Formula 1

Sho Tsuboi to make second F1 test outing with Haas at Silverstone

The Super Formula champion will line up for a second F1 test at the wheel of the Haas VF-23 at Silverstone next month

Jamie Klein

Published: Sep 26, 2025, 4:20 PM

Copy link

Share on Viber

Add as a preferred source

Sho Tsuboi, VANTELIN TEAM TOM’S

Reigning Super Formula champion Sho Tsuboi is set for his second Formula 1 test outing at the wheel of a Haas VF-23 next month at Silverstone.

Toyota-contracted Tsuboi had his first taste of grand prix machinery when he took part in a specially-organised TPC test at Fuji Speedway in Japan in early August.

The 30-year-old Japanese driver earned praise from the team as he set a best lap that fell less than two tenths of a second shy of the qualifying record set by Felipe Massa in 2008.

Now Tsuboi is set for a second TPC outing for Haas at Silverstone on 14-15 October alongside the team’s reserve driver Ryo Hirakawa, who also drove at Fuji in August.

Haas team boss Ayao Komatsu said he is looking forward to seeing how quickly Tsuboi can get up to speed at the British Grand Prix venue, which he has never previously driven at.

“I think the real test for him will be stepping outside of the Japanese environment he is familiar with and seeing how quickly he can adapt to a track he has no experience of,” Komatsu told Motorsport.com's sister Japanese edition.

Sho Tsuboi, VANTELIN TEAM TOM'S

Photo by: Masahide Kamio

“At this stage I would say it is going well. He has driven hundreds of laps at Fuji, but driving the F1 car he said he couldn’t believe how much grip there is in the high-speed corners.

“Especially going into Turn 1, I can't remember how much faster he was [than Super Formula], but it was probably around 30km/h, and he could brake much later. The braking performance was so different.

“But once he got over the initial shock, he adapted incredibly quickly.”

Tsuboi’s second opportunity to drive for Haas comes at a time that Toyota is considering the Super Formula and Super GT champion’s future path.

However, it appears unlikely that Tsuboi would embark on a full European racing programme like his predecessor as Super Formula champion Ritomo Miyata, who is currently racing in Formula 2.

Toyota Gazoo Racing Europe vice-chairman Kazuki Nakajima recently told Motorsport.com that Tsuboi’s 2026 plans would “depend on his will”, suggesting that further Haas outings “could fill the gaps in his schedule” between his Japanese commitments.

Tsuboi recently made his first outing at the Nurburgring Nordschleife in a Toyota GR Supra GT4 EVO, in a possible sign he could be part of a future assault by the marque on the Nurburgring 24 Hours.

Ritomo Miyata, ART Grand Prix, Roman Stanek, Invicta Racing

Photo by: Formula Motorsport Ltd

Miyata, meanwhile, looks likely to stay on for a third season in Formula 2 despite his continued competitive struggles for the ART Grand Prix team.

With two rounds remaining this year, Miyata sits 16th in the standings with a sole podium finish in wet conditions at Spa.

Nakajima says he “personally believes he [Miyata] deserves another shot” at F2 amid numerous instances of mechanical problems this year, including engine issues.

Romain Grosjean made a TPC outing for Haas driving its 2023 F1 car at Mugello on Friday, marking his first run in F1 machinery since his horrific Bahrain Grand Prix accident in 2020. The French driver was joined by former IndyCar driver and F1TV analyst James Hinchcliffe for the test.

We want your opinion!

What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?

Take our 5 minute survey.

- The Motorsport.com Team

Read and post comments

Share Or Save This Story

Copy link

Share on Viber

Previous article Romain Grosjean reacts to F1 test return: “They made me cry!”

Next article McLaren urged to place Lando Norris in support role to Oscar Piastri

Top Comments

There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?

View More & Comment

Latest news

Preseason Thunder will not return to Daytona in 2027

NASCAR Cup

NAS NASCAR Cup

Homestead-Miami

1 min

Preseason Thunder will not return to Daytona in 2027

NASCAR exploring cost cap after talks with Formula 1

NASCAR Cup

NAS NASCAR Cup

Homestead-Miami

12 min

NASCAR exploring cost cap after talks with Formula 1

Jorge Martin targets first two rows at Qatar GP: 'I can manage the race with painkillers'

MotoGP

MGP MotoGP

Qatar GP

13 min

Jorge Martin targets first two rows at Qatar GP: 'I can manage the race with painkillers'

Why Hypercar drivers are going “blind” into Monza WEC qualifying

WEC

WEC WEC

Monza

20 min

Why Hypercar drivers are going “blind” into Monza WEC qualifying

Feature

Discover prime content

How F1’s rules got to be so complex

Formula 1

By Pat Symonds

How F1’s rules got to be so complex

A water park, “not a rock star” and Toto Wolff’s words – Is Kimi Antonelli really a different F1 champion?

Formula 1

By Ronald Vording

A water park, “not a rock star” and Toto Wolff’s words – Is Kimi Antonelli really a different F1 champion?

Why Ferrari must act now after its own 'Papaya Rules' moment

Formula 1

Mexican GP

By Filip Cleeren

Why Ferrari must act now after its own 'Papaya Rules' moment

Top 10 F1 cars of the 1960s

Formula 1

By Kevin Turner

Top 10 F1 cars of the 1960s

Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.

From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.

You have 2 options:

Become a subscriber.
Disable your adblocker.

Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here

Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page

Manage Alerts