Glen Lights and Oreca Roars: All For One Weekend Poised to Shake Up the HoloType INT Title Fight

Watkins Glen, 22 August — The historic Watkins Glen Six Hours playground turns Oreca rainbow this weekend as HoloType International brings its All For One 200 Minutes to New York. This two-day format is not a compact endurance test: two flying 2-lap invitational sprints and two 100-minute main events (46 laps nominal) split across Friday and Saturday, but also as a celebration of Hololive English as the EN members are set to perform onstage at Radio City Music Hall this weekend in the All For One concert, Hololive English's third concert. Every full-season EN and ID entry will be on the grid for the main races and every car will be the familiar Oreca 07 prototypes that have defined the series so far. Saturday’s Race 2 is the only points-paying race of the weekend — but the invited JP guests (including Tokoyami Towa’s Jeff Rohan and new Oozora Subaru recruit Aqua Azurii) can still influence the order by taking finishes away from INT entrants.

The weekend’s programme leaves no room for half measures. A 10-minute qualifying shootout on Friday will set the Race 1 grid after a short invitational sprint for EN (and selected ID/JP guests) at 10:00 ET; Race 1’s finishing order then determines the grid for Race 2. The invitational sprints are theatrical — two flying laps to thrill the Hololive EN concert crowd — but teams know the real chess match is in the two longer races, where tyre management, traffic through lapped cars and clean pit windows will decide winners in a racing recreation of the live concerts to come.

As far as the championship is concerned, Mohd Shazren Redza — driving the Koseki Bijou No.14 Oreca — arrives as the championship pacesetter and the man to beat. Shazren’s season-long consistency puts him top of a crowded leaderboard, but rounds like Buriram showed how quickly momentum can swing in HoloType. Haziq Yazid (Shiori Novella, No.90) and Lia Kai (Hakos Baelz, No.85) remain the sharpest counterpunchers in the EN contingent; both drivers have the outright pace to split the frontrunners if strategy and luck align.

Joshua Azurid (Mori Calliope, No.4) and Mono Zettarou (Ouro Kronii, No.92) bring racecraft and aggression that suit the Glen’s variable corners and long lap — both can force mistakes and press Shazren’s challengers into errors. From the ID side, Dan Evans (Airani Iofifteen, No.15) and Javier Lusby (Vestia Zeta, No.07) are dark horses: Evans’ recent form under pressure and Lusby’s clever strategy calls mean neither should be discounted when traffic and a full fuel tank make overtaking hard.

Meanwhile, a crew-room subplot enters the track this week: the much-reported seat-swap around Pavolia Reine and Nerissa Ravencroft has been confirmed as permanent — Yuri-Rafael de Oliveira will continue in Nerissa’s No.76 run, while Ryan Kagawa occupies the Pavolia Reine entry. That shakeup has immediate sporting implications: de Oliveira’s assertive style can be an X-factor in tight multi-class scrambles, and Kagawa’s new surroundings will be under scrutiny after questions about commitment were raised.

As the week proceeds, the ARO has invited select JP guests to headline the invitational sprints and contest the mains alongside EN and ID full-season entries. Jeff Rohan (Tokoyami Towa, No.10) and Aqua Azurii (newly listed as Oozora Subaru’s No.48) are notable additions — both will race for track time, publicity around Hololive EN’s All For One concert and the chance to upset the INT pecking order, joining Aziz Muazif (Ayunda Risu, No. 62) and Misaki Sakura (Kureiji Ollie, No. 13) in the Invitational races. The important caveat here is that invited JP drivers can take finishing places in Race 2 but are ineligible to score INT championship points; their presence can nevertheless push INT entrants down the order and alter the weekend’s points math.

Watkins Glen’s undulating profile punishes heavy fuel loads and rewards clean aero balance. With two 100-minute or 46 lap races, teams will need to be savvy on strategy and to last the distance of both main races. Short invitational sprints will produce fireworks but also risk damage or track time lost; preserving the Oreca for Race 2 will be critical for title contenders who cannot afford DNFs or big time losses.

Quick hits to watch

• Race 1 is the dress rehearsal but will also set your Race 2 front row — expect teams to balance aggression with caution.

• Race 2 is the only round that awards INT points: any contact or penalty that drops a leading contender out of the top 10 could reshape the points positions.

• Track position through the Esses and the inner Boot will be king — overtakes are possible but costly.

• The concert tie-in will bring a bigger spectator presence and extra TV eyes; the invitational sprints are designed for spectacle, and drivers will feel the spotlight.

Watkins Glen’s All For One weekend is a high-stakes, high-profile stop: it pairs Hololive EN’s live spectacle with two compact endurance tests that will reward tidy racecraft, cunning pit calls and discipline through traffic. With Shazren Redza holding the points lead and a gaggle of capable challengers behind him, Saturday’s Race 2 could hand the INT title a decisive twist — or merely tighten an already tight championship. Either way, expect these Orecas under the Glen sun and a weekend where a few seconds — or a single strategic pit window — will change everything.