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Akio Toyoda spins out in John Hunter Nemechek No. 42 Toyota Camry at Fuji Speedway

JHby: Jonathan Howard11/13/25Jondean25
John Hunter Nemechek NASCAR
Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

More fun from the NASCAR trip to Japan. Akio Toyoda, the chairman of Toyota, tested out the No. 42 Cup Series car of John Hunter Nemechek. Akio, under his racing moniker “Morizo,” also piloted the Garage 56 car from Le Mans that NASCAR brought the Fuji Speedway.

Morizo is a very hands-on chairman for Toyota. Perhaps a little too hands-on for John Hunter Nemechek and his team. While testing out the No. 42 Toyota Camry XSE, Morizo spun out and had to refire the car.

A fan who was at the track and watching captured the incident on video. Nemechek must have been sweating as he saw his car go around in the turn.

Thankfully, it appears that the No. 42 car is fine. After all, John Hunter Nemechek has a big date this weekend coming up. Nemechek and Kamui Kobayashi will pilot two Next Gen cars in an exhibition race of the Super Taikyu Series. Jimmie Johnson will pilot the Garage 56 Chevy Camaro. Then there will be three additional ARCA Menards Series cars involved in the exhibition as well.

This is part of a cultural exchange between the United States and Japan. The passion for motorsports in both countries is obvious. Of course, NASCAR has traveled to Japan in the past for similar exhibition events.

John Hunter Nemechek helping grow Japanese relationship

Even before Toyota was involved in NASCAR, the sport had ties to Japan. Now, Toyota is perhaps the biggest player in American motorsports at a grassroots level. Their development programs have jump-started the careers of many of the stars of today.

John Hunter Nemechek is a great driver to have over at an event like this. Talented, personable, and he fits the look of a NASCAR driver in many ways. It’s like you brought an action figure to life. Hopefully, Nemechek and his boss show everyone what these NASCAR cars are all about.

Having Kamui Kobayashi representing 23XI Racing is also awesome. He is there in the No. 67 car. Kobayashi is one of several Japanese drivers involved in the exhibition. That also includes ARCA regular Takuma Koga.

The Super Taikyu Series is introducing a new ST-USA class this weekend. Chevy Corvette and Ford Mustang Dark Horse variants are coming to the series. NASCAR is helping grow that American-Japanese relationship in motorsports, and it sounds exciting.