Tsugio Matsuda

is a Japanese professional racing driver for Nissan and Kondo Racing in the Super GT Series, and a team ambassador for KCMG in the Super Formula Championship.

Matsuda is the Super GT Series' all-time career wins leader in the GT500 class, and a two-time GT500 class champion in 2014 and 2015. He raced in Super Formula from 1998 to 2013, and won back-to-back series titles in 2007 and 2008, when the series was known as Formula Nippon.

Matsuda has also represented Nissan in the FIA World Endurance Championship and Intercontinental GT Challenge.

Career

Early career Matsuda began his karting career in 1993, and achieved a notable result by winning the 1996 CIK/FIA Asia-Pacific Championship ICA Class race at his home track, Suzuka Circuit. He enrolled in the Suzuka Circuit Racing School Formula (SRS-F) in 1997 and graduated alongside classmates Toshihiro Kaneishi and future two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Takuma Sato.

Matsuda made the step up to the All-Japan Formula Three Championship in 1998, driving for Satoru Nakajima. He won his first race at the new Twin Ring Motegi circuit and finished fourth in the championship. Matsuda remained in All-Japan F3 for 1999, and finished fifth in the championship. After the season, he finished fourth in that year's Macau Grand Prix.

Formula Nippon/Super Formula During his rookie season in All-Japan F3, Matsuda was called on to drive for Nakajima Racing in the fifth round of the Formula Nippon Championship at Suzuka, replacing Koji Yamanishi. Just a few weeks after his 19th birthday, Matsuda finished sixth and scored a championship point on debut.

Matsuda's first full-time ride in Formula Nippon came two years later when he joined Nakajima Racing alongside the returning Toranosuke Takagi. In just his fourth career race at Miné Circuit, Matsuda won the race, becoming the youngest Japanese driver to win a Formula Nippon race at 20 years, 11 months, and 3 days old. Tsugio Matsuda on the grid for a Formula Nippon (now Super Formula) race at Motegi in 2006. Matsuda transferred from Nakajima Racing to Cerumo in 2003, then from Cerumo to Team 5Zigen in 2005. At the last race of the season, Matsuda talked with Team Impul founder Kazuyoshi Hoshino, who was seeking a driver to replace Yuji Ide at his team after his departure to Formula One. Matsuda joined Impul in 2006, and enjoyed his finest season to date - with a win at Autopolis, six podiums, and a pole position. He finished as runner-up in the championship to team-mate Benoît Tréluyer.

The following season, Matsuda won an unlikely first series championship in Formula Nippon, despite not winning a race. He was consistent throughout 2007, with eight top-five finishes in nine races. Matsuda was crowned the champion shortly after the final round at Suzuka after Takashi Kogure, who provisionally won the race and was champion-elect, was later disqualified when his car failed post-race technical inspection instead.

Matsuda would return in 2008, and had his best-ever season. He won three races in a row to open the season, four of the first five, with five straight pole positions in each. He clinched the championship at Fuji with two races remaining, and became the first driver since the formation of the Japan Race Promotion (JRP) to win back-to-back Formula Nippon Championship titles. Matsuda finished the season with five wins, six pole positions, and seven podiums.

Matsuda slumped the following season and finished 11th in the 2009 standings out of just 13 drivers. He was replaced by a returning João Paulo de Oliveira in 2010, while Matsuda joined Kondo Racing from the fourth round. A lack of sponsorship forced him to miss the 2011 season, but at the non-championship JAF Grand Prix round at Fuji Speedway, Matsuda returned to drive for KCMG in place of an absent Alexandre Imperatori.

Matsuda rejoined Impul in 2012 as Oliveira's team-mate. He returned to the podium with a second-place finish at Suzuka. Matsuda then opened the 2013 season, in what was now known as the Super Formula Championship, with another second-place finish, also at Suzuka.

Six years after his last race as a Super Formula driver, Matsuda was appointed team principal of KCMG in 2019. He continued in this role through 2023, then became a team ambassador

JGTC/Super GT In the same year that Matsuda made his full-time Formula Nippon debut, he made his All-Japan Grand Touring Car Championship GT500 class debut on 10 September at TI Circuit Aida, driving the number 30 McLaren F1 GTR for privateer Team Take One. Matsuda finished fourth in his debut race, and despite retiring from the final two races, he finished 19th in the championship standings.

