2017 Super Formula Championship

The 2017 Japanese Super Formula Championship was the forty-fifth season of premier Japanese open-wheel motor racing, and the fifth under the moniker of Super Formula. Yuji Kunimoto was the defending series champion.^[1]

Hiroaki Ishiura won his second Driver's Championship in three years, finishing only half a point ahead of Pierre Gasly after the final round was cancelled due to Typhoon Lan. The Cerumo INGING team won their second successive Team Championship.

Teams and drivers

Every Honda-powered car used a Honda HR-414E engine and every Toyota-powered car used a Toyota RI4A engine.

Manufacturer	Engine	No.	Driver	Rounds
P.mu/cerumo・INGING^[2]	Toyota	1	Yuji Kunimoto^[2]	All
P.mu/cerumo・INGING^[2]	Toyota	2	Hiroaki Ishiura^[2]	All
Kondō Racing^[2]	Toyota	3	Nick Cassidy^[2]	All
Kondō Racing^[2]	Toyota	4	Kenta Yamashita^[2]	All
SUNOCO Team LeMans^[2]	Toyota	7	Felix Rosenqvist^[3]	All
SUNOCO Team LeMans^[2]	Toyota	8	Kazuya Oshima^[2]	All
Real Racing^[4]	Honda	10	Koudai Tsukakoshi^[4]	All
Team Mugen^[4]	Honda	15	Pierre Gasly^[5]	All
Team Mugen^[4]	Honda	16	Naoki Yamamoto^[4]	All
KCMG^[2]	Toyota	18	Kamui Kobayashi^[2]	All
Itochu Enex Team Impul^[2]	Toyota	19	Yuhi Sekiguchi^[2]	All
Itochu Enex Team Impul^[2]	Toyota	20	Jann Mardenborough^[6]	All
Vantelin Team Tom's^[7]	Toyota	36	André Lotterer^[2]	All
Vantelin Team Tom's^[7]	Toyota	37	Kazuki Nakajima^[2]	All
Docomo Team Dandelion Racing^[4]	Honda	40	Tomoki Nojiri^[4]	All
Docomo Team Dandelion Racing^[4]	Honda	41	Takuya Izawa^[4]	All
B-MAX Racing Team^[8]	Honda	50	Takashi Kogure^[4]	All
TCS Nakajima Racing^[9]	Honda	64	Daisuke Nakajima^[4]	All
TCS Nakajima Racing^[9]	Honda	65	Narain Karthikeyan^[4]	All

Driver changes

Leaving Super Formula

Stoffel Vandoorne will leave the series to compete in Formula One with McLaren.^[10]
Bertrand Baguette will leave the series to compete in Super GT Series.
Yuichi Nakayama is replaced at the single car KCMG team by Kamui Kobayashi.
Joao Paulo de Oliveira, 2010 Formula Nippon champion, leaves after seven seasons with Team Impul and ten in the series.

Entering Super Formula

2016 GP2 Series champion, Red Bull Racing and Scuderia Toro Rosso reserve driver Pierre Gasly moved to Super Formula with Team Mugen. He replaced Daniil Kvyat at Scuderia Toro Rosso from the 2017 Malaysian Grand Prix, but skipped the 2017 United States Grand Prix to finish the Super Formula season.
Nick Cassidy and Kenta Yamashita, the 2015 and 2016 Japanese Formula 3 champions, join the series with Kondo Racing, replacing James Rossiter and William Buller.
GT Academy winner Jann Mardenborough makes his series debut with Team Impul.
2015 European F3 champion Felix Rosenqvist joins the series. He is joined at Team LeMans by Kazuya Oshima, making his full-time return to Super Formula for the first time since 2012.

Race calendar

Round		Circuit	Date	Pole Position	Fastest Lap	Winning Driver	Winning Team
1		Suzuka Circuit	23 April	Kazuki Nakajima	Koudai Tsukakoshi	Kazuki Nakajima	Vantelin Team Tom's
2	R1	Okayama International Circuit	27 May	Yuhi Sekiguchi	Felix Rosenqvist	André Lotterer	Vantelin Team Tom's
2	R2	Okayama International Circuit	28 May	Hiroaki Ishiura	Kamui Kobayashi	Yuhi Sekiguchi	Itochu Enex Team Impul
3		Fuji Speedway	9 July	Yuji Kunimoto	Felix Rosenqvist	Hiroaki Ishiura	P.mu/cerumo・INGING
4		Twin Ring Motegi	20 August	Kenta Yamashita	Koudai Tsukakoshi	Pierre Gasly	Team Mugen
5		Autopolis	10 September	Tomoki Nojiri	Jann Mardenborough	Pierre Gasly	Team Mugen
6		Sportsland SUGO	24 September	Nick Cassidy	Hiroaki Ishiura	Yuhi Sekiguchi	Itochu Enex Team Impul
7	R1	Suzuka Circuit	22 October	André Lotterer	Races cancelled due to Typhoon Lan^[11]
7	R2	Suzuka Circuit	22 October	Jann Mardenborough	Races cancelled due to Typhoon Lan^[11]
Source:^[12]

