Takuma Sato | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
佐藤 琢磨 | |||||||
.jpg) Sato at the2021 Grand Prix of Long Beach | |||||||
| Born | (1977-01-28)28 January 1977 (age 48) Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan | ||||||
| Spouse | |||||||
| Children | 2, includingRintaro | ||||||
| IndyCar Series career | |||||||
| 221 races run over 15 years | |||||||
| Team | No. 75 (Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing) | ||||||
| Best finish | 7th(2020) | ||||||
| First race | 2010São Paulo Indy 300 | ||||||
| Last race | 2025Indianapolis 500 | ||||||
| First win | 2013Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach | ||||||
| Last win | 2020Indianapolis 500 | ||||||
| |||||||
| Formula One World Championship career | |||||||
| Nationality |  Japanese | ||||||
| Active years | 2002–2008 | ||||||
| Teams | Jordan,BAR,Super Aguri | ||||||
| Entries | 92 (90 starts) | ||||||
| Championships | 0 | ||||||
| Wins | 0 | ||||||
| Podiums | 1 | ||||||
| Careerpoints | 44 | ||||||
| Pole positions | 0 | ||||||
| Fastest laps | 0 | ||||||
| First entry | 2002 Australian Grand Prix | ||||||
| Last entry | 2008 Spanish Grand Prix | ||||||
| Championship titles | |||||||
| 2017,2020 2001 2001 2001 | Indianapolis 500 Macau Grand Prix Masters of Formula 3 British Formula Three | ||||||
Takuma "Taku"Sato (Japanese:佐藤 琢磨,Hepburn:Satō Takuma; born 28 January 1977) is a Japaneseracing driver, who competes part-time in theIndyCar Series forRahal Letterman Lanigan Racing. Sato competed inFormula One from2002 to2008. InAmerican open-wheel racing, Sato is atwo-time winner of theIndianapolis 500 in2017 and2020, remaining the only Asian driver to win the event.
Born and raised inTokyo, Sato began his career inkarting before moving to Europe in 1999 with support fromHonda. Progressing directly toFormula Three, Sato finished third in theBritish Championship in2000 before dominating the series in2001 withCarlin. During the latter, he also won theMacau Grand Prix and theMasters of Formula 3. Sato signed forJordan in2002, making his Formula One debut at theAustralian Grand Prix,under Honda power. He moved with Honda to joinBAR in2003 as a reserve driver, replacingJacques Villeneuve athis home Grand Prix in Japan and returning as a full-time driver in2004. Sato achieved his only podium finish at theUnited States Grand Prix as he finished a career-best eighth in theWorld Drivers' Championship. Followingstruggles at BAR in2005, Sato moved toSuper Aguri for his2006 campaign onwards. Amidst financial troubles, Super Aguri withdrew from the sport after the2008 Spanish Grand Prix, ending both Sato and teammateAnthony Davidson's driving careers in Formula One.
After a year hiatus, Sato returned to open-wheel racing in theIndyCar Series withKV in2010. He took his maiden pole position at theIowa Corn Indy 250 in2011, and became the first Asian driver to win an IndyCar race at theGrand Prix of Long Beach in2013 withFoyt. His one-off entry inFormula E at the2014 Beijing ePrix marked the first—and to this date, only—time that Sato competed without a Honda power unit in his professional career, using aspecMcLaren powertrain. Sato signed forAndretti in2017, winning theIndianapolis 500 for the first time. He took several further wins across his2018 and2019 seasons withRLL, before again winningat Indianapolis in2020. Sato competed forDale Coyne Racing in2022, before moving into part-time roles from2023 onwards.
Sato is a widely popular figure amongst fans and media worldwide, renowned for his aggressive driving style and mottoNo Attack, No Chance.
Born in Tokyo,[1] Sato began karting in Japan at the age of nineteen.[2] After winning the national karting title in 1997, he moved to Europe with backing fromHonda.[3] He briefly raced in Vauxhall Junior and Formula Opel, before debuting in Class B of theBritish Formula 3 Championship mid-way through1999 British Formula Three Championship with class wins at the British Grand Prix and Spa for Diamond Racing.[3] He moved to the top class of the championship withCarlin Motorsport in 2000, taking four wins and third place in the championship. In2001, he won twelve out of 26 races to take a dominant championship win, the first for a Japanese driver in the series.[2] In 2001 he also won the prestigiousMacau Grand Prix andMasters of Formula 3 non-championship F3 races.[3]
In2002 Sato graduated to Formula One with theHonda-poweredJordan team, and was paired withGiancarlo Fisichella. His low point was a tremendous crash inAustria, caused whenNick Heidfeld lost control of hisSauber under braking and hit the side of Sato's car, punching a hole in the side of the cockpit.[4] Throughout he showed flashes of speed but also wild driving, nevertheless the team's faith in Sato was repaid by a fine drive to fifth at his home Grand Prix inSuzuka.
