How, when and why Toyota decided to chase Supercars glory

In a week, the first ever liveried Toyota GR Supras will be revealed, drawing the Japanese brand’s Supercars debut closer than ever.

When the covers come off the Walkinshaw TWG Racing cars on February 8, reality will truly set in — Toyota is actually, really, finally here.

It's a season of big changes, with Triple Eight Race Engineering from General Motors to Ford. However, an all-new car and brand raises plenty of unknowns, and lots of anticipation.

While news of Toyota’s arrival in September 2024 was a shock, it had been a long time in the making.

All told, the how, when and why of Toyota’s arrival boils down to timing — timing for the brand, its motorsport portfolio, and the Gen3 ruleset.

Speaking ahead of the Supra’s unveiling last year, Sean Hanley, Toyota Australia's head of sales and marketing admitted the “tribalism” of Ford versus Holden days of the early 2000s was too strong a wall to breach at the time.

“Certainly, 20 years ago, our brand was escalating — in fact, we were number one, and we thought at the time the V8 race was so tribal, and so it should have been,” Hanley said.

"I mean, that's the nature of the industry and the brand positioning. At the time, Ford and Holden were extremely strong, and, unfortunately, one of them is no longer there; however, the other remains.

"But we felt if we went in and even if we were successful, that actually there was no benefit for us to be in there and win that race.

“[We thought] people might actually resent us for going in and winning [Bathurst]. Of course, things have altered in the industry.”

Supercars had always been on the horizon for Toyota, which came close in 1999 and 2010.

When the 2026 project was first announced, Hanley said: "I was a junior manager when we first started talking about Supercars or V8s, and it was a lot of great history. We’re also very respectful of the huge brand loyalty to Ford and Holden in that era.

"We often wondered, if we ever went out and won this race, what would really happen? Probably more risky to win it than not to play at all.

"So back in the tribal days – and I have no doubt that that tribalism still exists – but there’s now room for a new player, and I think it’s timely.”

The Gen3 platform created a framework that encouraged Toyota, a brand with a major footprint in Aussie sport, to join the party. As Hanley said: “With Gen3, it just worked for us”.

But what does that actually mean? Well, it suggests the Supra’s overall shape and design allow for simpler approach to designing aerodynamic race car that looks like the production car you’d see on the street.

Simply, Toyota believes its Supra is the best car to take on the Ford Mustang and Chevrolet Camaro in Supercars.

“The criteria around Supercars have also altered over time, particularly with the Gen3 platform, which enabled us to develop a product that we could put in,” Hanley said.

The burgeoning growth of Toyota’s global motorsport brand, GAZOO Racing, is also now in a position to try and add Bathurst 1000 glory to its resume.

From 2026, the Great Race will be one of Toyota’s chief targets, alongside Le Mans in the World Endurance Championship, the World Rally Championship, and NASCAR in the United States.

"The arrival and launch of GAZOO Racing cemented it for us. We needed to participate in the biggest race in the country to show the world, at least in Australia, that we could do it and that we could be formidable,” Hanley added.

What matters to many, is that V8 power was always key to Toyota’s arrival.

When asked if a six-cylinder was an option, Hanley quipped it was discussed for "about three minutes" before adding "actually it was probably about one [minute].”

That alone should be music to Supercars fans' ears: Toyota loves the V8, and won't do things by halves.

So, you have a powerful brand — a global powerhouse, at that — with a V8 engine, a championship winning team, a champion driver in Chaz Mostert, and a driving ambition to win the biggest race of them all.

All the ingredients are there, and Hanley insists Toyota — which signed a five-year commitment— is in it for the long haul to achieve what it came for: “Whatever happens, we won't give up. We want to win this race, and we are determined to win this race.

"We are patient people; we don't go in there believing we have a right to win it. You've got to earn the right to win it.”

Walkinshaw TWG Racing and Brad Jones Racing will roll out their new new GR Supras at Round 1 in Sydney on February 20-22. Tickets are on sale now.