Sunako Juku M2CSR].

The JOY TAI, after two years, was successfully completed thanks to the cooperation of all participants. Let's enjoy the JOY TAI again next year!