Sugo International Race Circuit, Japan
Photo Credits: © Wataru Tamura Photography (Member JRPA*)
2025 Super Formula Lights | Japan
Sugo International Race Circuit
Round 4 | Races 10, 11, 12 & 6
August 29-31 | 2025
Sugo Highlights:
Practice 1: 3rd Place
Practice 2: 4th Place
Practice 3: 2nd Place (2nd Fastest Time all sessions combined)
Race 10 Qualifying Position: 4th Place
Race 10 Finish: 6th Place
Qualifying 11 Qualifying Position: 5th Place
Race 11 Finish: 7th Place
Race 12 Start Position: 6th Place
Race 12 Finish: 6th Place
Race 6 Start Position: 7th Place (based on Race 11 Finish)
Race 6 Finish: 6th Place
Championship Position: 4th Place
Practice Sessions | August 29th: 2nd Fastest (All sessions combined)
Going into practice sessions for Round 4 of the Japanese Super Formula Lights 2025 championship, Kaylen quickly came to terms with the track and grip, with strong promise for the qualifying and races in the weekend ahead.
Qualifying | August 30 | Saturday
Qualifying 1 & 2: 4th & 5th Place
Struggling with optimal grip, fast laps were challenging and Kaylen Frederick qualified in 4th for Race 10 and 5th place for Race 11. The outcome was surprising after Kaylen was 2nd fastest during practice sessions going into the race weekend.
Kaylen Frederick comments on qualifying sessions 1 & 2:
“Looking at our pace during Practices, I expected to be fighting for pole in both Qualifying sessions. Therefore, I was quite disappointed to have qualified so far back. The car balance, preparation, and the driving felt good each session, but we just lacked overall pace. As it is so hard to overtake at Sugo, the poor qualifying really put us on the back foot.”
Race 10 | August 30th | Saturday
Starting Positions: 4th Place
Finish Positions: 6th Place
Following a solid start but Kaylen was stuck in behind his teammate allowing a car to slip by. His teammate, Kaylen was challenging the teammate to overtake, this offense also allowed another car behind Kaylen. The rest of race was run in 6th position. Note, Sugo is one of the most difficult to overtake on the calendar.
Kaylen Frederick on Race 10:
“We had a good start and were putting pressure on the car in front but were unable to make any moves stick as it is so difficult to overtake at Sugo. As soon as you are within range or .5 seconds of the driver ahead, the front-end washes out due to loss of downforce and lack of grip. This was quite frustrating as we needed to get into the higher points positions and were just unable to do so.”
Race 11 | August 30th | Saturday
Starting Position: 5th Position
Finish Position: 7th Position
With another good start, Kaylen was side-by-side with his teammate. He had to check up in Turn 1 because of an incident with two other drivers ahead. This was both fortunate as it allowed Kaylen to gain two positions, but also lost one to Furitani who was better able to avoid the two cars with the incident. This place Kaylen in 4th following Furitani and in a good position to overtake going into Lap 2. Following closely behind looking for a slipstream going on the main straight. With loss of downforce due to following closely, Kaylen went wide in the turn and had to lift, losing three positions, placing him 7th. Kaylen was surprised to have lost the downforce because he had gotten through the difficult part of the corner. The remainder of the race was run in 7th place due to difficulty in overtaking.
Race 12 | August 31st | Sunday
Starting Position: 6th Position
Finish Position: 6th Position
The start was good, and Kaylen followed his teammate through lap 1. Attempting an overtake on his teammate on lap 2, but was unable to complete. The race was run in 6th place without change, as is usual at Sugo and in this car & series: Passes are very difficult to make due to loss of downforce when close behind while attempting overtakes.
Race 6** | August 31st | Sunday
**Race 6 at Event 2 was cancelled due to inclement weather and rescheduled for this Sugo weekend.
Starting Position: 7th Position
Finish Position: 6th Position
Following a solid launch at the race start, Kaylen was in the mix fighting for 6th position at Turn 1. Kaylen was alongside and executing a pass on his teammate on the outside, when his teammate was pushing him wide. Kaylen lifted before running off track, allowing the car behind to get alongside for the next chicane. The chicane won’t allow two cars to be side-by-side, at which point Kaylen was forced onto the grass, and unable to complete the overtake. When forced through the grass, Kaylen’s car took on front wing and floor damage, compromising speed and making overtakes difficult. With no additional overtakes, and owing to two penalties for drivers ahead, Kaylen completed the race in 6th place.
Kaylen Frederick on the Sugo weekend:
(Pilot ONE Racing with B-MAX/Car No.58/B-MAX RACING TEAM)
“Overall the results left much to be desired this weekend. We had very strong qualifying and long run pace throughout both days of practice, but when it came to qualifying the pace fell away leaving us uncompetitive. I know we can fight for pole positions and wins, so to come away from this weekend with almost no points is a tough pill to swallow.”
Championship Round-up: 4th Place
Next on the Calendar:
2025 Japan Super Formula Lights F3 | Round 5 | Races 13, 14, 15
Fuji International Race Circuit
September 5 – 7
Circuit Length: 4.56 KM | 2.83 Miles
About B-MAX Racing
For more information about B-MAX Racing:
http://www.b-maxracing.co.jp/
About Kaylen Frederick
For more information visit:
https://KaylenFrederick.com/
About Pilot ONE Racing
Pilot ONE Racing supports and assists young race drivers in developing professional driving careers, seeking funding, and reaching the highest level of motorsports in both the USA and Europe.
For more information visit ‘Contact Info and Partnerships’ at:
https://PilotONERacing.com
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