With Honda's focus shifting solely toBritish American Racing for2003, Sato joined the Brackley-based outfit as a test driver. However before his late-season racing return to the sport, Sato was overshadowed by the death ofDaijiro Kato who was killed during2003 Japanese Grand PrixMotoGP race. Kato was Sato's closest friend in the Honda camp and Sato led his tribute to his friend during the2003 San Marino Grand Prix weekend.[5] For the final round inJapan, Sato replacedJacques Villeneuve and scored the second points finish of his career with sixth place, after a battle withMichael Schumacher. He was signed to race full-time in2004. During the 2004 season, Sato qualified four times in the top-three, including a front row start and an overall lap record at theEuropean Grand Prix.[2] Sato's aggressive driving style paid dividends at theUnited States Grand Prix, where, after the team did not pit under safety car conditions, Sato fought back with some daring overtaking moves to score his first podium finish and the first for a Japanese driver sinceAguri Suzuki at the1990 Japanese Grand Prix. Reliability issues caused him to retire six times, but he scored points in nine of the eleven races he completed to finish eighth in the championship with 34 points, the best-ever result for a Japanese driver in Formula One.[6] His efforts helped BAR-Honda to finish second in the Constructors' Championship.
Sato was retained by BAR-Honda for the 2005 season, but the 2005 car was not as close to the front of the pack as the previous year's design. Sato missed theMalaysian Grand Prix with illness, and both drivers were disqualified from theSan Marino Grand Prix and the entire team banned from the two subsequent races for using cars that were underweight when all fuel was removed. The Court did not find that this was deliberate. Sato's season never recovered from that point, and he ended the season with eighth place at theHungarian Grand Prix as his only points finish, despite qualifying seven times in the top-ten.[7] Sato was not re-signed for 2006, despite Honda taking full control of the team.
Sato joined the newSuper Aguri F1 team for2006, run by Japanese former driverAguri Suzuki. The new outfit was in effect a Honda B-team but ran the first half of the season with a modified version of a 2002Arrows A23 chassis. Nevertheless, Sato's reputation improved thanks to his professional attitude and competitive spirit. The team introduced a new car, theSA06 at theGerman Grand Prix and by the end of the season, Sato was outpacing theMidland cars. At the season finale inBrazil Sato finished tenth just two places short of a points finish and comfortably ahead of bothToro Rossos and theSpyker MF1s.
For 2007, Super Aguri ran a reworked version of the previous year'sHonda RA106 chassis. Their performance improved drastically as Sato made it through to Q3 at theAustralian Grand Prix. He then scored the first point for the team at theSpanish Grand Prix. At theCanadian Grand Prix, Sato finished sixth after having a race that had seen him move from the middle of the grid to a high of fifth, passing Ferrari'sKimi Räikkönen before a pit-stop error dropped him back to eleventh. He moved up five places in the last fifteen laps, passing Toyota'sRalf Schumacher and then on lap 67 theMcLaren-Mercedes ofFernando Alonso; the latter pass was met with cheers around the track and received him the "Overtake of the Year" award fromF1 Racing magazine.[8][9]
Financial problems began to affect the team in the off-season and the squad only just made it to the opening round of the2008 season inAustralia. The team used a modifiedHonda RA107 chassis, which was launched just before the first Friday practice session that weekend. A transmission issue in Australia ended an opportunity to score points in a race of attrition, and thirteenth inSpain turned out to be Sato's best result of the season. Due to the financial struggles, Super Aguri withdrew from Formula One after the Spanish Grand Prix, leaving Sato without a drive after four races in 2008.
In late 2008, Sato took part in tests at Jerez withScuderia Toro Rosso, to become a candidate to fill the seat vacated bySebastian Vettel. He was competing against former Toro Rosso driverSébastien Bourdais andRed Bull Racing test and reserve driverSébastien Buemi for one of the two race seats.[10] He first drove on 18 September, more than four months since Super Aguri's withdrawal, and tested for the team again for two days in November, setting the fastest time on the seventeenth,[11] 3 tenths ahead of Buemi, and proceeded by setting the second-fastest time on the 18th.[12] The race seat was eventually given to Bourdais, and in March 2009 it was announced that Sato would not be the reserve driver for the Red Bull team.[13]
Sato visited theIndianapolis 500 in May 2009. He signed withKV Racing Technology to drive in the2010 IndyCar Series season[14] finishing in 21st place. He signed for the same team for 2011 and improved his form, scoring three top-five finishes and two pole positions during the season to finish thirteenth.[15]
At the2012 Indianapolis 500, driving forRahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, Sato chasedDario Franchitti to the finish making a move for the lead and the race win at the first turn of the last lap. While not successful, Sato was respected by Indianapolis 500 fans for "going for it" on the last lap.
