CUPRA KIRO returns to Tokyo aiming to build on 2025 success

 

CUPRA KIRO returns to Tokyo aiming to build on 2025 success

CUPRA KIRO revisits the site of its maiden Formula E podium, hoping to build on its breakthrough performance one season on.

With just one event remaining after Tokyo, every opportunity now carries greater significance as the season enters its decisive final phase where a total of 188 points are still up for grabs for teams.

 

The streets of Tokyo have proved to be a happy hunting ground for CUPRA KIRO in the past, and in 2025, the Japanese capital hosted one of the team’s strongest performances with Dan Ticktum securing a top five finish in Race 1 before battling to a landmark first podium in Race 2.

 

Having continued to build momentum throughout the second half of the season, with two podiums from the past three weekends, CUPRA KIRO arrives in Tokyo determined to maintain its form as Dan and Pepe Martí prepare for one of the most important events of the year.

Get Up To Speed

Last Time Out Relive a rain-soaked weekend in Shanghai where CUPRA KIRO ultimately went unrewarded despite showing promise.

For the Future Kiro Race Co will continue to race in partnership with Porsche Motorsport for Formula E’s GEN4 era.

Putting the CUPRA in Kiro... CUPRA extends its Co-Title Partnership with Kiro Race Co for GEN4.

Show Your Colours For the penultimate time this season, support CUPRA KIRO by shopping our official fashion range in partnership with Reflo.

Hydrate This Summer Uncover CUPRA KIRO’s official hydration strategy in partnership with AQUAME.

Paffett Predicts Tokyo

CUPRA KIRO’s Racing Director, Gary Paffett, attempts to predict the 2026 Tokyo E-Prix in collaboration with Duelbits…

The Night Racing Curveball “Racing in Tokyo under lights is completely new for 2026. The slightly cooler conditions at night should make life a little easier from a tyre management perspective, but it also means that we’ll have very little representative running before the races. Teams that can adapt quickly in FP1 could have a real advantage, but with the weather looking volatile across the weekend, preparation will be very difficult.”   The Late Attack Mode Payoff “Out of all of the races on the schedule, Tokyo has shown us that patience usually prevails when it comes to Attack Mode. Last season, some of the drivers who waited the longest to use their activations were the ones who fought for the podium and the win. I think we’ll see something similar again this season, with the decisive moves coming in the second half of the race, not the first.”

Safety Car Guesswork “We’ve had a Safety Car in every Formula E race held in Tokyo to date, so history suggests that there’s a good chance we’ll see another one this weekend. The difficulty that stems from a Safety Car is that if it appears during an Attack Mode, it can completely change the complexion of your race. We know that far too well from Shanghai. Sometimes the strategy can be perfect, but you still need the timing to go your way.”   Don’t Let The Track Fool You… “Tokyo is a tight, technical, and challenging track, so on paper, it doesn’t look like a circuit where you’d expect a lot of overtaking. In reality, Formula E has produced some fantastic racing here, particularly when strategies start to converge towards the end of each race. Track position is very important, but we’ve seen that it’s possible to come from well down the order and fight for victory with Pit Boost.”   The Extra Lap Factor “Both races are one lap longer this year, and while this might not sound like much, in Formula E, it changes targets completely. Drivers will have more usable energy to play with, but they’ll also have to manage that energy over a longer period. The extra lap adds another element to the strategy, and it will be an important factor this weekend.”

Want to find out how accurate Gary's predictions were? Check CUPRA KIRO's social media channels across the 2026 Tokyo E-Prix to stay up to date.

Hear From The Team

Dan Ticktum, Driver, CUPRA KIRO “I’m really looking forward to racing in Tokyo. It’s a proper street circuit with similar characteristics to Monaco and Sanya which were both tracks where we had good pace. Tokyo was an especially strong race for me last season, and I’m hopeful that we can have a good result this weekend. I think we’ll be fast.”   Pepe Martí, Driver, CUPRA KIRO “Visiting Tokyo has been on my bucket list for a long time, so understandably, I’m very excited to be racing in Japan this weekend! The circuit is quite tricky so I’m hoping that we can build a good understanding in FP1 and perform well across the weekend. Following on from Shanghai, I think we need to turn the tides back to our favour, but we’re working in the right direction and I’m confident we can score some good points.”   Russell O’Hagan, Team Principal, CUPRA KIRO “We’ve had Tokyo earmarked as an important race weekend since the start of the season. Last year, it was one of our strongest events and the place where we secured our first podium as a team in Formula E, so we’re excited to be coming back, especially with a package and overall operation that’s stronger than it was 12 months ago. We’re arriving in Tokyo with some good momentum despite Shanghai not delivering the results we felt our pace deserved. Standing on the podium twice in the past three race weekends has given everyone in the team a real boost, and we know that we’re capable of fighting at the very front when everything comes together. Both Dan and Pepe are especially excited to get back on track and in general, the whole team is happy to be racing in Tokyo again. As always, our priority is to score solid points, but we know that this circuit has been good to us in the past so if we execute the weekend well, there’s every opportunity to fight for something even bigger. With only one race weekend remaining after Tokyo, every result from this point on carries extra significance. A strong performance here would put us in a great position into the final rounds of the season, and that’s exactly what we’re aiming to achieve.”