Honda (2001-2005) Matsuda began racing full-time in GT500 in 2001. He spent the following five seasons driving for Nakajima Racing and scored his first career win at Twin Ring Motegi.

Matsuda's most successful season during this time was in 2002, partnered with Ralph Firman. They won three races that season, but Matsuda and Firman lost the Drivers' Championship by one point to Toyota Team LeMans' Akira Iida and Juichi Wakisaka.

For most of the next three seasons, Matsuda drove alongside future three-time 24 Hours of Le Mans winner André Lotterer. Matsuda and Lotterer won the 2004 round at Motegi, and finished second in the 2005 summer race at Fuji following an intense battle for the lead between Matsuda and eventual series champion, Yuji Tachikawa.

Nissan (2006-2025) Concurrent to his move to Team Impul in Formula Nippon, and after rejecting an offer to stay with Honda for what he described as a "mid-tier team", Matsuda transferred from Honda to Nissan for the 2006 season. They won the following race, the Fuji 500 km, for Matsuda's 18th career win. Despite winning back-to-back races to open the season, Matsuda and Quintarelli fell short of an unprecedented triple championship, and finished third in the final standings. Matsuda driving the number 23 Motul Autech Nissan Z GT500 in 2022. While the Nissan GT-R languished behind its rivals from Toyota and Honda over the ensuing years, Matsuda and Quintarelli continued to fight for wins and championships. They finished second in the 2017 championship, and third in 2019 despite not winning any races. Matsuda became the first GT500 driver to win 20 races at the 2018 Fuji 500 km. The duo swept both 300 km races at Suzuka during the 2020 season, and in 2021, Matsuda won his 23rd career race in car number 23, while NISMO won its third straight race at Suzuka.

At the third round of the 2023 season in Suzuka, Matsuda was involved in a multi-car accident that saw his car spin off at 130R, get airborne, and crash into the protective catch fence. Matsuda escaped serious injuries. He won the season-opening race at Okayama and finished second at Sugo and Motegi, and finished third in points.

After ten years at NISMO alongside Quintarelli, Matsuda was moved to Kondo Racing for the 2024 season, where he is set to join GT500 rookie Teppei Natori.

International sports car racing Matsuda's affiliation with KCMG and Nissan eventually led him to his first opportunities to race in the FIA World Endurance Championship. His first start in the series was at the rain-shortened 2013 6 Hours of Fuji, driving a Morgan LMP2. He made two more starts in 2014, aboard the team's new Oreca 03. He finished second in class at the 6 Hours of Silverstone, and captured his first LMP2 class win at the 2014 6 Hours of Circuit of the Americas. Matsuda made his first start at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in the number 21 Nissan GT-R LM Nismo. As a reward for winning the GT500 championship in Super GT the previous year, Matsuda earned a drive in the new Nissan GT-R LM Nismo LMP1 car at the 2015 24 Hours of Le Mans. Sharing the car with GT Academy graduates Lucas Ordoñez and Mark Shulzhitskiy, Matsuda's race ended after 115 laps due to a terminal suspension failure. It would be Matsuda's only LMP1 appearance following the collapse of the ill-fated GT-R LM Nismo project.

However, Matsuda would return to Le Mans in 2016, this time driving for KCMG, now the reigning LMP2 race winners, in their new Oreca 05. Unfortunately, Matsuda's second outing at Le Mans also ended before the chequered flag when the number 47 Oreca suffered multiple mechanical failures including a power steering failure which ultimately ended the race for Matsuda, Richard Bradley, and Matthew Howson. Matsuda returned to Le Mans in 2016 driving an LMP2 Oreca 05 for KCMG. KCMG began a customer racing programme with the new Nissan GT-R NISMO GT3 in 2018 and recruited Matsuda as one of its drivers. He raced part-time in GT World Challenge Asia alongside Yukinori Taniguchi, and drove for KCMG in the inaugural Suzuka 10 Hours, the successor to the Suzuka 1000 km. He also returned to Macau for the first time in nearly 20 years, taking part in the FIA GT World Cup race.

