Mobilityland Corp., a unit of Honda Motor Co., says it will stop holding the IndyCar Series racing event in Japan after this year's race in September.
Mobilityland, a wholly owned subsidiary of Honda that operates racing circuits, said Wednesday it has become "extremely difficult" to continue hosting the annual event in the current economic environment.
IndyCar Series races are mainly held in the United States. In Japan, a predecessor of the IndyCar event was first held in 1998 and the run will culminate with the September race to be held at Mobilityland's Twin Ring Motegi circuit in Tochigi Prefecture.
The racing events in Japan have been in the red since their launch, with the number of visitors to the races' final day having fallen to 53,000 in 2010 from the peak of 78,500 in 2007.
Honda has a contract for exclusively offering engines to the IndyCar Series through 2013. A representative for the Japanese automaker said it will continue to provide engines to the racing series.