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Located
30 miles to the
south-west of Nagoya,
Japan's third largest
city, Suzuka is nestled
in a region of rich
motor racing tradition
similar to that of Imola.
The track was
built in 1962 as a
testing facility for
Honda, which has a major
factory adjacent to the
circuit.
Formula 1
didn’t arrive to Japan
until 1976 when the
stunning Mount Fuji
circuit was used as the
venue, and the race
turned out to be one of
the most memorable of
the 70’s.
A year later a
major accident in which
spectators were killed
signaled the end of the
Japanese GP.
It would be a
full decade until F1
returned to Japan, as
Honda’s major
investment in the sport
prompted the Japanese GP
to return to the F1
calendar in 1987; this
time at Suzuka.
Ever since this
inaugural race, Suzuka
has become one of the
most popular races of
the F1 calendar, as its
exclusive position as
the final race of the
season tends to promote
an air of good will and
jest absent during the
mainstay of the
calendar.
Due to this
belated position Suzuka
has also been home to
its fair share of
dramatic races of
championship importance,
such as the clashes of
Prost and Senna ’89
and ’90.
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