Oct 19, 2024; Austin, Texas, USA; Visa Cash App RB Formula One Team driver Yuki Tsunoda (22) of Team Japan walks into the track before the Sprint Race in the 2024 Formula One US Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

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Japanese F1 Drivers- Yuki Tsunoda Leads the Legacy of Japan in 2025

Yuki Tsunoda's first race at Red Bull will be in Japan. Read ahead about his compatriot predecessors in F1.

Yuki Tsunoda will bring forth a proud moment for Japan in 2025. It will be the first time in the history of the sport that one of their drivers is going to drive for a championship winning team. Japanese GP is going to be Tsunoda’s first proving ground with his new team. Red Bull Racing have decided to agree to Tsunoda’s bid for the second seat. Yuki Tsunoda has been performing furiously with Racing Bulls in the past two seasons. His determination and experience helped him assert his importance over Liam Lawson. Tsunoda absolutely destroyed Lawson in the first two races of the season. He forced Red Bull to regret their decision and got himself a promotion.

Yuki Tsunoda has been a part of Formula 1 since 2021. He has a career which spans over five years at the pinnacle of motorsports. Tsunoda has participated in five Japanese GPs. He has raced for Red Bull’s junior team until recently in his F1 career. Tsunoda’s best result in front of his home crowd came last year. He raced the VCARB car to finish in 10th position at the Japanese GP. Tsunoda is one of the many drivers from Japan who have participated in Formula 1. Let’s go through some other driver from Japan who were a part of F1-

After 89 race starts at AlphaTauri/Racing Bulls, Yuki finally gets the call up to Red Bull#F1 pic.twitter.com/wEunt45upP
— Formula 1 (@F1) March 27, 2025

List of Japanese F1 Drivers

The first driver to race in an official Formula 1 event was Hiroshi Fushida. He raced at the 1975 Dutch Grand Prix of F1. Fushida qualified for the race but an engine issue prevented him from starting the race. He failed to qualify at British GP and spelled the end of his F1 career. Masahiro Hasemi was luckier than him. He was the second Japanese F1 driver and started his first and only F1 race at the 1976 Japanese GP. He could only finish 11th as the last finishing driver in the race. Although to his credit, he had won the unofficial Japanese GP a year ago. Here’s a comprehensive list of all Japanese F1 drivers to date-

Drivers	Years in Formula 1
Hiroshi Fushida	1975
Masahiro Hasemi	1976
Masami Kuwashima	1976
Kazuyoshi Hoshino	1976–1977
Noritake Takahara	1976–1977
Kunimitsu Takahashi	1977
Satoru Nakajima	1987–1991
Aguri Suzuki	1988–1995
Naoki Hattori	1991
Ukyo Katayama	1992–1997
Toshio Suzuki	1993
Hideki Noda	1994
Taki Inoue	1994–1995
Shinji Nakano	1997–1998
Toranosuke Takagi	1998–1999
Takuma Sato	2002–2008
Yuji Ide	2006
Sakon Yamamoto	2006–2007, 2010
Kazuki Nakajima	2007–2009
Kamui Kobayashi	2009–2012, 2014
Current drivers
Yuki Tsunoda	2021–2025

There are many drivers in this list who could not even start a race or complete an official F1 session. However, there are many Japanese F1 drivers who have made a name for themselves in the sport. Some drivers dissappointed the home crowd whereas others proved their brilliancy in front of the Japanese public. Read ahead to know about these spectacular drivers-

Top-3 Notable Performances from Japanese F1 Drivers in Japan

There are three Japanese drivers in the history of F1 who have stood out particularly among their fellow countrymen. They are-

3. Aguri Suzuki

Aguri Suzuki has claimed the honor of becoming the first Japanese F1 driver to win a podium in Japan. He raced for Espo Larrousse F1 and earned himself a third place finish at the Japanese GP in 1990. It was his first season in F1 with the team. His car was powered by Lamborghini. It is one of the few races that were notable in Lamborghini’s F1 run as a power unit manufacturer.

2. Takuma Sato

Sato joined Formula 1 in 2002 with Jordan. He led a season full of surprises. However, in his debut season he was able to finish in 5th place at the Japanese GP earning his first F1 points. Sato had an unstable career in F1. Although, he found his muse in IndyCar Racing. Takuma Sato has won the Indianapolis 500 race twice in 2017 and 2020.

1. Kamui Kobayashi

Kamui Kobayashi is undoubtedly the most popular F1 driver arising from Japan. He was hailed as one of the greatest talents the country ever produced. He started with Toyota Racing in 2009 appearing in two races including a points finish in Abu Dhabi. Sauber saw his potential and gave him a seat for three seasons. Kobayashi made a name for himself as an aggressive midfield driver. He was well respected on the grid due to his potential in the midfield. The culimation of his efforts came at the 2012 Japanese Grand Prix. He finished in third place to achieve his only Formula 1 podium.

Do you think Tsunoda is gearing up for a potential podium at the Japanese Grand Prix? Let us know your thoughts and follow The Playoffs for the latest F1 news.

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I work as a Writer at The Playoffs specialising in NHL, Formula 1 and Motorsports. I got into online journalism a couple of years ago. I used to be an intern for a website managing their Formula 1 content and then I served an entire year as a contractual writer.