Fuji Speedway in its original form was conceived to be a high speed oval track on par with the likes of Daytona, Talladega, Brooklands and Monza. However the oval project ran out of money after only 50% of the bankings were completed so the track was finished as a half oval, half road course hybrid.

I like this quote from racing driver Vic Elford about the old Fuji banking: “My last testing and then the subsequent Sports Car GP were at Fuji, but
the track was run in a clockwise direction. The reason that banking was
so horrific, was that at the end of the straight we went over a blind
crest at around 190/200 mph and dropped into the banking. At
other tracks (Daytona, Monthlery, etc.) you climb up the banking. One
of the results was that although there were many brave Japanese drivers
there were not too many with great skill and the death toll from that
one corner was horrendous. To such an extent that the big Gp 7 cars
were then banned in Japan and thus, neither Nissan or Toyota ever made
it to CanAm”

I just noticed this video on the Japanese Nostalgic Car Blog….. it’s the first time I’ve seen actual filmed footage of the old Fuji banking… looks pretty scary… I’m also liking the old school Celicas. They look like they stepped out of the parking lot of the Tokyo Auto Salon!

:Rod