Dominant in Europe, the Maserati MC12 will now take on the cream of factory entries from Toyota, Nissan, Honda and Lexus in the hotly-contested Japanese Super GT Championship this year. Le Mas winners' Team Goh are currently making final preparations to run a single V12-engined MC12 sportscar in the second season of the Super GT Championship.

Competing in Japan's leading sportscar racing series for the first time since 1996, the Team Goh MC12 will feature the driver pairing of Danish former F1 star Jan Magnussen and Japanese pilot Seiji Ara, the latter one of the trio of drivers who took victory at the Le Mans 24 Hours in 2004 at the wheel of the Japanese squad's Audi R8. It has also been officially announced by team owner Mr Kazumichi Goh that the car will run on Bridgestone tyres.

The MC12 has caused quite a stir since it arrived on the international racing scene in 2004. Immediately banned by the A.C.O. (l'Automobile Club de l'Ouest - organisers of the Le Mans 24 Hours) for not conforming to their homologation rules, fans' disappointment was somewhat soothed when it was welcomed into the FIA GT Championship where the MC12 claimed two victories in a short close of the season campaign. Last year four MC12s competed in the FIA GT series, and despite weight handicaps, they easily cruised to both the Teams' and Constructors' titles. A single example also raced in the ALMS last year, though under ACO rules it wasn't eligible to score points. With a carbon composite chassis supporting a 65-degree V12 that puts out in excess of 500bhp, the car should be exciting to watch in Super GT guise.
 

In Japan, the MC12 will race on Bridgestone rubber. It's a first for the Maserati, the car having competed exclusively on Pirellis in its European and American campaigns. Covering 4995 mm in length, it will also be the longest car in Super GT, (wheelbase 2800mm) and close to the widest at 2096mm. The car in FIA GT spec weighs in at 1,110kgs.

Winners of the 2004 Le Mans 24 Hours, Team Goh should provide a top-level effort for the car in its debut season in the GT500, and the MC12 won't be too far away from the winners circle for very long if their reputation is anything to go by. With the Hitotsuyama Racing entered Ferrari 550 Maranello and the Team JLOC Lamborghini Murciélago R-GT both expected to focus on the inaugural Japanese Le Mans Challenge this year, the Team Goh Maserati MC12 will be left to fly the flag for Italy in GT500.

Several other new machines will also feature in 2006 Japanese Super GT Championship. In the smaller GT300 class the arrival of a Ford GT will be a crowd-pleaser, while the announcement of the Mooncraft 'Shiden' (taken from the name given to the successor to the famous Japanese 'Zero' warplane) concept car is set to bring further diversity to the series. The 2006 Super GT season begins on the March 18-19 at Okayama International Circuit, the first of nine rounds scheduled for next year.