Ayumu Iwasa

Ayumu Iwasa
Occupation	Racing driver
Years active	2017–present
Known for	Competing in Super Formula, FIA Formula 2 Championship

is a professional Japanese racing driver currently competing in the Super Formula Championship with Team Mugen. Previously, he drove for DAMS in the FIA Formula 2 Championship, where he earned the Rookie of the Year accolade by finishing fifth overall in 2022 and improved to fourth place in 2023. Iwasa is affiliated with both the Honda Formula Dream Project and the Red Bull Junior Team, and he secured the championship title in the 2020 French F4 series.

Career

Karting

Iwasa launched his karting career competitively in Japan starting in 2014, although his karting experience dates back to 2005. During this period, he claimed victories including the 2014 Suzuka Karting Championship in both the Yamaha-SS Class and X-30 class. Additionally, he participated in the JAF Junior Karting Championship, competing in the FP junior category.

F4 Japanese Championship

Iwasa made his initial foray into single-seater racing in 2017 by entering two rounds of the 2017 F4 Japanese Championship with B-Max Racing, where he finished 15th in both events. That same year, he also took part in two races within the Asian Formula Renault Series, achieving pole position and securing second place in each race. In 2018, driving for Rn-Sports in Japanese F4, he scored points during his debut race and ended third in the JAF F4 Suzuka series final round.

In 2019, Iwasa completed his first full season of car racing by capturing the Suzuka Racing School’s Single Seater Series championship.

French F4 Championship

Competing as a Honda Junior Driver in 2020, Iwasa took part in the 2020 French F4 Championship. He triumphed in two of three races during the opening round and maintained a strong performance with two victories per round across the following three rounds. Securing double pole positions at Circuit Paul Ricard, he clinched the overall title with three races remaining. His season statistics included five poles, nine wins, and fifteen podium finishes, achieving a podium at every round and never finishing lower than sixth place.

F3 Asian Championship

At the beginning of 2021, Iwasa participated in the 2021 F3 Asian Championship, competing alongside drivers such as Roy Nissany, Roman Staněk, and Reece Ushijima. He earned his only podium of the series during the first race of the fourth round at the Dubai Autodrome and ultimately ranked eighth overall. Following this championship, Iwasa reflected on needing to better "manage his mindset" to enhance future performances.

FIA Formula 3 Championship

Iwasa concentrated on competing in the 2021 FIA Formula 3 Championship, representing Hitech alongside teammates Staněk and fellow Red Bull Junior driver Jak Crawford. His debut event at Barcelona yielded just two points after finishing seventh in Race 2. At Circuit Paul Ricard, he qualified eighth and initially crossed third in Race 1 but was relegated to eighth due to a penalty for exceeding track limits during an overtaking maneuver. He added more points with a seventh-place finish in Race 3.

At the Red Bull Ring, Iwasa faced disqualification from Race 1 for disregarding a black and orange flag but bounced back to secure sixth place in Race 3. During the Hungary round, after qualifying tenth, he inherited his first FIA F3 victory following Lorenzo Colombo’s penalty for a safety car violation. Subsequent races saw him finish tenth and twelfth.

A difficult weekend at Spa-Francorchamps resulted in no points; however, at Zandvoort he achieved his second podium by finishing third in Race 1. Despite retiring from Race 2 there, he managed an eleventh-place finish in Race 3. At Sochi, Iwasa finished tenth and ninth across Races 1 and 3 respectively. He wrapped up the season twelfth overall and was fourth among rookies, outperforming both of his teammates in the final standings.

FIA Formula 2 Championship

2022

For the 2022 FIA Formula 2 season, Iwasa joined DAMS and was teamed up with Roy Nissany. He intended to adopt a more assertive driving style compared to his approach in F3, where he considered himself "too cautious."

In Bahrain, despite starting from the back due to qualifying difficulties, Iwasa managed to secure his first championship point by finishing eighth in the sprint race. However, a mechanical issue in the feature race caused him to drop down to 16th place. During the Jeddah round, he qualified fifth and ended up fifth in the sprint race and seventh in the feature.

