Kazuyoshi Hoshino

Kazuyoshi Hoshino (1 July 1947 - Present): Japanese racing driver nicknamed 'the fastest man in Japan' who won the Japanese motocross national championships in the 90cc and 125cc classes for Kawasaki in 1968 before switching to cars as a Nissan factory driver in 1969. Hoshino participated in two Formula One Grands Prix, debuting on 24 October 1976 at the Japanese Grand Prix, making him—along with compatriots Noritake Takahara and Masahiro Hasemi—the first Japanese driver to start a Formula One Grand Prix. In his debut he drove a Bridgestone-shod Heroes Racing Tyrrell 007-Ford in the 1976 Japanese GP and stunned F1 regulars by running third inside the first 10 laps. However, he ran as high as fourth but retired having used up his tyre supply.

He returned for the following year's race with a locally-built Kojima KE009-Ford and finished 11th in his second and final GP. He scored no championship points in his Formula 1 career. Hoshino enjoyed remarkable success in Japanese formula racing, winning the Japanese Formula 2000 championship in 1975 and 1977 before winning the Japanese Formula Two championship in 1978. He competed in the Japanese Formula 3000 championship, winning that title in 1987, 1990, and 1993.

His 6 championships and 39 race wins still stand as series records. Along with Nissan Motorsports teammates Aguri Suzuki and Masahiko Kageyama, Hoshino drove a Nissan R390 GT1 to a third-place finish at the 1998 24 Hours of Le Mans. He also won the 1992 Daytona 24 Hours with a NISMO Nissan R91CP. He continued his career racing for Nissan, driving a Skyline GT-R to win the Japanese Touring Car Championship in 1990.

Hoshino retired from racing in 2002 and now continues to run his own Super GT team and his own Nissan specialised aftermarket parts company, Impul.