Porsche Carrera Cup Japan (PCCJ) held round 2 and 3 of the 2026 Porsche Carrera Cup Japan at Okayama International Circuit (Okayama Prefecture) on Saturday, 16 to Sunday 17 May, 2026.

The starting grid for the PCCJ Round 2 final was determined by the best times set during the official qualifying session held on the morning of Saturday, May 16. The overall pole position was secured by #66 Robert de Haan, the 2025 Porsche Carrera Cup Germany (PCCD) champion, with a course record time of 1 minute 28.862 seconds. Second place went to #78 Iori Kimura, the 2025 PCCJ champion; third place to #99 Taichi Watari, the 2025-2026 Porsche Carrera Cup Middle East Overall Champion; and fourth place to #60 Reimei Ito, the 2024 PCCJ champion, lining up four former champions in the top grid positions.

On the 16th, at 1:50 PM, the formation lap for the PCCJ 2026 Round 2 final race began. Pole sitter #66 de Haan got off to a strong start, but #78 Kimura, starting in second, got off to a slow start and ended up stopping his car at the pit lane exit. This allowed #99 Watari to move up to second place, followed by #60 Ito, as they chased down the leader, #66 De Haan. However, #66 De Haan’s pace was blistering, and the gap between first and second place gradually widened to 2.101 seconds on Lap 3 and 3.386 seconds on Lap 6. By Lap 10, he was lapping the two Amateur Class cars at a blistering pace, and he continued to drive superbly until the final lap, taking the checkered flag in first place with a 7.687-second lead over second place.

PCCD champion #66 De Haan, who secured back-to-back wins to open the 2026 PCCJ season, humbly remarked, “I got off to a good start, and after that, I was able to maintain my position by effectively managing the gap to second place, which led to the victory. I am truly grateful to the team for providing such a fantastic car. I want to review today’s race to see if there are any areas for improvement so that we can achieve a similar result in tomorrow’s Round 3.” #99 Watarai, who finished second for the second consecutive race, vowed to bounce back: “From the team’s perspective, a 1-2 finish in the first two races of the season is great, but personally, I’m frustrated that I couldn’t keep up with De Haan. However, my pace in the latter half of the race was just as good, so I’ll aim for the top in tomorrow’s third race.” #60 Ito, who finished third, said, “I want to work with the team to re-examine the areas that have been challenging for us and prepare for tomorrow’s race.”

On Sunday, May 17, a cloudless blue sky stretched across the sky at Okayama International Circuit from early morning, and temperatures continued to rise. By 11:40 a.m., when the formation lap for Round 3 of the PCCJ began, the air temperature had reached 31°C and the track temperature was 43°C. The starting grid featured nine cars, as #77 Dai Hamazaki of the Pro-Am class was unable to compete due to an incident in the previous day’s Round 2 final.

Starting from pole position, #66 De Haan made another strong start, just as he had in Round 2, but #78 Kimura closed in on him at Turn 1. In this battle between PCCJ and PCCD champion, #66 De Haan managed to hold onto the lead, while #78 Kimura, in second place, stayed right on his tail, waiting for an opportunity. However, #66 De Haan gradually increased his pace, and the gap, which was 0.418 seconds on the first lap, widened to 1.368 seconds—more than a second—by the fourth lap.

Behind them, #60 Ito and #99 Watari engaged in a tail-to-nose battle. In this battle between two former champions, the gap—which had narrowed to 0.390 seconds by Lap 3—began to widen slightly by Lap 7, but on Lap 9, #99 Watarai once again closed in right behind #60 Ito. #99 Watarai continued to wait for an opportunity, but he spun out at the final corner on Lap 11, causing the gap between the two cars to widen once again. Meanwhile, in the battle for the lead, #66 De Haan had extended his lead over second-place #78 Kimura to about 3 seconds, and that gap widened further on Lap 12. #78 Kimura, who had lost speed, drove his car straight into the pits. This allowed #60 Ito to move up to second place, but with a gap of over 7 seconds to the leader at that point, it was a difficult situation to make a comeback with the remaining laps. As a result, #66 De Haan secured his third consecutive victory since the season opener. “I’m truly delighted. Not only have I won all three PCCJ races, but I’ve also achieved pole position, victory, and the fastest lap in every race so far,” he said, bursting with joy.

To activate 4 door cars sales, there were 50 cars and 101 guests invited to Okayama International CIrcuit on Saturday to see round 2 of PCCJ. For most of guests, it was very first time to be at PCCJ so special programs such as paddock tour were set. They also had a chance to do parade run after PCCJ and Taycan Turbo GT, which is safety car for PCCJ 2026 season, was led the group of guests for the parade run.

The next round of the PCCJ, Rounds 4 and 5, is scheduled to take place on Saturday, July 18, and Sunday, July 19, at Fuji Speedway (Shizuoka Prefecture). As this marks the third PCCJ event of the season at Fuji—a circuit many drivers are familiar with—all eyes will be on whether a new winner will emerge to end the winning streaks in each class.