At Imola, Iwasa achieved his first top-three qualifying spot by securing second place. He finished ninth in the sprint and climbed to fifth in the feature race after employing strategic pit stops. In Barcelona, he celebrated his first F2 podium with a runner-up finish in the sprint race but encountered early damage in the feature race that relegated him to twelfth place.

Monaco proved difficult as he experienced his first weekend without points; a penalty pushed him down from third on the grid, leading him to finish last in the sprint and retire following a collision in the feature event. At Baku, qualifying 13th, he recovered to eighth in the sprint race but ended 14th in the feature due to front wing damage.

At Silverstone, Iwasa narrowly missed winning the sprint race by finishing second, but a problematic pit stop dropped him to 12th in the feature race. The Red Bull Ring weekend saw penalties demote him from eighth to tenth in the sprint, while a wet-to-dry tire strategy helped him secure seventh place in the feature.

Iwasa claimed pole position at Paul Ricard and went on to win his first F2 feature race by nearly nine seconds after overtaking key competitors. At Budapest, he earned his second pole position, finishing eighth in the sprint and third in the feature race. By this stage, he ranked seventh in the championship standings with 90 points.

During Spa-Francorchamps, he qualified 13th and just missed scoring points in the sprint but recovered well to finish seventh in the feature race through an effective alternate strategy. At Zandvoort, qualifying fifth, he completed sixth and third places in the sprint and feature races respectively.

In Monza, after qualifying seventh but crashing on his final lap attempt, Iwasa finished 16th in the sprint following a penalty and was initially classified third in the feature before being disqualified due to technical non-compliance.

He secured his second pole position at Yas Marina and won the final feature race of the season despite pressure from champion Felipe Drugovich. Ultimately, Iwasa finished fifth overall with 141 points, including two victories and six podiums. He was honored with the Anthoine Hubert Award as the second-best rookie of the year.

2023

Iwasa remained with DAMS for his 2023 campaign, partnering with Ferrari Driver Academy member Arthur Leclerc. At the Bahrain season opener, he qualified seventh and finished fourth in the sprint race followed by eighth place in the feature. In Jeddah, improving to sixth on the grid, he won the sprint race after overtaking three rivals and secured fourth place in the feature race, scoring points across all four opening races.

He achieved his first pole position of 2023 at Melbourne. Although a broken front wing ended his streak of scoring points in sprint races, he triumphed in the feature race and took over as championship leader. A difficult weekend at Baku, marked by poor qualifying and finishes outside of points contention in both races, saw him slip to third overall.

In Monaco, despite qualifying ninth, Iwasa inherited and comfortably held onto the sprint race lead for victory, reclaiming top spot in the championship standings. He concluded that weekend with tenth place in the feature race. At Barcelona, after qualifying fourth, contact during the sprint dropped him to tenth; however, he recovered to eighth before finishing fourth in a competitive feature race battle.

Iwasa faced difficulties during Austria, qualifying only 16th and finishing 11th in sprint due to an incorrect tire choice. Nevertheless, an alternate strategy combined with a timely safety car allowed him to finish second narrowly missing out on victory in the feature event. At Silverstone, although qualifying third, various issues caused him to drop to 21st in sprint; nonetheless, he fought back for fifth place in the feature despite on-track incidents.

At Hungary, Iwasa qualified sixth and earned a podium finish by placing second in the sprint race. Employing an alternate strategy helped him secure fourth place in the feature contest. Poor weather conditions at Spa-Francorchamps limited him to 16th on the grid; he improved to seventh during sprint but retired early from the feature following a spin and collision that resulted in a five-place grid penalty for subsequent rounds.

Setbacks continued at Zandvoort where rain led to cancellation of the sprint race and early contact compromised his feature race performance ending outside points at thirteenth. At Monza, retirement from sprint due to car troubles was offset by a strong drive during the feature where he briefly led before finishing second after late overtakes.

