is a former racing driver and team owner from

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. He started racing

motocross Motocross is a form of off-road motorcycle racing held on enclosed off-road circuits. The sport evolved from motorcycle trials competitions held in the United Kingdom. History Motocross first evolved in Britain from motorcycle trials competi ...

when he was 15 years old. In 1964 he signed to drive for

Nissan , trade name, trading as Nissan Motor Corporation and often shortened to Nissan, is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automobile manufacturer headquartered in Nishi-ku, Yokohama, Japan. The company sells ...

. After establishing himself in saloon car and GT races in Japan, he participated in his only

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

race at the 1976 Japanese Grand Prix for

Kojima Kojima may refer to: Surname * Kojima (surname) Places * Kōjima, an island known for wild monkeys in Miyazaki Prefecture, Japan * Kojima, an uninhabited island belonging to the Tokara Islands, in the southern part of Kagoshima Prefecture, Japa ...

on 24 October 1976. He qualified 10th after an error which cost him his chance of a pole position and finished 11th, seven laps behind the winner. Contrary to a widely propagated but mistaken result, however, he never set a fastest lap in a Formula One championship race. Along with compatriots

Noritake Takahara Noritake Takahara (高原敬武, born June 6, 1951 in Tokyo) is a former racing driver from Japan. He participated in 2 Formula One World Championship Grands Prix, debuting on October 24, 1976. He scored no championship points. Along with his c ...

and

Kazuyoshi Hoshino is a Japanese former racing driver and businessman. Motorsport career Hoshino's nickname was . He won the Japanese motocross national championships in the 90cc and 125cc classes for Kawasaki in 1968 before switching to cars as a Nissan facto ...

, he was the first Japanese driver to start a Formula One Grand Prix. Hasemi became the Japanese Formula 2 champion in 1980, and got two titles in the

Fuji Grand Champion Series The ran from 1971 to 1989. It was a drivers' championship in Japan and was originally for 2 litre Group B6 cars. The series was started in 1971, and all races were held at the Fuji Speedway circuit. History In its formative years, cars eligi ...

in 1974 and 1980. After that he reverted to racing Skylines, which he became heavily synonymous with in Group 5, touring cars and

JGTC Super GT (stylized as SUPER GT) is a grand touring car racing series that began in 1993. Launched as the , generally referred to as either the JGTC or the All Japan Grand Touring Car Championship, the series was renamed to Super GT in 2005. It is ...

. He won the

Japanese Touring Car Championship The Japanese Touring Car Championship (abbr: 1985–1993: JTC, 1994–1998: JTCC, officially known as All Japan Touring Car Championship, ja, 全日本ツーリングカー選手権, link=no), was a former touring car racing series held in Japan. ...

in 1989,

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...

and

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...

. He also won the

All Japan Sports Prototype Championship The , abbreviated as JSPC, formed by the Japan Automobile Federation, was a domestic championship which took place in Japan for Group C and IMSA GTP prototype cars and also featured cars that were eligible for touring car racing in its earlier yea ...

in 1990, with the controversial win at the Guia Touring Car race at the

Macau Grand Prix The Macau Grand Prix ( pt, Grande Prémio de Macau; ) is a motorsport road race for automobiles and motorcycles held annually in Macau. It is the only street circuit racing event in which both cars and motorcycles participate, and one of onl ...

in 1990 and Daytona 24 hour in 1992. Hasemi retired from driving in 2001 and now runs NDDP Racing, a

Super GT Super GT (stylized as SUPER GT) is a grand touring car racing series that began in 1993. Launched as the , generally referred to as either the JGTC or the All Japan Grand Touring Car Championship, the series was renamed to Super GT in 2005. It is ...

team that currently competes in the GT500 class. Hasemi also owns Hasemi Sport, a former

racing team that ran under the Hasemi Motorsport banner and Nissan aftermarket parts company. Hasemi is the most recent Japanese driver to win his home Grand Prix, winning it in 1975, when it was a non-championship race. Kojima KE007 front-right 2013 Yurakucho

1994 Nissan Skyline GTR JGTCC-GT1 Hasemi front

Racing record

Japanese Top Formula Championship results

(

key Key or The Key may refer to: Common meanings * Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm * Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock * Key (map ...

)

Complete Formula One results

(

)

Complete JTC/JTCC results

(

) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

Complete JGTC results

(

) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

Complete Bathurst 1000 results

24 Hours of Le Mans results

Note on fastest lap in Formula One

It was initially announced that Hasemi set the fastest lap at the 1976 Japanese Grand Prix, but it was a measurement mistake, and, several days later, the circuit issued a press release to correct the fastest lap holder of the race to

Jacques Laffite Jacques-Henri Laffite (; born 21 November 1943) is a French former racing driver who competed in Formula One from to . He achieved six Grand Prix wins, all while driving for the Ligier team. From 1997 to 2013, Laffite was a presenter for TF1. ...

. This press release was promptly made known in Japan, and the

Japan Automobile Federation The is an automobile association based in Minato, Tokyo. Founded in 1963, the main purpose of the organization is to handle various businesses related to automobiles, and to protect the interests of owners and drivers in Japan. , the organization ...

(JAF) and Japanese media corrected the record. But this correction was not made well known outside Japan, thus, Hasemi is credited with one fastest lap in many record books.

References

External links

Masahiro Hasemi profile at the Japan Automobile Federation

Hasemi Sport
Deals with

aftermarket parts (Japanese)
Kojima F1 Project
1976 Japanese Grand prix page, partially dedicated to Hasemi-san and the car
Gzox
Hasemi's Super GT sponsor's page (Japanese)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hasemi, Masahiro Japanese racing drivers Japanese Formula One drivers Kojima Formula One drivers Japanese Formula Two Championship drivers Japanese Formula 3000 Championship drivers Japanese Touring Car Championship drivers 1945 births Living people 24 Hours of Le Mans drivers 24 Hours of Daytona drivers World Sportscar Championship drivers Grand Champion Series drivers Long Distance Series drivers Australian Endurance Championship drivers Nismo drivers