The morning rain had brought a cool and rainy start to the day, with temperatures just slightly above 20 degrees. However, by the time the official qualifying began, the sky had cleared up and the time attack was carried out under mostly dry conditions. This year, the official qualifying will be determined by combining the best times of both A and B drivers, putting the skills of both drivers to the test.

First, the session for Group A (Class 1-4, 1.5CC) will start at 11:30, with driver Morio Wakabayashi from #84 SEV・ADVAN・Elise setting the top time of 2 minutes and 18.511 seconds in Class 4.

The session for Group B (Class 5-9) continued with a 5-minute delay for the recovery of the stopped vehicle from the previous session. First, #104 I Love S2000 took the top spot on the leaderboard with a time of 2:15.304, but #13 GALASSIA WM DC5's rider, Kyosuke Imatake, snatched the top spot with a time of 2:14.297. He then shortened it to 2:14.071. Afterwards, #57 Toyo Intech Racing DC5's rider, Manabu Osawa, marked a time of 2:14.673 and rose to second place, immediately followed by a time of 2:13.988, putting him in the 2:13 range and taking the top spot. However, with less than 3 minutes remaining, #13 GALASSIA WM DC5's rider, Imatake, once again took the top spot with a time of 2:13.620, and further shortened it to 2:13.390, showing an impressive run that broke the course record.

Return on time from the A group B driver session and enter the time attack. The top time was marked here by Class 4's [#28 Sunspot Dog Marine MR2] player Shinya Nakamura. The time is 2 minutes and 20.738 seconds.

And the grid will be determined in the session of Group B drivers. First, at around 7 minutes into the session, #14 Mason BRIDE elfEK9's Masasumi Ohashi marks a time of 2:15.378 to take the top spot, but #13 GALASSIA WM DC5's Tsubasa Amano quickly snatches the top spot with a time of 2:15.093. In second place is #9 BS Nexus EK9's Yasunori Nakajima with a time of 2:15.121. Due to trouble during the A driver's session, they will have to make their way up from the 89th grid position.

Afterwards, player Amano from [#13 GALASSIA WM DC5] marked 2 minutes and 14.221 seconds. He further shortened his time, but player Keiichi Inoue from [#847 Dr. Nomuten Hakon INTEGRA] marked 2 minutes and 13.986 seconds, finishing this session in first place.

In the combined time of A driver and B driver, [#13 GALASSIA WM DC5] in Class 7 took the top spot with a time of 4 minutes and 27.611 seconds, securing the pole position.

"All the drivers and staff here are participating in "JOY TAI" for the first time. I happened to have a DC5, so I decided to enter "JOY TAI". For the first stint, I plan on trying to escape, but it will be difficult due to the limited pit time, so it's important to save fuel. I'm glad we were able to get pole position. I will enjoy it!" said driver Inomata.

In second place, #847 Dr. Nomuten Ha Soul INTEGRA from Class 7 finished with a time of 4 minutes and 30.905 seconds, followed by #31 Hasepro Lancer EVO8 from Class 9 in third place with a time of 4 minutes and 31.866 seconds. The top spot in Class 6 went to #14 Mason BRIDE elfEK9, while the top spot in Class 8 went to #104 I Love S2000, and the top spot in Class 5 was shared by #95 SSS Civic, which finished in 7th place overall.

This time, the course records were updated in Class 1, 7, 8, and 9. It seems that the cloudy weather also had a positive effect as the road surface temperature did not rise too much. After the official qualifying and free practice, the only thing left is the 7-hour endurance race on Sunday, the "JOY TAI". How will we fight and enjoy the "JOY TAI" that cannot be won by speed alone? And how will we have fun? These are important elements in the "JOY TAI". Let's all have fun aiming for the checkered flag 7 hours from now!