Heading into the Abu Dhabi finale requiring maximum points for title hopes, Iwasa qualified fifth and finished eighth in sprint before inheriting two positions late on for fourth place in feature. He closed out his season fourth overall with a tally of 165 points including one pole position, three victories, and three additional podium finishes.

Super Formula

2024 season

In 2024, Iwasa made his return to Japan to compete in the Super Formula series, signing with Team Mugen and partnering with two-time champion Tomoki Nojiri. Although he initially perceived this move as a regression, he later described it as a "significant advancement." During his second event at Autopolis, Iwasa achieved his inaugural pole position but dropped positions at the start, ultimately securing his first podium finish. He matched this achievement with another second-place result at Sportsland Sugo in a race that was shortened. A disappointing launch at the opening Fuji round saw him finish 11th, leading to demands for team enhancements. Nevertheless, he bounced back by earning a second-place podium in the opening race of the subsequent Fuji round. The season concluded on a low note at Suzuka, where poor starts resulted in ninth and seventh-place finishes. Iwasa wrapped up the year fifth in the championship standings, accumulating 63.5 points and three podiums.

2025 season

Iwasa remained with Team Mugen for the 2025 campaign.

Formula One

In early 2021, Iwasa was officially inducted into the Red Bull Junior Programme. He made his Formula One testing debut behind the wheel of the AlphaTauri AT04 during the young drivers' test, completing 96 laps and placing 15th overall despite encountering a late mechanical issue.

His first participation in an official Formula One race weekend occurred at the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix, where he drove for RB during first practice, substituting for Daniel Ricciardo. He finished 16th, just behind teammate Yuki Tsunoda. Later that year, he took part in free practice at the 2024 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, finishing 17th, and completed 110 laps during the young drivers' test with the VCARB 01.

At the beginning of 2025, Iwasa engaged in a private test session with the AlphaTauri AT04 at Imola Circuit. Additionally, he participated in first practice for Red Bull Racing at the 2025 Bahrain Grand Prix, filling in for Max Verstappen. In late June, he returned to Imola for further testing under the previous car (TPC) program.

Personal life

Iwasa is an alumnus of Osaka International Junior and Senior High School. His family has deep roots in motorsport; both his parents raced in Honda Civic spec competitions during the 1990s, and his grandfather also competed professionally.

Racing record

Racing career summary

Season	Series	Team	Races	Wins	Poles	F/Laps	Podiums	Points	Position
2017	F4 Japanese Championship	B-Max Racing Team	2	0	0	0	0	0	28th
	Asian Formula Renault Series	Asia Racing Team	2	0	2	1	2	48	13th
2018	F4 Japanese Championship	Rn-sports	2	0	0	0	0	8	17th
2019	Super Taikyū - ST-4	Tracy Sports SPV Racing	1	0	0	0	0	65‡	5th‡
2020	French F4 Championship	FFSA Academy	21	9	5	7	15	338	1st
2021	FIA Formula 3 Championship	Hitech Grand Prix	20	1	0	0	2	52	12th
	F3 Asian Championship	Hitech Grand Prix	15	0	0	0	1	82	8th
2022	FIA Formula 2 Championship	DAMS	28	2	2	1	6	141	5th
2023	FIA Formula 2 Championship	DAMS	26	3	1	3	6	165	4th
2024	Super Formula	Team Mugen	9	0	1	0	3	63.5	5th
	Formula One (Test driver)	Visa Cash App RB F1 Team	Test driver
2025	Super Formula	Team Mugen	7	0	0	2	5	67	4th*
	Formula One (Reserve driver)	Visa Cash App Racing Bulls F1 Team	Reserve driver
	Formula One (Test driver)	Oracle Red Bull Racing	Test driver

^* Season ongoing.
‡ Team standings.

