The J. League's return to a single-league format will make this season's championship more of a marathon than a sprint, but four teams have already got off to flying starts after their opening two games.
Yokohama F. Marinos, FC Tokyo, Vissel Kobe and Vegalta Sendai are the only sides in the 18-team division with perfect records after two rounds, with Marinos topping the embryonic table on goal difference.
Yokohama's preparations for the new season looked anything but ideal when iconic playmaker Shunsuke Nakamura left for Jubilo Iwata and the club brought in a mixed bag of replacements. A 3-2 opening win over Urawa Reds followed by a clinical 3-0 rout of Consadole Sapporo last weekend has proved Marinos' doubters wrong so far, however, with new strikers David Babunski and Hugo Vieira both scoring in both games.