Marelli is ending its sponsorship of Team Impul after 43 years – The relationship was known for a long time through the classic Calsonic and older than the Super GT
Team Impul and Marelli will finally go their separate ways after 43 years from March 2025. The traditional sponsor of the team of Japanese racing legend Kazuyoshi Hoshino is withdrawing after 43 years. Most recently, the Marelli logo graced the Nissan Z GT500. Far better known to the public is the sponsorship under the former name Calsonic.
Marelli explains the withdrawal by saying that in the future they want to limit their sponsorship activities to areas in which their own products are actively used. It is the end point of a gradual withdrawal since Calsonic was taken over by Magneti Marelli in 2019. After a transitional phase, the Marelli logo has graced the GT500 racing car since 2023.
Team manager Kazuki Hoshino, son of team founder Kazuyoshi, says: “Our partnership with Marelli began in 1982 and has lasted for 43 years through Nippon Radiator, Calsonic, Calsonic Kansei and now Marelli, who have been very supportive of us both materially and emotionally.”
“Marelli and Hoshino Racing (Team Impul) have a deep trust and respect for each other that cannot be described as a simple business partnership and will not be lost even after the contract has expired.
“We are proud of the path we have taken together and will continue to work towards our goals. We thank you from the bottom of our hearts for this wonderful partnership and wish you continued success.” So, in the business sphere away from the racetrack, the relationship is likely to continue.
The relationship between the automotive supplier from Saitama and the racing team, founded in 1983, is one of the longest in professional sports. The team’s history is hard to imagine without the supplier, and it will be a challenge for Impul to forge a new identity.
The history of the collaboration
The Nihon Radiator Company began sponsoring Hoshino as a racing driver as early as 1982. Hoshino had already founded his company, Hoshino Impul Co, Ltd., in 1980. In 1983, the relationship was extended to include racing – Impul Racing was born. The team always used Nissan vehicles.
In the following years, the Calsonic logo first graced Impul’s Group C sports cars and later their touring cars. The Nissan Skyline GT-R R-32 became an absolute icon of motorsport, its simple yet effective design making the vehicle a global legend.
The connection remained even after the reestablishment of the Japanese GT Championship in 1993, which was renamed Super GT in 2005. Calsonic was displayed on the vehicles every season until 2019, when the Italian company Magneti Marelli took over Calsonic.
The Calsonic logo remained until 2022, with the addition of “by Marelli”. Of all years, it was in the last year of Calsonic sponsorship that Bertrand Baguette and Kazuki Hiramine won the Super GT title.
After that, the Nissan Z continued to race for another two years in the classic blue with the Marelli logo, while a small Calsonic logo remained on the door. The Super GT finale in Suzuka on December 8 marks the end of a sponsorship chapter of biblical proportions.
It is the third spectacular withdrawal of a legendary motorsport sponsor in Japan in recent years. At the end of 2020, Stanley Electric decided to discontinue the Raybrig brand, which led to the end of Kunimitsu team’s Honda NSX, best known from the Gran Turismo games. Similarly, Keihin was replaced by parent company Astemo in Real Racing.