Full Results of the F4 Japanese Championship

(key) (Events highlighted in bold denote pole position; those in italics represent fastest lap points)

Season	Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	Final Position	Total Points
2017	B-Max Racing Team	OKA 1	OKA 2	FUJ1 1	FUJ1 2	AUT 1	AUT 2	SUG 1	SUG 2	FUJ2 1	FUJ2 2	SUZ 1	SUZ 2	MOT 1 15	MOT 2 15	28th	0
2018	Rn-sports	OKA 1	OKA 2	FUJ1 1	FUJ1 2	SUZ 1 6	SUZ 2 Ret	FUJ2 1	FUJ2 2	SUG 1	SUG 2	AUT 1	AUT 2	MOT 1	MOT 2	17th	8

Full French F4 Championship Results

(key) (Pole positions are in bold; fastest laps appear in italics)

Year	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	Standing	Points

|- | 2020

|style="background:#ffffbf;" | NOG 
1 
 
|style="background:#dfffdf;" | NOG 
2 
 
|style="background:#ffffbf;" | NOG 
3 
 
|style="background:#dfffdf;" | MAG 
1 
 
|style="background:#dfffdf;" | MAG 
2 
 
|style="background:#ffdf9f;" | MAG 
3 
 
|style="background:#ffffbf;" | ZAN 
1 
 
|style="background:#dfffdf;" | ZAN 
2 
 
|style="background:#ffffbf;" | ZAN 
3 
 
|style="background:#ffffbf;" | LEC1 
1 
 
|style="background:#ffdf9f;" | LEC1 
2 
 
|style="background:#ffffbf;" | LEC1 
3 
 
|style="background:#ffffbf;" | SPA 
1 
 
|style="background:#dfdfdf;" | SPA 
2 
 
|style="background:#ffffbf;" | SPA 
3 
 
|style="background:#dfdfdf;" | LEC2 
1 
 
|style="background:#dfffdf;" | LEC2 
2 
 
|style="background:#dfdfdf;" | LEC2 
3 
 
|| style = " background : # dfdfdf " || Circuit Paul Ricard  LEC3  (  Race  ) < br >  
|| style = " background : # dfffdf " || [ [ Circuit Paul Ricard LEC3 ( Race ) ] ]< br >  
|| style = " background : # ffffbf " || [ [ Circuit Paul Ricard LEC3 ( Race ) ] ]< br >  
! style = " background : # ffffbf " || Champion ! style = " background : # ffffbf " || 

|}

Full F3 Asian Championship results

(key) (Bolded race numbers denote pole positions) (Italicized race numbers indicate fastest laps within the top ten)

Year	Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	Final Position	Points Scored
2021	Hitech Grand Prix	DUB 1 6	DUB 2 5	DUB 3 5	ABU 1 9	ABU 2 10	ABU 3 4	ABU 1 6	ABU 2 10	ABU 3 7	DUB 1 3	DUB 2 Ret	DUB 3 10	ABU 1 10	ABU 2 10	ABU 3 7	8th place	82 points

Full FIA Formula 3 Championship results

(key) (Pole positions highlighted in bold; fastest lap points shown in italics)

Year	Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	Final Standing	Total Points
2021	Hitech Grand Prix	CAT 1 14	CAT 2 7	CAT 3 15	LEC 1 8	LEC 2 9	LEC 3 7	"RBR 1" DSQ	"RBR 2" 14	"RBR 3" 6	"HUN 1" 1	"HUN 2" 10	"HUN 3" 12	"SPA 1" 15	"SPA 2" 11	"SPA 3" 13	"ZAN 1" 3	"ZAN 2" Ret	"ZAN 3" 11	"SOC 1" 10	"SOC 2" C	"SOC 3" 9	12th place	52 points

Full FIA Formula 2 Championship Results

(legend) (Entries in bold denote pole position) (Entries in italics signify fastest lap)

