Narita Dogfight | Autopolis Super Lap 2024 at Autopolis Circuit. 27 January 2024.

The highly anticipated Autopolis Super Lap is one of Kyushu’s largest time attack events. Held annually at Autopolis International Circuit, the event draws out some of the islands fastest attack competitors. With Autopolis having a very precarious geographical location (it is located on top of a mountain at high elevations), the event has a reputation for being delayed year after year due to adverse weather conditions - this year was no different. I’ve tried for half a decade to attend this event, and each time it was delayed, spoiling my travel plans. However, this year, I was awarded a very small window to attend Super Lap at Autopolis. A very cold and snowy week led up to the main event, with the entire circuit having been blanketed in snow just 3 days prior. The track officials ended up cancelling the practice run session that was to take place the day before. The fact that there was still amassed snow along the circuit discouraged many of the drivers from committing to attending the event. So, when they announced that Super Lap was not going to be cancelled, there were already many drivers who had dropped off the entry list. Nevertheless, 23 drivers braved the frigid and icy conditions to drive the 19 turn track, and fight to put down their best laps. Take a walk around the paddock with me and check out some of the cars that compete in Kyushu. It’s not too often we get to see some of these builds, and while the entry list was smaller than anticipated, we still get to see some really cool cars.