The first Japanese manufacturer to win at Le Mans, Mazda was also the first Japanese marque involved in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, in 1973, whereas Toyota and Nissan didn't arrive until the 1980s, in 1985 and 1986 respectively. They were joined by Honda in the mid-1990s.

1990 - Thanks to Brit Mark Blundell, Nissan was the first Japanese manufacturer to score pole position at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. His time of 3:27:02 (average of 236.499 km/h) was also the first pole on the new layout of the 24 Hours circuit which included two new chicanes at the Mulsanne Straight.

1991 - Mazda became the first (and only to-date) Japanese manufacturer to win at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. It was also the sole victory for a rotary engine, long-standing technology of choice for Mazda. To follow the progress of the car driven by winners Johnny Herbert, Volker Weidler and Bertrand Gachot, Japanese television stations interrupted their programs to broadcast the final hours of the race live.

1992 - First podium finish for Toyota at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, with second place for the TS010 prototype driven by Masanori Sekiya, Kenny Acheson and Pierre-Henri Raphanel.

1994 - A dominator in Formula 1 from 1986 to 1991, Honda arrived at the 24 Hours of Le Mans with the NSX, its sporting GT released in 1990.

1995 - Masanori Sekiya was the first Japanese driver to win at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, along with French driver Yannick Dalmas and Finnish driver JJ Lehto, in the McLaren F1 GTR. In 2004, he was joined by Seiji Ara, winner in the Audi R8 with Tom Kristensen and Dindo Capello.

1998 - At the wheel of a Nissan R390 GT1, Aguri Suzuki, Kazuyoshi Hoshino and Masahiko Kageyama became the first 100% Japanese driver line-up to claim a podium finish at the 24 Hours of Le Mans (third place).

1999 - Second behind winners Yannick Dalmas-Joachim Winkelhock-Pierluigi Martini (BMW), Ukyo Katayama, Keiichi Tsuchiya and Toshio Suzuki scored the best result of a Japanese driver line-up at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

2010 - With British team Strakka Racing and its drivers Jonny Kane, Danny Watts and Nick Leventis, Honda won in LM P2 (fifth place overall). Two years later, the Japanese manufacturer won again in the class thanks to the American team Starworks Motorsport.

2011 - At the initiative of Greaves Motorsport, Nissan made its return to the 24 Hours of Le Mans as engine supplier for the British team, going on to win in LM P2. Then Nissan became the main engine supplier for the class, with four more victories (OAK Racing in 2013, Jota Sport in 2014, KCMG in 2015 and Signatech Alpine in 2016).

2012 - Nissan was the engine supplier for the DeltaWing, first occupant of Garage 56 at the 24 Hours of Le Mans reserved for innovative projects not part of the official competiton. Two years later, the manufacturer returned with the ZEOD RC and the goal of completing a full lap of the 24 Hours circuit on electric power only.

2014 - Kazuki Nakajima was the first Japanese driver to clinch pole position at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. During the race, along with Austrian driver Alex Wurz and French driver Stéphane Sarrazin, he was forced to retire after a 14-hour sprint in the lead.

Click here for our previous installments of this Asian saga:

Le Mans, China and Asia (1) – Towards a new era

Le Mans, China and Asia (2) - Ho-pin Tung and David Cheng, teammates and friends

Le Mans, China and Asia (3) - Thai standouts

Le Mans, China and Asia (4) - Key Chinese dates

Le Mans, China and Asia (5) - From the Asian Le Mans Series to the 24 Hours of Le Mans

Photo: The only Japanese manufacturer entered in the LM P1 hybrid prototypes class, Toyota is still looking for its first victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, after winning the 2014 World Endurance Constructors and Drivers titles in 2014.