Tsukba Circuit, North of Tokyo, December 2022: The proud 'NHK World Samurai Wheels x Gran Turismo' team fought hard, long and heroically in the Mazda MX-5 Media 4-Hour Endurance Race - to finish in 2nd place (after starting from P2 on the 23-car grid). The star drivers were F1 and Le Mans racing legend/Best Cars of the Year (Best COTY) judge Ukyo Katayama; fellow senior Best COTY judge, Peter Lyon (both pictured together here); plus former Gran Turismo national champion Kazuki Yamada.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=el0F423nR8E

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Toyota has taken the ho-hum Corolla, dropped it onto a rally-bred platform, injected a 300 hp powertrain and 4WD, and launched the brand-redefining GR Corolla. Packing a tweaked version of the 1.6-litre, 3-cylinder turbocharged gasoline engine and 6-speed manual from the GR Yaris, the GR Corolla promises performance and handling that will rival the Subaru WRX STI, Golf R and Mercedes AMG A45, Ford Focus RS and even Mitsubishi’s discontinued Evo. Priced at just under $40,000 in the U.S., the GR Corolla will jump from 0-60 mph in under 5 seconds.

Motor journalist and racing driver Shinichi Katsura cut his teeth in journalism during the 1980s editing Option magazine before realising a dream to race in Japan’s Super Endurance Series in the early '90s. His series winning performance in '92 and '93 in a Nissan Skyline GT-R would eventually see him secure a seat for Aston Martin in 2008 where he co-piloted works cars in the Nurburgring 24 Hours with the likes of Aston CEO Ulrich Bez, winning his class twice. Shinichi writes new car reports for Car Graphic and Car Top, and comments on radio.