On Thursday, 17 July, after rain had cleared the day before, the sky was partly cloudy over Nakano Ikebukuro Park in Tokyo’s Ikebukuro district. The park was bustling with WRC-participating vehicles such as the GR Yaris Rally 1 (display car), the SUBARU WRX S4 competing in the All-Japan Rally Championship, the Škoda Fabia RS Rally 2, and historic rally cars, drawing the attention of passersby. This park, located near movie theatres and anime-related facilities, is known as a sacred place for anime. Across the street from the park, in the Toshima City Hall Conference Room, a briefing session was held to announce the details of this year’s FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) Round 13, FORUM8 Rally Japan 2025.
The briefing session, which began at 1:00 PM, was attended by approximately 70 media representatives from TV stations, newspapers, news agencies, automotive magazines, and web media, as well as over 90 event partners and related parties. The session kicked off with MC Pierre Kitagawa, and the briefing began. At the beginning, Toshihiko Ōta, Mayor of Toyota City, Aichi Prefecture and Chairman of the Rally, announced the concept of the event. “The theme of this year’s Rally Japan is ‘Experience Rally,’ which aims to establish a rally culture and focus on the unique joy of rallying,” he said, and went on to strongly recommend that many spectators and rally fans come and watch the event in person.
Next, Clerk of the Course Haruo Takakuwa gave an overview of the rally course planned for this year. He explained that this year’s course will consist of a total of 20 special stages, including two newly established stages: the Toyota SSS, where rally cars will race through the city of Toyota, and the Obara SS, known for its four seasons of cherry blossoms. He added that the Kuragaike Park course, which had been used as a shake-down stage, would be used as SS1 after shakedown, that the Okazaki SSS would be held as a daylight stage, in contrast to previous years, that the Isegami Tunnel would be run in reverse, and that the Mt. Kasagiyama SS would be extended by approximately 5 km. Among these, the urban course of Toyota City SSS, which runs through the city of Toyota, passes through the thrilling tight corners of the embankment road, and heads toward Toyota Bridge, will be a first-ever attempt in Rally Japan history.
Next, Vice Chairman Takane Kosaka (Mayor of Ena City, Gifu Prefecture) announced details of spectator tickets. He announced that advance lottery ticket sales would begin on that day, that advance lottery ticket sales limited to the local area would begin on 16 August, and that general sales would begin on 23 August on a first-come, first-served basis. Next, it was announced that tickets for the highly anticipated Toyota Super Special Stage (including admission to the Toyota Stadium Service Park) would be 13,000 yen for adults, that there would be four-day passes for the Toyota Stadium Service Park, that the first 1,000 parents and children would be invited to attend the final day free of charge, and that there would be discounted spectator tickets that included a ride in a car at the Yamagata SS.
Pierre Kitagawa introduced the entertainment plans for the rally period. This concluded the overview presentation, but guest rally drivers Toshihiro Arai and Madoka Umemoto then took the stage for a talk show discussing the appeal of Rally Japan. Arai commented, “The biggest difference from European rallies is that many of the courses run through forests with lush evergreen trees, and you can enjoy beautiful autumn foliage as a backdrop during the liaison stages.” Umemoto added, “I’m looking forward to the newly established Toyota city centre course. Since it’s a night stage, I feel that the driver will have to have intense focus.” Following this, special guest voice actor Shin’ichirō Miki was introduced and joined the talk show. Miki, known for his role in the popular anime “Initial D,” and is also well known as a big car enthusiast, “Rally is, in a word, wild! I’d love to watch it alongside passionate fans, cheering loudly together,” gaining a nod of admiration from the press section. Following the briefing, a photo session was held at Nakabukuro Park, where the talk show participants, along with the chairman and vice chairman of the event, posed for still cameras and made gestures such as the “thumbs up” sign for TV cameras.
There are now about 100 days until the first day of the rally on 6 November. From now until Rally Week, various information related to WRC FORUM8 Rally Japan 2025 will be posted on a regular basis. Stay tuned!
