Motor racing royalty Sir Jackie Stewart OBE will be a guest of honour at next month’s 6 Hours of Fuji (25-27 September) in support of his charity, Race Against Dementia, with a range of activities scheduled over the course of the event to raise vital funds.
Fuji Speedway – a near-permanent fixture on the annual FIA World Endurance Championship calendar since the series’ inception in 2012, and a circuit with a long and illustrious heritage in the sport – is currently celebrating its 60th anniversary, having opened in January, 1966. Nine months later, Stewart won the Fuji 200 – the first American open-wheel race held in Japan – driving the same Lola T-90 with which he had come within ten laps of triumphing in that year’s Indianapolis 500.
Six decades on, the Scot is set to return during the sixth round of the 2026 FIA WEC campaign, representing the global dementia research charity he founded in 2016 following his wife, Lady Helen Stewart’s diagnosis with frontotemporal dementia.
With 152 million people projected to be affected by the condition globally by 2050, the organisation leverages the speed, precision and teamwork so synonymous with the highest levels of motorsport to enable pioneering research and empower scientists to fast-track advances. Thus far, Race Against Dementia has raised more than £20 million, funded 88 researchers and backed more than 50 research projects across five continents.
“Returning to Fuji, 60 years after my first Japanese Grand Prix, will be a very special occasion for me personally,” acknowledged Sir Jackie. “Today however, the most important race in my life is the race to find a cure for dementia. My wife, Helen, was diagnosed with this dreadful illness in 2014 and I am determined to challenge it to the fullest extent. I am extremely grateful to everyone in Japan for supporting me and Race Against Dementia.”
“Race Against Dementia is driven by the same focus on innovation and determination that has always defined motorsport,” added his son, Mark Stewart, Chairperson of the Trustees for the charity. “Returning to Fuji, 60 years after my father first raced here, is deeply meaningful, and we are grateful for the support of our partners in Japan as we work together to help brilliant researchers accelerate progress towards life-changing breakthroughs.”
While best known for his extraordinary achievements in Formula 1, Sir Jackie also boasts endurance racing pedigree, having partnered fellow multiple world champion Graham Hill in the experimental gas-turbine Rover-BRM for the 1965 edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, in which the pair took the chequered flag tenth.
The following year, courtesy of his long-term association with Ford – with whose engines he clinched all three of his F1 crowns – he was poised to pilot one of the Blue Oval’s GT40s at La Sarthe, but was ruled out of what would go down in history as one of the iconic event’s most memorable races by a serious accident in the preceding Belgian Grand Prix.
“The FIA World Endurance Championship is proud to support Sir Jackie Stewart and Race Against Dementia at this year’s 6 Hours of Fuji,” said FIA WEC CEO, Frédéric Lequien. “The word ‘legend’ is often overused, but in Sir Jackie’s case, it is entirely appropriate – not only for his tremendous success on-track across multiple motorsport disciplines, but even more importantly, for his earnest efforts off-track.
“That extends from his pioneering drive to improve safety in the sport during his own career to his more recent commitment – through Race Against Dementia – to accelerate the quest for a cure for this cruel and debilitating condition. It will be an honour to host him and to play a part in the various charitable activities taking place over the course of the weekend in Japan.”
A series of activations will bring supporters and the wider motorsport community together in aid of the charity, beginning with a landmark gala dinner on Friday, 25 September at the Fuji Speedway Hotel. Co-organised by Race Against Dementia, FIA WEC and Tokyo-based media and events group, Hersey Shiga Global, the evening will unite approximately 170 guests from international motorsport, the Japanese business and diplomatic community, Race Against Dementia’s UK trustees and a curated group of supporters.
An online auction of motorsport memorabilia and experiences will additionally run across the weekend, with all proceeds going towards Race Against Dementia’s global research programme.
“It is a great honour to welcome Sir Jackie Stewart back to Japan and to Fuji,” commented Hersey Shiga Global Chairman, Mr. Tsukasa Shiga. “Dementia today affects an estimated 4.6 million people in Japan and more than 55 million worldwide – a challenge of profound urgency for our society.
“We are privileged to host this evening alongside Race Against Dementia and the FIA World Endurance Championship, and to bring together some of Japan’s most respected voices in support of the global fight against dementia.”
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