The first Japanese top formula championship was held in 1973 as the All-Japan Formula 2000 Championship, created to promote formula car racing in the country. This series was based on the European Formula Two Championship, but allowed the use of purpose-built racing engines, unlike its European counterpart at the time. In 1978, the series became the All-Japan Formula Two Championship, and again in 1987, it transformed into the All-Japan Formula 3000 Championship.
The transition to the open Formula 3000 standard in 1987 marked the official start of the All-Japan Formula 3000 Championship in 1988. The late 1980s saw a surge in popularity for Japanese Top Formula racing, coinciding with Honda-powered Formula One teams winning multiple championships and the reintroduction of the Japanese Grand Prix to the Formula One calendar. Satoru Nakajima became the first Japanese driver to compete full-time in Formula One during this period.
The 1990s saw drivers like Aguri Suzuki (1988 champion) and Ukyo Katayama (1991 champion) move on to Formula One. The series also attracted international talent, including future Formula One Grand Prix winners Jean Alesi, Johnny Herbert, Eddie Irvine, and Heinz-Harald Frentzen. Michael Schumacher made a one-off appearance at Sportsland Sugo in 1991. In 1995, Japan Race Promotion (JRP) was established by Fuji Television and took over management of the series, opting to continue with open chassis and engine competition.
In 1996, the series was renamed Formula Nippon under the management of JRP. Pedro de la Rosa became the first "double champion" of Japan in 1997, winning both the Formula Nippon and All-Japan GT Championship GT500 titles. Satoshi Motoyama and Richard Lyons later achieved the same feat in 2003 and 2004, respectively.
The burst of the bubble economy led to a decline in the series’ popularity during the early to mid-1990s. Regulation changes in 2014, coinciding with changes in Formula One, resulted in a remarkably close gap in lap times; André Lotterer set a lap time in qualifying at Suzuka that would have placed him 21st on the 2014 Formula One Japanese Grand Prix grid.
On 5 August 2012, JRP announced the series would change its name to Super Formula in 2013, aiming to establish it alongside Formula One and IndyCar as a top formula racing series in Asia. Stoffel Vandoorne entered full-time in 2016 with Docomo Team Dandelion Racing, winning two races before moving to Formula One with McLaren in 2017. Pierre Gasly joined in 2017 with Team Mugen, finishing runner-up in the standings by half a point.
Several drivers have transitioned from Super Formula to other series. Felix Rosenqvist, Álex Palou, and Patricio O'Ward have become IndyCar Series race winners after competing in Super Formula. Palou, the 2019 Rookie of the Year, went on to win the IndyCar Series championship in 2021, 2023, 2024 and 2025. Liam Lawson, the 2023 Super Formula series runner-up, drove in Formula One for AlphaTauri/RB Formula One Team for parts of the 2023 and 2024 seasons, and drove two races in 2025 for Red Bull Racing before moving back to Racing Bulls.
From 1996 to 2002, Formula Nippon was an open formula, with chassis from Lola, Reynard, and G-Force, and engines from Mugen-Honda, Cosworth, and Judd. Bridgestone became the sole tyre supplier in 1997, and Mugen-Honda the sole engine supplier in 1998. The series has since moved through spec chassis including the Lola FN06 (2006), Swift FN09 (2009-2013), Dallara SF14 (2014-2018), Dallara SF19 (2019-2022), and the current Dallara SF23 (2023-present). The SF23 features upgraded aerodynamics to improve overtaking. Current engines are 2.0-litre single turbocharged inline-4s from Honda and Toyota, allowing for the use of a “push-to-pass” style Overtaking System (OTS).
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