Takaboshi and his team-mate Katsumasa Chiyo commanded the majority of the 63-lap race, with Chiyo leading the opening stint from pole and Takaboshi stretching a 12-second lead over the field after taking over the #3 NDDP Racing Z on lap 25.
While victory for Takaboshi and Chiyo wouldn’t have been enough to win the title with TOM’S Toyota drivers Sho Tsuboi and Ritomo Miyata finishing second, Takaboshi still had the chance to give tyre supplier Michelin a victory in its farewell GT500 race.
But those hopes went up in smoke when the rain started to fall late on and Takaboshi lost control at Turn 8, spinning and getting beached in the gravel.
Speaking to Motorsport.com post-race, Takaboshi conceded that pitting for wet tyres, - as several others, including third-placed Real Racing Honda squad did - was worth considering given he was on a hard compound of dry tyre.
“We chose a hard tyre for the second stint that was suitable for a high temperature range,” said Takaboshi. “The feeling was good and the long-run pace was really strong.
“But when it started to rain, it felt like the tyre was too hard and it was really tough. Even then, it was my job to keep it on the road and I couldn’t do that, so I want to apologise to Chiyo and the team.
“The #23 [NISMO Nissan] was using soft tyres, so I think they were not considering pitting, but because we were using hard tyres, maybe it would have been better [to switch to wets].
“It’s easy to say with hindsight, but thinking about it now, I wish we had done that.”
Takaboshi and Chiyo concluded the 2023 season second in the points for a second year in succession, having lost out to Impul Nissan pair Bertrand Baguette and Kazuki Hiramine in last year’s Motegi finale.
The NDDP duo ended up 26 points down on TOM’S drivers Tsuboi and Miyata, who won the title with their third win of the season.
“Even if we had won the race, we would have finished second in the standings, so it’s not so much that [losing the title], it’s more that I couldn’t close out the win, so that’s something I regret,” continued Takaboshi.
“For the second year in a row we ended up second in the standings, so we have to accept our defeat and come back stronger next year to try and win the championship.”
