Kazuki Nakajima

Kazuki Nakajima (11 January 1985 - Present): Japanese racing driver, son of retired Formula One driver Satoru Nakajima, who competed in F1 from 2007 to 2009 with Williams, participating in 38 Grands Prix. Made his F1 debut after Alexander Wurz's retirement, racing for Williams in the 2007 Brazilian Grand Prix season finale at age 22, where he finished tenth and set the fifth fastest lap, immediately demonstrating his potential. For 2008, secured a full-time race seat with Williams. His Williams FW30-Toyota finished the Australian GP in sixth position in the first of five top-10 results during the season.

Made history by becoming the first Japanese driver to score points at the Monaco Grand Prix, demonstrating his skill on the challenging street circuit. Finished the 2008 season in 15th place with 9 championship points, his best season finish. Retained by Williams for 2009 season, but struggled badly with the uncompetitive FW31 chassis. Finished the season having scored no points, being the only driver who took part in each race in 2009 without scoring, a frustrating end to his F1 career.

Williams signed Rubens Barrichello and Nico Hülkenberg for 2010, leaving Nakajima without a seat and ending his Formula One career at age 24. Returned to Japanese motorsport and found tremendous success. Won the Super Formula Championship in 2012 and 2014 with TOM'S, establishing himself as one of Japan's premier racing drivers. In endurance racing, achieved extraordinary success with Toyota, winning the 2018-19 FIA World Endurance Championship and becoming a three-time winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, winning consecutively from 2018 to 2020, cementing his legacy as one of motorsport's elite endurance racers.

Since 2022, has served as vice-chairman of Toyota in WEC, contributing to three consecutive World Manufacturers' Championship titles from 2022 to 2024. While his Formula One career was relatively brief and modest, Nakajima's achievements in endurance racing far surpassed his father Satoru's motorsport accomplishments. His Le Mans victories and WEC championship make him one of Japan's most successful racing drivers in history, proving that success in motorsport extends far beyond Formula One. Along with Graham and Damon Hill, and Keke and Nico Rosberg, the Nakajimas represent one of the few father-son pairings in Formula One history, though Kazuki's greatest achievements came after leaving F1.