Year	Team	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	28	Final Position	Points
2022	DAMS	BHR SPR 8th	BHR FEA 16th	JED SPR 6th	JED FEA 7th	IMO SPR 9th	IMO FEA 5th	CAT SPR 2nd	CAT FEA 12th	MCO SPR 19th	MCO FEA 17th†	BAK SPR 8th	BAK FEA 14th	SIL SPR 2nd	SIL FEA 12th	RBR SPR 10th	RBR FEA 7th	LEC SPR 6th	LEC FEA 1st	HUN SPR 8th	HUN FEA 3rd	SPA SPR 9th	SPA FEA 7th	[[2022 Zandvoort Formula 2 round|getZandvoortFormula_Formula_Formula_Formula_Formula_Formula_Formula_Formula_Formula_Formula_Formula_Formula_Formula_Formula_Formula_Formula_Formula_Formula_Formula_Formula_Formula_Formula_Formula_Formula_Formula_Formula_Formula_Formula_ZAN_SPR_ZAN_FEA_ZAN_ZAN_ZAN_ZAN_ZAN_ZAN_ZAN_ZAN_ZAN_ZAN_ZAN_ZAN_ZAN_ZAN_ZAN_ZAN_ZAN_ZAN_ZAN_SPR_FEAZAN_FEAZAN}}] 6	MNZ < br > FEA < br > DSQ	YMC < br > SPR < br > ۱۳	YMC < br > FEA < br > ۱	5th	141
۲۰۲۳	DAMS	BHR < br > SPR < br > ۴	BHR < br > FEA < br > ۸	JED < br > SPR < br > ۱	JED < br > FEA < br > ۴	MEL < br > SPR < br > ۱۳	MEL < br > FEA < br > ۱	BAK < br > SPR < br > Ret	BAK < br > FEA < br > ۱۲	MCO < br > SPR < br > ۱	MCO < br > FEA < br > ۱۰	CAT < br > SPR < br > ۸	CAT < br > FEA < br > ۴	RBR < br > SPR < br > ۱۱	style = " background :# DFDFDF ;" [[۲۰۲۳ Spielberg Formula Two Round  RBR  FEA  کدکدکدکدکدکدکدکدکدکدکدکدکدکدکدکدکدکدکدکدکدکدکدکدکدکدک  ' }}  ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' '	4th	165

Full Super Formula Championship Outcomes

Year	Team	Engine	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	Final Standing	Total Points
2024	Team Mugen	Honda	SUZ 9	AUT 21	SUG 2‡2	FUJ 112	MOT 7	FUJ 2	FUJ 6	SUZ 92	SUZ 7				5th place	63.5
2025	Team Mugen	Honda	SUZ 22	SUZ 32	MOT Ret	MOT 3	AUT Ret	FUJ 3	FUJ 2	SUG	FUJ	FUJ	SUZ

^‡ Points awarded at half value due to race distance being under 75%.

Comprehensive Formula One Participation Record

(Template:F1 driver results legend 2#key) (Bold font denotes pole position; italics indicate fastest lap)

Year	Entrant	Chassis	Engine	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	"WDC"	Points

Template:F1	Visa Cash App RB F1 Team	RB VCARB 01	Honda RBPTH002 1.6 V6 t	BHR	SAU	AUS	JPN TD	CHN	MIA	EMI	MON	CAN	ESP	AUT	GBR	HUN	BEL	NED	ITA	AZE	SIN	USA	MXC	SAP	LVG	QAT	ABU TD	–	–

2025	Oracle Red Bull Racing	Red Bull RB21	Honda RBPTH003 1.6 [[V6 engine – V6 turbocharger – t – turbocharged engine – hybrid power unit – Honda F1 engine – Honda RBPT engine – Red Bull Honda engine – Formula One engine – F1 engine – F1 power unit – F1 hybrid power unit – F1 turbocharged engine – F1 V6 turbocharged hybrid engine – RBPTH003 engine – RBPTH003 power unit – Red Bull Powertrains Honda engine – Red Bull Powertrains Honda hybrid power unit – Red Bull Powertrains Honda V6 turbo hybrid power unit ]]