Japanese driver Kanato Le has confirmed his plans to race in the 2023 ROKiT F4 British Championship certified by FIA with Hitech GP.
The 15-year-old makes the all-important graduation to single seaters in Britain’s FIA Formula 4 series off the back of an impressive 2022 campaign, in which he finished runner-up to new team-mate William Macintyre in the Ginetta Junior Rookie Championship.
His decorated karting career also includes the 2021 IAME Euro Series Junior X30 crown and numerous other race victories, having moved from Japan to the UK in order to pursue his racing ambitions at just 12 years of age.
“I am extremely happy to be racing in British F4 with Hitech GP in 2023,” says Le on the news.
“It’s an exciting time to be a part of the championship and was the obvious next step for me to further my ambitions of becoming a Formula 1 driver in the future.
“Hitech has an incredible history in motorsport and has been proven winners in every category from F4 up to F2, so to be joining the team and utilising their expertise and experience is fantastic for my career.
“We had testing at Snetterton in the official New Driver Test which puts us in a good position with the preparations for next year.”
Having only joined the ROKiT British F4 ranks last season, Silverstone-based Hitech GP have already made quite the impression. They claimed the Driver’s title at the first attempt with Alex Dunne and smashed the record for most victories in a single season in the process.
“We are excited to welcome Kanato to Hitech,” says Oakes. “He has had an impressive rookie season in Ginetta this year and we look forward to helping him step up to F4.
“He will have lots to learn as he embarks on his first season in single-seaters, and we look forward to supporting him through that transition and building on the already evident promise he has shown.”
Le becomes the seventh confirmed driver on the 2023 grid, following news of Patrick Heuzenroeder (Argenti), William Macintyre (Hitech) Dion Gowda (Carlin) and James Higgins (Fortec), plus Monica Boulton Ramos and Deagen Fairclough.
The latter pair won the emerging ROKiT Racing Star competition in its debut year, with fully funded 2023 drives as the prize.
Next season will represent another landmark year for the championship, with another 10-event, 30-race season, including a first ever trip to the full Grand Prix circuit at Silverstone, set to commence at Donington Park on 22-23 April 2023.
The remainder of Hitech GP’s driver line-up will be unveiled in due course.