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For 2013, Sato joinedA. J. Foyt's team, driving the No. 14 car vacated byMike Conway. In thethird race of the season atLong Beach, Sato scored his first IndyCar win, in his 52nd start in the series, making him the first Japanese driver to win an IndyCar race.[16] He then scored six top-five finishes, including two podiums and two pole positions, until he left the team at the end of 2016.
Sato joinedAndretti Autosport for the2017 season. He went on to become the first Asian driver to win theIndianapolis 500.[17] After the 500 win, he went on to win a pole at the Dual in Detroit on Belle Isle. He also ended up winning another pole atPocono Raceway in August.
On 26 August 2017, it was reported that Sato would rejoinRLL for the 2018 season, driving the No. 30 car alongsideGraham Rahal as teammate. The decision came whileAndretti Autosport was considering a move toChevrolet for 2018, however Andretti ultimately chose to remain with Honda.
Sato endured an up-and-down season, including crashing early during the Indianapolis 500, getting caught in an early wreck during the Pocono 500, and a failed pit strategy at Gateway. However, he recorded a top-three finish at Iowa, and had the correct strategy to hold offRyan Hunter-Reay for a victory during IndyCar's return toPortland, after a low starting position of 20th; the win marked Sato's third career victory, and his first on a permanent road course.
Sato started his 2019 season with a win in the third race atBarber Motorsports Park; he convincingly beat the field after starting from the pole. He endured a difficultPocono 500; after involvement in a first-lap accident and initial criticism from drivers and media,[18][19] RLL released on-board camera footage indicating Sato was not at fault for the accident.[18][20] Sato won later that season at Gateway.
On 23 August 2020, after qualifying on the outside of the front row for the104th running of the Indianapolis 500, Sato won the race for a second time.[21]
On 5 October 2021, it was announced that Sato would not return to the team for the2022 IndyCar season. His spot in the team was taken over by Danish driver,Christian Lundgaard.[22]
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On 9 December 2021, it was announced that Sato had signed withDale Coyne Racing withRick Ware Racing for the 2022 season, replacingRomain Grosjean, who had signed withAndretti Autosport.[23] He finished 25th at theIndianapolis 500.
Sato joinedChip Ganassi Racing to run only the oval rounds for the2023 season, making it the first time he was without a full-time IndyCar seat since 2010.[24]
On 18 March 2024,Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing (RLL) announced that Sato would rejoin the team for an Indianapolis 500-only drive.[25] He finished fourteenth after showing significantly more speed than his teammates, making the Fast 12 round of qualifying.
Sato returned to RLL for the2025 Indianapolis 500.[26] He again displayed significantly more pace than his teammates, qualifying in second – the middle of the front row.[27] Sato ran at or near the front of the field during the first half of the race, and was in strong contention for the victory when he overshot hispit box on lap 86, losing critical time as his pit crew pushed him back into place.[28] He eventually finished eleventh on-track, and was later promoted to ninth place following the disqualifications of Andretti driversMarcus Ericsson andKyle Kirkwood.[29] Sato led 51 laps—the most of the field.[30]
On 14 June 2012,Team Mugen announced that Sato would race with the team in the last three rounds of the2012 Formula Nippon season.[31] He also raced with Team Mugen in the opening round of the renamed2013 Super Formula season, and later in the year returned to the team to compete in the last three races of the season; he scored his first points with an eighth-place finish in the season finale.
In November 2013, Sato became a test and development driver for theFIA Formula E Championship.[32] In September 2014, Sato joined his former Formula One teamAmlin Aguri to race in the first-ever Formula E race, the2014 Beijing ePrix, replacing the team's regular driverAntonio Félix da Costa as he could not participate due to other commitments.[33] Sato scored two points after he set the fastest lap of the race with a time of 1:45.101, but had to retire from the race with mechanical issues. As it was Sato's only Formula E race, he became the only driver in the series' history with a 100% fastest lap record.[34]
Sato is a widely popular figure amongst fans and media, renowned for his aggressive driving style and motto "No Attack, No Chance".[35][36][37]
In 2024, Sato was inducted into theLong Beach Motorsports Walk of Fame.[38]
Sato is married to Chiharu Sato, with whom he has two children.[39] The eldest,Rintaro Sato, made his racing debut in2024 F4 Japanese Championship.[40] He lives inCarmel, Indiana with his manager, Steve Fusek, during the racing season, and spends the offseason in Japan.[41] Sato was a national cycling champion in high school, and still uses cycling as part of his physical training for his racing career.[9]
* Season still in progress.