Championship standings

Drivers' Championship

Scoring system

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	Pole
Rounds 1, 3-6	10	8	6	5	4	3	2	1	1
Round 2	5	4	3	2.5	2	1.5	1	0.5	1
Round 7	8	4	3	2.5	2	1.5	1	0.5	1

Driver standings

Pos	Driver	SUZ	OKA		FUJ	MOT	AUT	SUG	SUZ		Points
1	Hiroaki Ishiura	4	8	2	1	4	4	6	C	C	33.5
2	Pierre Gasly	10	19	7	5	1	1	2	C	C	33
3	Felix Rosenqvist	11	12	4	2	3	2	5	C	C	28.5
4	Yuhi Sekiguchi	12	2	1	4	16	10	1	C	C	25
5	Kazuki Nakajima	1	9	18	7	11	6	3	C	C	22
6	André Lotterer	5	1	3	3	7	Ret	10	C	C	21
7	Kamui Kobayashi	9	4	5	15	2	7	7	C	C	16.5
8	Yuji Kunimoto	3	10	9	Ret	15	5	4	C	C	16
9	Naoki Yamamoto	2	5	8	Ret	13	16	18	C	C	10.5
10	Nick Cassidy	17	3	11	Ret	5	Ret	19	C	C	8
11	Kenta Yamashita	14	7	6	Ret	6	13	11	C	C	6.5
12	Kazuya Oshima	Ret	15	12	12	10	3	15	C	C	6
13	Takuya Izawa	8	14	Ret	6	Ret	15	8	C	C	5
14	Jann Mardenborough	18	6	17	8	14	8	9	C	C	4.5
15	Koudai Tsukakoshi	6	11	16	9	9	9	16	C	C	3
16	Daisuke Nakajima	7	16	14	11	12	11	17	C	C	2
17	Tomoki Nojiri	16	13	10	10	8	14	12	C	C	2
18	Takashi Kogure	15	18	15	13	17	12	14	C	C	0
19	Narain Karthikeyan	13	17	13	14	Ret	Ret	13	C	C	0
Pos	Driver	SUZ	OKA		FUJ	MOT	AUT	SUG	SUZ		Points

Colour	Result
Gold	Winner
Silver	Second place
Bronze	Third place
Green	Points finish
Blue	Non-points finish
Blue	Non-classified finish (NC)
Purple	Retired (Ret)
Red	Did not qualify (DNQ)
Red	Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ)
Black	Disqualified (DSQ)
White	Did not start (DNS)
	Withdrew (WD)
	Race cancelled (C)
Blank	Did not practice (DNP)
	Did not arrive (DNA)
	Excluded (EX)

Bold – Pole
Italics – Fastest Lap

Teams' Championship

Pos	Team	No.	SUZ	OKA		FUJ	MOT	AUT	SUG	SUZ		Points
1	P.mu/cerumo・INGING	1	3	10	9	Ret	15	5	4	C	C	47.5
1	P.mu/cerumo・INGING	2	4	8	2	1	4	4	6	C	C	47.5
2	Team Mugen	15	10	19	7	5	1	1	2	C	C	43.5
2	Team Mugen	16	2	5	8	Ret	13	Ret	18	C	C	43.5
3	Vantelin Team TOM's	36	5	1	3	3	7	Ret	10	C	C	41
3	Vantelin Team TOM's	37	1	9	18	7	11	6	3	C	C	41
4	SUNOCO Team LeMans	7	11	12	4	2	3	2	5	C	C	34.5
4	SUNOCO Team LeMans	8	Ret	15	12	12	10	3	15	C	C	34.5
5	ITOCHU ENEX Team Impul	19	12	2	1	4	16	10	1	C	C	27.5
5	ITOCHU ENEX Team Impul	20	18	6	17	8	14	8	17	C	C	27.5
6	KCMG	18	9	4	5	15	2	7	7	C	C	16.5
7	Kondo Racing	3	17	3	11	Ret	5	Ret	19	C	C	12.5
7	Kondo Racing	4	14	7	6	Ret	6	13	11	C	C	12.5
8	DOCOMO Team Dandelion Racing	40	16	13	10	10	8	14	12	C	C	6
8	DOCOMO Team Dandelion Racing	41	8	14	Ret	6	Ret	15	8	C	C	6
9	Real Racing	10	6	11	16	9	9	9	16	C	C	3
10	TCS Nakajima Racing	64	7	16	14	11	12	11	17	C	C	2
10	TCS Nakajima Racing	65	13	17	13	14	Ret	Ret	13	C	C	2
11	B-MAX Racing Team	50	15	18	15	13	17	12	14	C	C	0
Pos	Team	No.	SUZ	OKA		FUJ	MOT	AUT	SUG	SUZ		Points