The seventh round of the 2012 Super GT series was held at Autopolis in Kyusyu, Japan. The circuit is located in the hilly area close to the border between the Ohita and Kumamoto prefectures and features a significant height difference. The race was hit by intermittent rain but the Yokohama tires performed very well under the difficult wet conditions in both of the GT500 and GT300 classes.

The wet qualifying session was run in the knock out format. The amount of rainfall reduced as time went by, so the track gradually became less wet from Q1 through to Q3. In the GT500 class, the two Yokohama shoed cars, D'Station ADVAN GT-R and WedsSport ADVAN SC430, successfully made their way into Q3 and, particularly, the latter secured the first overall pole position in nine years for a Yokohama equipped car, using the less grooved intermediate tires that had a new combination of rubber compound and construction. D'Station ADVAN GT-R used the deeper grooved wet tires for the session and Hironobu Yasuda clocked the third fastest time, which was still a very good result.

In the GT300 class, S Road NDDP GT-R claimed the car's maiden pole position, with 'triple a' Vantage GT3 and Manepa Lamborghini GT3 followed in second and third. At the end of the day, all of the top six cars in the qualifying session were equipped with Yokohama.

As the typhoon that had been approaching Kyusyu took a remote route from the circuit, the rain was easing off but the track was still wet when the race was about to start. Therefore, the teams took different options in choosing the tires to start with, between the wet, the intermediate and even the slick. The pole sitting WedsSport ADVAN SC430 and D'Station ADVAN GT-R on the third grid chose the hard compound wet tires. Although they gave way to Motul Autech GT-R which became the early leader immediately after the start, both Yokohama equipped cars kept second and third and were steadily pursuing the leader.

On Lap 12, however, the Safety Car came out and this reduced the gap between the leader and the Yokohama cars to effectively null. At the restart on Lap 17, D'Station ADVAN GT-R with Bjorn Wirdheim at the wheel got ahead of WedsSport ADVAN SC430 which Andre Couto was driving and swapped the positions between the two. Then they managed to overtake the race leading Motul GT-R on Lap 27 at the exit of Turn 1 one after another. Now D'Station ADVAN GT-R and WedsSport ADVAN SC430 were running in first and second.

When all cars completed mandatory pit stops and the race entered its second half, the two Yokohama equipped cars were still in contention for the victory. After that, however, both cars lost a few positions for different reasons. WedsSport ADVAN SC430 was involved in a mishap and spun when it was blocked its way by a GT300 car. On the other hand, D'Station ADVAN GT-R started to struggle because the track became less wet in the closing stage and the car hadn't replaced the tires at the pit stop.

When the final lap of the race came, D'Station ADVAN GT-R and WedsSport ADVAN SC430 were in third and fourth but, during that lap, Seiji Ara in the SC430 overtook the GT-R and finished in third. This was the second consecutive podium finish for the WedsSport team.

Starting from the pole position, S Road NDDP GT-R was the early leader of the GT300 class but Kazuki Hoshino at the wheel of triple a vantage GT3 closely followed it and kept putting heavy pressure on Katsumasa Chiyo in the GT-R.

On Lap 21, Hoshino didn't miss out Chiyo's small mistake and passed him at Turn 3. Once he got open space in front of him, the Aston Martin driver built a seven and a half second gap with the GT-R in the next eight laps. When all cars in the class completed the pit stops, these two cars were leading the field and the close battle for the lead position began again. Behind them, Endless Taisan 911 moved up to third, as the team didn't replace the tires at the stop to minimize the stationary time in the pit.

Yuhi Sekiguchi and Hiroki Yoshimoto, driving S Road NDDP GT-R and triple a vantage GT3 for their second half of the race, continued the fight for the top slot but, on Lap 55, the left rear wheel of Sekiguchi's GT-R suddenly came off and he had no choice but to pull off the car and park it on the side of the track. After that, all Yoshimoto had to do was driving safely to the finish. This was the triple a Vantage GT3's second victory of the season, since the fifth round at Suzuka.

