Nakayama Circuit is a circuit in 751 Ohnakayama, Wake-cho,
Wake District,
Okayama Prefecture
is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. Okayama Prefecture has a population of 1,826,059 (1 February 2025) and has a geographic area of 7,114 Square kilometre, km2 (2,746 sq mi). Okayama Prefecture ...
in West
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
.
Nakayama means “inside the mountain” in Japanese. It is located in the mountains like other Japanese motor racing tracks. The circuit is part of the quite compactly designed Sanyo Sports Land.
History
The circuit opened in 1970 and as the fourth permanent motorsport facility in Japan to get full Japan Automobile Federation approval, after
Suzuka Circuit
The , the , is a long motorsport race track located in Ino, Suzuka, Mie, Suzuka City, Mie Prefecture, Japan and operated by Honda Mobilityland, a subsidiary of Honda, Honda Motor Co, Ltd. It has a capacity of 155,000. It is most well known by i ...
,
Fuji Speedway
is a motorsport race track standing in the foothills of Mount Fuji, in Oyama, Shizuoka, Oyama, Suntō District, Shizuoka, Suntō District, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. It was built in the early 1960s. In the 1980s, Fuji Speedway was used for the ...
and
Tsukuba Circuit
is a motorsport race track located in Shimotsuma, Ibaraki, Shimotsuma, a neighboring city of Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Tsukuba, Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan, about north of central Tokyo. It is long, with 32 Pit stop, pit garages and a long back straig ...
. The kart track is within a few steps of the circuit. The back of the circuit grandstand is up against the first hairpin of the kart track.
The circuit was extended from 1.550 km to 2.007 km in 1998. It hosts a ‘grassroots’ level of Japanese race events.
Facilities
The circuit isn't as spectator-friendly as some of the newer and larger Japanese circuits. Since the circuit is wedged between the mountains, the pit area and the grandstand area are the two vantage points for spectators. 50% of the track can be seen from both vantage points with the opening radius right-hander in front of the grandstand and an ideal spot for overtaking at the final hairpin before the main straight.
No impact absorbing material or tires line the edge of the
Armco barrier
Traffic barriers (known in North America as guardrails or guard rails, in Britain as crash barriers, and in auto racing as Armco barriers AK Steel (formerly Armco) genericized trademark) keep vehicles within their roadway and prevent them from co ...
s and, as such, the barriers are all bent out of shape. At the main straightaway, a 20-foot gap opens in the barrier halfway down with no impact absorbing material.
Even on a quiet day, the pit area is packed with kids running around and between cars. When cars are parked on both sides of the narrow pit area, only one car pass. The access tunnel to the pit area is narrow and low, barely wide enough for trucks.
References
External links
Nakayama Circuit Official site (Japanese)
Motorsport venues in Japan
Sports venues in Okayama Prefecture
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