The new Honda Civic Type R is set to be unveiled later in 2022. In the past few months, Honda engineers were very busy testing the next Type R mostly around the famous Suzuka Circuit. But, it seems that the next Type R did a little bit more than just testing and developing. Months before being officially launched on the market, it broke a new record!

The next Civic Type R was able to lap the 5.8-kilometer, (3.6 miles) track in just 2 minutes 23.120 seconds. Although is not a major improvement it is still 0.873 seconds faster than its predecessor, the 2021 Honda Civic Type R Limited Edition which did the same lap in 2 minutes 23.993 seconds.

The previous Type R took the title from the Renault Megane R.S. Trophy-R who lapped Suzuka in 2 minutes 25.454 seconds. In fact, there is an ongoing battle between the two sporty hatchbacks. Honda's tenth-generation Civic Type R GT broke the front-wheel-drive lap record at the Nürburgring Nordschleife in 2017 with a lap time of 7 minutes 43.8 seconds. Two years later, the Trophy-R stole the title with a lap time of 7 minutes 40.100 seconds. And now, with the new Civic Type R Honda announced it wants the title back.

Back to Suzuka circuit, it is often described as one of the world’s greatest circuits, has been a testbed for performance Hondas since 1962, and has been home to the Japanese Formula 1 Grand Prix for all but two years since 1987. The fastest car around the track at the moment is the Ferrari SF90 with a lap time of 1 minute 27.06 seconds.