As Endless Taisan 911 finished the race in second, the Yokohama equipped cars made a one-two finish in the class. Now only three cars including triple a Vantage GT3 and Endless Taisan 911 have chance of winning the championship which is to be decided in the next and final round of the season at Motegi.

　[Result : 3rd in the GT500 class]
"Andre (Couto) did a very good job from the start and I was so excited for the first time in years because I thought we could win.

"After taking over the car, I was running smoothly in the second half of the race but I lost the position to the S Road car when we were blocked by a group of GT300 cars. Then I followed it closely to find a way to regain the position but then, at the right hand corner at the end of Downhill Straight, I was almost hit by a GT300 car and ended up with a spin as a result of my avoidance maneuver. I was just behind the S Road car which was passing the GT300 car but unfortunately the GT300 driver didn't notice my car in his rear view mirror and closed the door.

"My heart was in my mouth but, after that, I just pushed flat out because that's all I could do.

"The Yokohama tires performed consistently and the grip level was high, so I could drive throughout my stint in a very good pace. In this closing stage of the championship, I think this second consecutive podium meant a lot for us."

　[Result : 4th. in the GT500 class]
"When I was handed the car from Bjorn (Wirdheim), we had decided not to replace the tires at the pit stop because the rain had started to fall a little while before that. But it didn't continue, so I struggled particularly for the last ten laps. It's a shame but that's the result of our choice for finding our way to win. I could lead the race for a while during my stint at least and had positive feelings from our performance here.

"I have to admit the things didn't look too good in dry conditions when we had a testing at Motegi. But we are going to try a new thing together with Yokohama, so, if it will work, we shall have a good race there. It's the final round of the season and I really hope to conclude the championship with a good result."

　[Result : Winner in the GT300 class]
"The last Fuji round was really disappointing for us because we missed out an opportunity to win. So we have been even more determined to win the remaining two rounds, including this one, knowing we couldn't afford to lose any more.

"I thought I would have a showdown in the second half of my stint and adjust the tire pressure a little bit lower at the start. But the car was fast enough to keep up with the (S Road NDDP) GT-R from the early stage and I was able to get ahead of it when the first opportunity came. After that, I could even pull away from the GT-R and, after the driver change to Yossie (Hiroki Yoshimoto), I was watching the race at the pit with some peace of mind.

"Our aim for the final round is to win once again because I do believe the winner of the race shall be the championship winner."

"The judgment on the track conditions was very difficult at the start of the race but both of our GT500 cars chose the hard compound wet tires. From the early to middle phase, WedsSport ADVAN SC430 and D'Station ADVAN GT-R were fighting for the lead for a while, with some exciting position changes between them. Their strong performance certainly made us feel the possibility of a race win or even a one-two finish by the Yokohama equipped cars.

"D'Station ADVAN GT-R didn't replace the tires at the pit stop, while WedsSport ADVAN SC430 replaced all four tires. Keeping the same tires for the entire race was always one of our options and the team decided to take it because we could have had more rain after the pit stop. But the track actually became less wet in the second half, which meant the GT-R had to face an uphill battle towards the end of the race. As the pace of the top two in the closing stage was so fast, WedsSport ADVAN SC430 wasn't able to keep up with them but eventually finished in third and got on the podium. Along with D'Station ADVAN GT-R's fourth place, we were glad to see their good performance and results.

"In the GT300 class, triple a vantage GT3 claimed its second win of the season by demonstrating the car and tire package's consistent speed.

"For the next race at Motegi, our mission in the GT300 class is obviously to secure the championship title by a Yokohama shoed car. The GT500 championship fight had ended in this race but we would like to show some promising signs for the next season by keeping this positive trend and, at the same time, showing a steady improvement, as all cars won't have to carry any handicap weight in the season's final race."