(key) (Races inbold indicate pole position) (Races initalics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Entrant | Chassis | Engine | Class | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | DC | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Diamond Racing | Dallara F398 | Mugen-Honda | B | DON | SIL | THR | BRH | BRH | OUL | CRO | BRH | SIL 16 | SNE 10 | PEM 14 | PEM Ret | DON | SPA 18 | SIL 8 | THR 11 | 4th | 103 | |||||||||||
| 2000 | Carlin Motorsport | Dallara F300 | Mugen-Honda | A | THR Ret | CRO 5 | OUL Ret | DON Ret | DON 9 | SIL 1 | BRH 2 | DON 3 | DON 9 | CRO 1 | SIL 1 | SNE 6 | SPA 21 | SIL 1 | 3rd | 129 | |||||||||||||
| 2001 | Carlin Motorsport | Dallara F301 | Mugen-Honda | A | SIL1 1 12 | SIL1 2 4 | SNE 1 Ret | SNE 2 2 | DON1 1 1 | DON1 2 Ret | OUL 1 1 | OUL 2 1 | CRO 1 DSQ | CRO 2 1 | ROC 1 1 | ROC 2 1 | CAS 1 2 | CAS 2 2 | BRH1 1 9 | BRH1 2 1 | DON2 1 12 | DON2 2 1 | KNO 1 1 | KNO 2 C | THR 1 1 | THR 2 2 | THR 3 8 | BRH2 1 2 | BRH2 2 1 | SIL2 1 18 | SIL2 2 1 | 1st | 345 |
(key) (Races inbold indicate pole position; races initalics indicate fastest lap)
† Did not finish the race, but was classified as he had completed more than 90% of the race distance.
(key) (Races inbold indicate pole position; races initalics indicate fastest lap)
1The2011 Las Vegas Indy 300 was abandoned afterDan Wheldon died from injuries sustained in a 15-car crash on lap 11.
| Years | Teams | Races | Poles | Wins | Podiums | Top 5s | Top 10s | Indianapolis 500 wins | Championships |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16* | 6 | 223* | 10 | 6 | 14 | 28* | 77* | 2 | 0 |
* Results as of 2 September 2025
| Year | Chassis | Engine | Start | Finish | Team | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Dallara | Honda | 31 | 20 | KV Racing Technology | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2011 | 10 | 33 | KV Racing Technology –Lotus | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 2012 | 19 | 17 | Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 2013 | 18 | 13 | A. J. Foyt Enterprises | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 2014 | 23 | 19 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2015 | 24 | 13 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2016 | 12 | 26 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2017 | 4 | 1 | Andretti Autosport | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 2018 | 16 | 32 | Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 2019 | 14 | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2020 | 3 | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2021 | 15 | 14 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2022 | 10 | 25 | Dale Coyne Racing withRick Ware Racing | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 2023 | 8 | 7 | Chip Ganassi Racing | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 2024 | 10 | 14 | Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 2025 | 2 | 9 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Year | Entrant | Class | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | Rank | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | OAK Racing | LMP1 | OAKPescarolo 01 | Honda LM-V8 3.4 L V8 | SEB | SPA | LMS | SIL | SÃO | BHR | FUJ 16 | SHA 14 | 80th | 1 |
| Year | Entrant | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | DC | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Team Mugen | SUZ | MOT | AUT | FUJ | MOT | SUG 9 | SUZ 17 | SUZ 10 | 15th | 0 |
| 2013 | SUZ 15 | AUT | FUJ | MOT | SUG 11 | SUZ 9 | SUZ 8 | 18th | 0.5 | ||
Source:[43] | |||||||||||
(key) (Races inbold indicate pole position; races initalics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | Chassis | Powertrain | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | Pos | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014–15 | Amlin Aguri | SparkSRT01-e | SRT01-e | BEI Ret | PUT | PDE | BUE | MIA | LBH | MCO | BER | MSC | LDN | LDN | 24th | 2 |
Before the dust had settled, many blamed Sato for being overaggressive, but the Japanese driver refused to accept sole responsibility for the incident. The Twitter witch hunt that targeted Sato over the next few days was disgraceful and upsetting. Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing ultimately defended Sato by releasing in-car video that clearly showed he held his line and did not steer into or instigate his car's sudden movement to the left.
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | British Formula Three Champion 2001 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Masters of Formula 3 Winner 2001 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Macau Grand Prix Winner 2001 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Indianapolis 500 Winner 2017 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Indianapolis 500 Winner 2020 | Succeeded by |
| Awards and achievements | ||
| Preceded by | Autosport National Racing Driver of the Year 2001 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Academics | |
