Report: Luke makes 10-place recovery at Sugo
A determined drive saw Luke narrowly missing out on a points finish
Published
12 AUG 2026
Est. reading time
2 min
Header image from @kondoracingteam
Luke Browning continued his rookie Super Formula campaign in Round 8 at Sportsland Sugo, recovering 10 places in the race to finish P11.
The weekend marked Luke's first competitive visit to the 3.7km Japanese circuit, with the single-race format meaning every opportunity to learn and extract performance was crucial.
Promising pace in practice
Luke showed encouraging pace during the practice running, improving significantly between the two sessions.
He endured an eventful FP1, including two trips into the gravel, with the second resulting in contact with the barriers. After finishing in P13, he made a major step forward in FP2 to set the third fastest time, putting himself among the frontrunners and providing a strong indication of the potential pace available heading into qualifying.
His difficulties continued into qualifying, where he was eliminated in Q1 and was set to start Sunday's race from 21st on the grid.
A determined recovery drive
Starting from the back of the grid, Luke produced a strong recovery on Sunday, making his way through the pack as the 51-lap race unfolded.
A Safety Car deployment on lap 28 added another variable to the strategy, but Luke continued to fight his way forward around the technical circuit.
He ultimately crossed the line in P11, gaining 10 positions from his starting place and coming agonisingly close to finishing in the points. Luke missed out on P10 by only 0.285 seconds!
While qualifying left Luke with plenty of work to do, his strong pace in FP2 and determined 10 place recovery on race day provided plenty of positives to take from Sugo.
Photo from @kondoracingteam
Looking ahead
The result leaves Luke P12 in the championship standings as the season heads towards a two month break before its final two race weekends.
The next race will be familiar territory for Luke as we head back to Fuji Speedway for Round 9 and 10 of the 2026 season.
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