‘I wouldn’t be where I am without the Suzuka Racing School’ - Ayumu Iwasa on the moments that made him

Despite being one of the less experienced drivers on the Formula 2 grid, Ayumu Iwasa’s career has already featured some pretty big moments.

We spoke to the DAMS racing driver to find out which are chief among them and why, as he discusses his journey from karting in Japan to competing on a Formula 1 weekend.

BEING A PART OF THE SUZUKA RACING SCHOOL

“2019 was a really big year for me, as I learned and improved a lot. That was the year that I got my scholarship from the Suzuka Racing School after winning the title. That earned me a place as a Honda Junior driver, and I wouldn’t be where I am without the Suzuka Racing School.”

WINNING THE FRENCH F4 TITLE

“Winning the French Formula 4 Championship was really important as it allowed me to step up to Formula 3. I won the first round, which was really good, but then after that, I struggled in the second round and didn’t win for three races. I kept finishing P2 or P3 and couldn’t get another win.

“That taught me a lot and made me improve my driving. I won again in the third round of the season at Zandvoort and after that won six more times, as well as taking five more podiums.

“This was only my first season of racing in Europe, so I had to learn a lot of new tracks. The biggest difference between Japan and Europe is probably the tarmac. The tarmac in Japan has really good grip and it is never dirty. At Europe tracks, the track can be dusty at the beginning of the race weekends, and then after a session, it becomes really grippy.”

MY FIRST FORMULA 3 WIN

“Winning Race 1 at the Hungaroring was really important and showed that I could perform in Formula 3. Honda’s Masashi Yamamoto told me that I did a good job. He said that I could be better and stronger from there onwards.”