26 – Kamui Kobayashi

Credit: Toyota Motorsport GmbH

Stats

• Birthday: 13th September 1986
• Nationality: Japanese
• Lives:
• Website: kamui-kobayashi.com

Career

Kamui’s career by year. The bracketed number is his final position at the end of the series.

• 2003 – Formula Toyota (2nd)
• 2004 – German Formula Renault (31st), Italian Formula Renault (7th)
• 2005 – Italian Formula Renault (1st), Formula Renault Eurocup (1st)
• 2006 – Formula Three Euroseries (8th)
• 2007 – Formula Three Euroseries (4th)
• 2008 – GP2 Asia Series (6th), GP Series (16th), Formula 1 (Test driver), GP2 Asia Series (1st)
• 2009 – GP2 Series (16th), Formula 1 (18th)
• 2010 – Formula 1

2010 Preview

From the F1 Digest 2010 Season Preview:

Kamui joined Toyota as test driver at the start of 2007, and his association with the team lasted until they quit the sport last year. In the meantime, whilst waiting for an F1 opportunity, he participated in the Formula Three Euroseries, GP2 and GP2 Asia, which he won in 2009. At the end of the last F1 season, Glock was injured and couldn’t participate, so Kobayashi subbed for him for two races. He finished 9th and then 6th, which was pretty impressive for a first attempt at the series. He also raised eyebrows with his fiesty attitude in the car, he was keen to overtake and not adverse to defending his territory. Some think it’s just what the sport needed, some think it’s a bit over the top and could be dangerous. I’m somewhere in the middle, and that’s why I’m glad that Toyota’s retreat didn’t leave him without a race drive. BMW Sauber have snapped him up for 2010, and alongside a very experienced driver in de la Rosa, Kobayashi is set to learn a lot and get more laps under his own belt.