Do you think Takuma Sato is the best Japanese f1 driver ever?

Question

Do you think Takuma Sato is the best Japanese f1 driver ever?

Answer 1

I still think Kazuki Nakajima has a lot more to give but so far, probably Sato.

Answer 2

Aside from Sato and Nakajima I think Kamui Kobayashi has some potential to be the future best japanese driver perhaps.. They should replace glock anyway.

Answer 3

I suppose, most Japanese F1 drivers are quick, but crazy. Shinji Nakano did well in a minardi back in 1998, didn't score any points but was very consistent, better than his team mate Ebstan Tuero who was supposed to be something special.

Taku was (is) a brilliant overtaker but gets a bit too excited at times and his entire 2005 season was disappointing, not helped by BARs fuel ballast fiasco.

Answer 4

Sato needs to get with a top tier team and I think he would actually win some GP races.  I was at indy and he did a great job.  I would replace NP at Ren with Sato because I think Alonso and Sato would be a good team.  Honda should think about replacing RB with him also just for one reason - marketing.

Answer 5

I suppose, looking back at Ide, but then we've got Nakajima now, give Kazu time, he might just out-do Sato.

Answer 6

I'll go through the others first

Satoru Nakajima - prone to throwing it in the wall... he wasn't physical enough for the turbo cars and just not good enough for post-turbo...

Aguri Suzuki - yes he scored a podium at his home GP, but he also spun on a straight, and wrecked numerous cars... often got a drive coz of his Honda connections (Ligier 95... Brundle was so much better...)

Ukyo Katayama - had a great season in 1994... should've scored more than his 5 points but for bad luck... otherwise a fairly mediocre performer...

Taki Inoue - the less said the better...

Hideki Noda - fairly poor part-timer....

Shinji Nakano - poor in the Prost, a bit better in the Minardi... but not good enough by any means...

Tora Takagi - Was good enough to get a second year at Arrows, but then team troubles and poor driving left him out of F1...

Sakon Yamamoto - Painfully slow... as good at spinning his car as spinning the decks as a DJ at F1 parties..

Yuji Ide - A distant cousin of Taki Inoue perhaps!?!?!

Kazuki Nakajima - fast... but incidents seem to happen around him (like a racing Victor Meldrew!!)... but will get better... which bodes well

and finally Taku himself... he was very erratic when he started, but looked to be very talented even from his F3 days in the UK.... in F1 he was accident prone too... but toned that down and is now very well-respected.... great overtaker, and very solid racer... THE best Japanese F1 driver yes

Answer 7

Katayama was no slouch either.

He managed to outpace Blundell in the Tyrell back in 94, no mean achievement.

Aguri Suzuki was one of the better Japanese drivers as well.

I think Sato has proven to be overall consistently fast.

He's the best yet in this respect.

Answer 8

Aguri Suzuki (owner of the Super Aguri team) participated in 88 Formula One Grands Prix, and his most notable achievement in racing was 3rd place at the 1990 Japanese Grand Prix.

This should make him one of the best F1 Japanese drivers..

Answer 9

Yes, he is the only japanese F1 driver to reach the podium, on BAR Honda, but only in 3rd place, US grand prix 2004.