TGM Grand Prix has revealed it’s in talks with former Formula 1 driver Daniil Kvyat to take over the Super Formula seat vacated by Nobuharu Matsushita.
The Honda-powered TGM team fielded former Formula 2 driver Matsushita alongside Juju Noda in the primary three rounds of the season but withdrew on account of lack of funding.
Hiroki Otsu was brought in to interchange Matsushita for the fourth round of the season at Fuji, with TGM subsequently confirming his contract until the tip of the yr.
However, before a call was made on Otsu's seat, TGM boss Kazuhiro Ikeda stated ahead of the in-season test leading as much as the Fuji race that the team was in negotiations with an unnamed international driver to take over Matsushita's seat.
Speaking to Motorsport.com, Ikeda confirmed that the motive force in query was Kvyat, but added that complications arising from sanctions imposed by Japan on Russia following the invasion of Ukraine in 2022 prevented a deal from being struck.
“As a Japanese team, we can’t hire him,” Ikeda said. “He can get a visa and enter Japan, but he can’t work [and receive a salary].
“The team can’t pay him directly, and he feels that if he can’t receives a commission, there’s no point in him coming here. That was the most important problem.
“I asked him to discuss it with his sponsors, but the obstacles were too great.”
Juju, TGM Grand Prix
Photo: Masahide Kamio
Kvyat revealed to Motorsport.com last yr that he desired to race in Super Formula and, during post-season testing at Suzuka, seemed set to drive for an additional Honda team, Nakajima Racing, before the deal fell through relatively late within the season.
He added that he would really like so as to add a second programme to his schedule alongside his current Lamborghini World Endurance Championship commitments, having had the chance to check the Dallara SF23 as a part of his test role within the Abu Dhabi-based autonomous A2RL series.
Ikeda added that the choice to maintain Otsu within the automobile until the tip of the season was dictated by the will to return TGM to its 2023 baseline form.
Last yr, Otsu raced for Japanese team Servus at Fuji, replacing the injured Toshiki Oyu, and impressed the team along with his high level of technical ability.
“We felt we had lost our sense of organization, so we formed Otsu to try to get back to where we were in the middle of last year,” Ikeda said.
“He knows how the car should behave, so we wanted to use his experience. And we didn't want to keep changing drivers, because that's not good for the fans or the championship.”
Otsu finished fifteenth within the Motegi race last month, while TGM haven’t scored any points since Matsushita finished eighth within the opening round at Suzuka in March.
