Mike Conway makes his way to Japan this weekend for the seventh round of the 2016 FIA World Endurance Championship, the 6 Hours of Fuji.

Conway and his teammates, Stéphane Sarrazin and Kamui Kobayashi, approach the Toyota Gazoo Racing team’s home race in positive mood following a podium finish and close fight for victory in the last race at the Circuit of the Americas.

Toyota has a very strong record on home ground, having won three consecutive races at Fuji Speedway from 2012-2014 making it the team’s most successful circuit on the WEC calendar. After podium finishes in four of the six races so far this season, a return to winning ways in Japan is top of the agenda this weekend as Conway and his teammates look to reclaim second place in the drivers’ World Championship at Fuji.

Fuji Speedway itself, located around 110km from central Tokyo, has evolved significantly since its opening in 1965, when a banked oval-style section began at the first corner and made up half of the track length until a redesign in the mid-1970s.

Nowadays, the circuit’s most prominent feature is the long main straight which, at 1,475m, is the second longest on the WEC calendar after the Mulsanne Straight at Le Mans. Combined with a particularly tight and twisty final sector of the lap, this gives engineers and drivers a challenge to find the best compromise on car set-up.

Ahead of the weekend, Conway is excited at the prospect of racing on Japanese soil for Toyota at one of his favourite tracks.

He said: “Fuji is one of my favourite races because the fans are so special; racing in Japan as a Toyota driver is a great experience. I’m feeling positive about this weekend because we have made big progress since Nürburgring and I think Fuji could be another step again. I’ve enjoyed being on the podium in the last two races so I want to be back there again on Sunday.”