Japanese billionaire spent $200,000,000 building a private Formula 1–designed racetrack for his wife and kids
Published on Feb 03, 2026 at 6:49 PM (UTC+4)
by Henry Kelsall
Last updated on Feb 03, 2026 at 6:49 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Amelia Jean Hershman-Jones
A Japanese billionaire once spent $200 million building a Formula 1–designed racetrack, all for him, his wife, and his kids to enjoy as a family with an actual Formula 1 circuit designer creating it.
Many of us are Formula 1 fans, and we would love to go to a Grand Prix circuit and roar around it in our favorite cars, whether it’s a McLaren supercar or our humble Toyota Yaris daily driver.
But this Japanese billionaire went one better and built his own F1 track at his home, and had it designed by an F1 circuit designer.
If you have that much money, then there are few better ways in which to spend it.
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Why did he order a Formula 1–designed racetrack?
There is one very simple reason why this racetrack was built.
At a cost of around $200 million, the track was built into the mountains of Chiba, about 40 kilometres east of the centre of Tokyo.
But it wasn’t done to host Formula 1 races or other forms of motorsport.
The sole reason for its existence was to be a private circuit for his wife and daughters, so they could use it whenever they wanted, away from prying eyes.
That is the kind of venue we would love to have at our home!
Not only does it look like an amazing track, but it’s situated in some stunning scenery.
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The track was built by an F1 circuit designer
This racetrack is called Magarigawa, and unsurprisingly, it has more than one purpose now.
As well as being a family plaything, the circuit is where Japan’s ultra-rich go to play, too.
It is also a private, ultra-luxury resort, with its website proclaiming it as the ‘world’s only luxury driving club’.
The circuit was designed by architect Hermann Tilke.
He is the man responsible for famous Formula 1 tracks like the Circuit of the Americas.
It is 2.17 miles long, with incredible elevation changes, 22 corners, and an 800-meter-long main straight.
Looking at the photos of the circuit, it looks more fun than many current F1 tracks.
It is tight, twisty, old school, yet it clearly has superb facilities as well.
We can think of a lot of cars we would love to hurl around this special Formula 1–designed racetrack.
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Henry joined the Supercar Blondie team in February 2025, and since then has covered a wide array of topics ranging from EVs, American barn finds, and the odd Cold War jet. He’s combined his passion for cars with his keen interest in motorsport and his side hustle as a volunteer steam locomotive fireman at a leading heritage steam railway in England.