Matsuda's international racing in 2019 included first appearances in the Bathurst 12 Hour, 24 Hours of Spa, and Dubai 24 Hour with KCMG, and the 24 Hours of Nürburgring with Kondo Racing, where he finished ninth overall. He also returned to the Suzuka 10 Hours and finished sixth overall. Matsuda appeared as a guest driver in the 2019 DTM championship finale at Hockenheimring, driving a Nissan GT-R NISMO GT500 in advance of the upcoming Super GT x DTM Dream Race at Fuji.

Due to the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic limiting travel into and out of Japan for an extended period of time, and the gradual shuttering of Nissan's GT3 racing activities outside of Japan, Matsuda's last race abroad was the 2020 Bathurst 12 Hour - but his car was withdrawn from the race after an incident in the first practice session.

Racing record

Complete Japanese Formula 3 Championship results (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap) Year Team Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 DC Pts 1998 Nakajima Racing Mugen SUZ TSU MIN FUJ MOT SUZ SUG TAI SEN SUG 4th 17 1999 Nakajima Racing Mugen SUZ TSU FUJ MIN FUJ SUZ SUG TAI MOT SUZ 5th 23

Complete Formula Nippon/Super Formula results (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap) Year Team Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 DC Points 1998 PIAA Nakajima Racing HondaSUZMINFUJMOT SUZSUGFUJMINFUJSUZ 15th 1 2000 PIAA Nakajima Racing Mugen SUZ MOT MIN FUJ SUZ SUG MOT FUJ MIN SUZ 4th 27 2001 PIAA Nakajima Racing Mugen SUZ MOT MIN FUJ SUZ SUG FUJ MIN MOT SUZ 10th 8 2002 PIAA Nakajima Racing Mugen SUZ FUJ MIN SUZ MOT SUG FUJ MIN MOT SUZ 5th 19 2003 Cosmo Oil Racing Team Cerumo Mugen SUZ FUJ MIN MOT SUZ SUG FUJ MIN MOT SUZ 11th 7 2004 Cosmo Oil Racing Team Cerumo Mugen SUZ SUG MOT SUZ SUG MIN SEP MOT SUZ 9th 7 2005 Team 5ZIGEN Mugen MOT SUZ SUG FUJ SUZ MIN FUJ MOT SUZ 6th 14 2006 mobilecast Team Impul Toyota FUJ SUZ MOT SUZ AUT FUJ SUG MOT SUZ 2nd 37 2007 mobilecast Team Impul Toyota FUJ SUZ MOT OKA SUZ FUJ SUG MOT SUZ 1st 46 2008 Lawson Team Impul Toyota FUJ SUZ MOT OKA SUZ SUZ MOT MOT FUJ FUJ SUG 1st 93.5 2009 Lawson Team Impul Toyota FUJ SUZ MOT FUJ SUZ MOT AUT SUG 11th 11 2010 Kondo Racing ToyotaSUZMOTFUJ MOT SUG AUT SUZ SUZ 15th 1 2012 Team Impul Toyota SUZ MOT AUT FUJ MOT SUG SUZ SUZ 8th 20 2013 Lenovo Team Impul Toyota SUZ AUT FUJ MOT SUG SUZ SUZ 6th 18.5

Complete JGTC/Super GT results (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap) ‡ Half points awarded as less than 75% of race distance was completed. † Driver did not finish, but was classified as he completed over 90% of the race distance. (Number) Driver did not take part in this sprint race, points are still awarded for the teammate's result.

Complete Asian Le Mans Series results (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Complete FIA World Endurance Championship results (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

24 Hours of Le Mans results

Year Team Co-Drivers Car Class Laps 2015 Nissan Motorsports Mark Shulzhitskiy Lucas Ordóñez Nissan GT-R LM Nismo LMP1 115 DNF DNF 2016 KCMG Richard Bradley Matthew Howson Oreca 05-Nissan LMP2 116 DNF DNF