2010 Formula Nippon Championship
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The 2010 Formula Nippon Championship was the thirty-eighth season of the premier Japanese open-wheel motor racing series. The series for Formula Nippon racing cars was contested over eight races at seven rounds, beginning on 18 April at Suzuka and ending at the same venue on 7 November. A non-championship meeting at Fuji Speedway completed the season's racing a week later.
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Having missed the 2009 season to focus on his Super GT commitments, João Paulo de Oliveira returned to the series and claimed his first championship title since winning the 2005 All-Japan Formula Three Championship. Team Impul's de Oliveira had held the championship lead by a point over TOM'S driver André Lotterer before the final double-header round at Suzuka, but de Oliveira's victory – his second victory after a win at Twin Ring Motegi – and fourth against Lotterer's second and a third, de Oliveira won the championship by 4.5 points. As well as his win at Autopolis, Lotterer won both non-championship races at Fuji.
Third place was disputed by reigning champion Loïc Duval, who had moved from Nakajima Racing to Docomo Team Dandelion Racing over the off-season, and his former Nakajima team-mate Takashi Kogure, which was resolved in favour of Duval by 1.5 points; both drivers' championship chances had been stunted by no points at Autopolis, as Duval failed to start and Kogure retired from the race. Duval did tie with de Oliveira for most victories during the season with two – Motegi and Suzuka – while Kogure won the season-opening race at Suzuka. De Oliveira's team-mate Kohei Hirate finished the season fifth with a victory at Fuji, ahead of the season's other race-winner Kazuya Oshima of the TOM's team.
Teams and drivers
| Team | # | Driver | Engine | Rounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Docomo Team Dandelion Racing |
1 |  Loïc Duval[1] |
Honda HR10E | All * |
| 2 | Takuya Izawa[1] |
All * | ||
| Kondo Racing |
3 | Tsugio Matsuda[2] |
Toyota RV8K | 4–7 * |
| Team LeMans |
7 |  Kei Cozzolino[2] |
Toyota RV8K | All * |
| 8 | Hiroaki Ishiura[2] |
All * | ||
| HFPD Racing |
10 | Koudai Tsukakoshi[1] |
Honda HR10E | All * |
| Motul Team Mugen |
16 | Yuji Ide[2] |
Honda HR10E | All * |
 KCMG |
18 | Katsuyuki Hiranaka[2] |
Toyota RV8K | All * |
| Mobil 1 Team Impul |
19 |  João Paulo de Oliveira[2] |
Toyota RV8K | All * |
| 20 | Kohei Hirate[2] |
All * | ||
| Deliziefollie/Cerumo-Inging |
29 | Takuto Iguchi[2] |
Toyota RV8K | All * |
| Nakajima Racing |
31 | Naoki Yamamoto[1] |
Honda HR10E | All * |
| 32 | Takashi Kogure[1] |
All * | ||
| Petronas Team TOM'S |
36 |  André Lotterer[2] |
Toyota RV8K | All * |
| 37 | Kazuya Oshima[2] |
All * |
* Drivers who participated in the non-championship round at Fuji Speedway.
Race calendar and results
- All races were held in Japan. A non-championship round, entitled Super GT and Formula Nippon Sprint Cup 2010, was held at the conclusion of the season.
| Round | Circuit | Date | Pole position | Fastest lap | Winning driver | Winning team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Suzuka Circuit | 18 April | Takashi Kogure |
Kohei Hirate |
Takashi Kogure |
Nakajima Racing |
| 2 | Twin Ring Motegi | 23 May | João Paulo de Oliveira |
João Paulo de Oliveira |
João Paulo de Oliveira |
Team Impul |
| 3 | Fuji Speedway | 18 July | Loïc Duval |
Kohei Hirate |
Kohei Hirate |
Team Impul |
| 4 | Twin Ring Motegi | 8 August | Takashi Kogure |
João Paulo de Oliveira |
Loïc Duval |
Dandelion Racing |
| 5 | Sportsland SUGO | 26 September | Loïc Duval |
André Lotterer |
Kazuya Oshima |
Petronas Team TOM'S |
| 6 | Autopolis | 17 October | Kazuya Oshima |
Kei Cozzolino |
André Lotterer |
Petronas Team TOM'S |
| 7 | Suzuka Circuit | 7 November | Loïc Duval |
Loïc Duval |
Loïc Duval |
Dandelion Racing |
| João Paulo de Oliveira |
Takashi Kogure |
João Paulo de Oliveira |
Team Impul | |||
| NC | Fuji Speedway (Fuji Sprint Cup) |
13 November | Kei Cozzolino |
André Lotterer |
André Lotterer |
Petronas Team TOM'S |
| 14 November | André Lotterer |
André Lotterer |
André Lotterer |
Petronas Team TOM'S |
Championship standings
Drivers' Championship
- Scoring system
| Round | Position | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | 7th | 8th | Pole |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1–6 | Points | 10 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| 7† | 8 | 4 | 3 | 2.5 | 2 | 1.5 | 1 | 0.5 | 1 |
† Round with two races and points scoring system for each race.
‡ Non-championship round, with no points awarded.
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Teams' Championship
- Scoring system
| Round | Position | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | 7th | 8th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1–6 | Points | 10 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| 7 | 8 | 4 | 3 | 2.5 | 2 | 1.5 | 1 | 0.5 |
| Pos | Team | Car | SUZ | MOT | FUJ | MOT | SUG | AUT | SUZ | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mobil 1 Team Impul | 19 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 11 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 68 |
| 20 | 4 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 12 | 8 | 9 | 6 | |||
| 2 | Petronas Team TOM'S | 36 | 3 | 3 | 2 | Ret | 3 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 67 |
| 37 | 12 | 8 | 4 | 5 | 1 | DNS | 5 | 7 | |||
| 3 | Nakajima Racing | 31 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 4 | Ret | 5 | 6 | 5 | 56.5 |
| 32 | 1 | 6 | 5 | 2 | 5 | Ret | 2 | 3 | |||
| 4 | Docomo Team Dandelion Racing | 1 | 6 | 4 | 14 | 1 | 2 | DNS | 1 | 4 | 40.5 |
| 2 | 5 | 11 | 9 | 11 | 6 | DNS | 11 | 11 | |||
| 5 | Team LeMans | 7 | Ret | 10 | 8 | 13 | 7 | 4 | 13 | 14 | 24 |
| 8 | 10 | Ret | 6 | 8 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 10 | |||
| 6 | HFDP Racing | 10 | 8 | 2 | 11 | 10 | Ret | DSQ | 10 | 12 | 9 |
| 7 | KCMG | 18 | Ret | DNS | 13 | 7 | Ret | 7 | 12 | 13 | 4 |
| 8 | Deliziefollie/Cerumo-Inging | 29 | 11 | Ret | 12 | 12 | 10 | 6 | 15 | Ret | 3 |
| 9 | Kondo Racing | 3 | Ret | 8 | Ret | 14 | 9 | 1 | |||
| 10 | Motul Team Mugen | 16 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 9 | DNS | 8 | 8 | 1 |