Motul NSX GT3 is the fastest NSX in Suzuka!

2019 sees the debut of the Honda NSX GT3 in endurance racing, particularly in the intercontinental GT Challenge. The Super GT-focused Mugen squad, backed by Motul, swapped their GT500 machinery for a less extreme but extremely potent GT3-version of the NSX to compete against the toughest endurance racing field that the world has to offer.

With the previous round of the ICGT being the eye-watering challenge of the 24 hours of Spa, the 10 hours of Suzuka might look like a gentle weekend drive. But underestimating Suzuka would be unwise, as the Nagoya based track is both fast and incredibly technical, mixing chicanes with long sweeping hairpins and fast straights, not to mention changes in elevation and blind corners. The circuit is also one of the few tracks in the world to actually cross over itself, making for an incredible spectacle.

Although the Honda NSX debuted last year in the IMSA GTD competition and at the 24hours of Daytona under the Acura flag, it’s this year that Honda is really putting it through its paces with a factory supported effort. Being the ultimate test in reliability, endurance racing was the obvious go-to discipline. Only last month, Honda Motorsport finished the 24 Hours of Spa and was aiming for the same result in Suzuka with a crew of local stars such as Naoki Yamamoto, Daisuke Nakajima and Hideki Muto/

The Suzuka 10 hour was relatively incident-free and featured some great racing. A mix of the usual European suspects like WRT Audi, Bentley M-Sport, Garage 59 and Strakka Racing made up most of the thirty-plus car field, with the local crew bringing their A-game to compete in the Japanese honours.

Being a brand new car, and Honda’s first GT3 machine, the Motul NSX lacked some pace in comparison to the extensively developed Audis, Ferraris and Mercedes, but it did excel on reliability - not unimportant in an endurance event – and finished the race in 18th place overall. The Suzuka 10 hours had no less than three Honda NSX GT3’s on the grid, with two machines coming straight from Super GT’s GT300 category, but the Motul NSX outranked them all by a few laps making it the fastest NSX in the race.

Finishing two ICGT events in a row, the NSX is showing some real potential in the GT3 competition and is set to make its mark all over the worldwide GT3 competition.