Shinji Nakano
A passion for driving
A passion for driving
The cherished desire Shinji Nakano is to elevate his speed as a racing driver to the ultimate level. In this quest, he has never been choosy about the stage on which to excel. During his younger days, he set off for Europe, the true home of motorsport. There, he competed in Formula 1, the global summit of automotive competition, as well as the 24-Hours of Le Mans endurance race. In the United States, his exploits have included driving in the Indianapolis 500, forging his legacy as the first Japanese national ever to compete in the world’s three foremost car races.
In more recent years, Shinji has expanded his achievements beyond success as a driver to serve as vice principal of a racing school, in addition to managing two teams, one in the Japan Grand Prix Championships and the other in the All-Japan Super Formula. On these and other fronts, he continues to exercise his myriad talents as a legendary racing driver.
Shinji started his current journey at the age of 11 with karting. When he was 16, he became the first Japanese driver and youngest-ever champion to win the International Kart Grand Prix. Having emerged as No. 1 in the world, his quest to become an F1 driver shifted from a dream to a clear and realistic goal. But he was also keenly aware that merely being fast was not the sole key to survival in the world of motorsport, which spurred him down the road of rigorous training and efforts to improve his communication skills.
In 2006, Shinji competed in the Le Mans Classic Japan race held at Fuji International Speedway as a member of the Richard Mille team. Wearing a Richard Mille watch in a race for the very first time, he emerged as the overall champion and joined the Richard Mille family. ever since then, Richard Mille watches have qualified as truly lucky items for Shinji, harbingers of outstanding results in his racing.
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