Snapshot
- First stage of the Fuji Speedway redevelopment slated to open later this year
- New additions include a luxury hotel, motorsport museum, and hospitality venues
- Previously restricted garage areas to be opened to the public
Toyota has announced Fuji International Speedway in Japan will undergo a major redevelopment.
Developed in conjunction with Towa Real Estate, the updated facility – called ‘Fuji Motorsports Forest’ – was showcased earlier this week, providing an expansion to the current Fuji Speedway track in Oyama, Shizuoka Prefecture.
The complex will open in stages to racing fans later this year, with the project set to bring additional services to the motorsport park – in a similar fashion to The Bend in Tailem Bend, South Australia.
Billed by the marque as a ‘motorsport forest’, the redevelopment of Fuji Speedway will see the construction of a new luxury hotel, motorsport museum, hospitality and leisure venues, such as spas and restaurants, and a publicly available race team garage area.
Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda said the inspiration for the expansion stemmed from his personal experience at the track as a child.
“We want it to be a place where people who work in the field of motorsports can do so more energetically. We also want racing teams to gather here with that same thought in mind.”
Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda (centre) meeting with Towa Real Estate representatives
“We will turn this area in Fuji into a place where those who enjoy motorsports, those who work in motorsports, adults and children will want to come,” added Toyoda.
The Fuji Motorsports Museum, created under the supervision of the Toyota Automobile Museum, will include a number of historic racing vehicles to “symbolize each era”.
Alongside Toyota, a collection of manufacturers from Japan and abroad are expected to feature vehicles within the museum.
Meanwhile, the Fuji Speedway Hotel, operated by Hyatt Hotels and Resorts, will be the first of the company’s ‘Unbound Collection’ to open in Japan, offering 120 guest rooms with panoramic views of the speedway circuit and Mount Fuji.
It will commence operation in the northern autumn, with other facilities set to open from 2023.
A dedicated motorsport park exists in Australia, with The Bend Motorsport Park – situated about 100 kilometres south-east of Adelaide – offering a bitumen circuit, drag race strip, drift racing circuit, hotel accommodation, 4×4 adventure park, caravan park, and a service station.
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