Keisuke Kunimoto
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Keisuke Kunimoto (国本 京佑 Kunimoto Keisuke, born January 9, 1989 in Yokohama), birth name: Lee Gyeong-Woo (Korean: 이경우, Hanja: 李京佑), is a Japanese/Zainichi Korean race car driver who races with Japanese racing license.[1][2]
His father, Yoshihiro Ri, also known as Yoshihiro Kunimoto, is the 1983 All Japan Karting Champion, and his uncle, Yoshihiko Ri, won same karting championship twice in 1980 and 1981. His mother is Japanese. His younger brother, Yuji, is also a race car driver.
Racing career
Kunimoto began karting in 2001 when he was 12. After winning the All Japan Karting Championship FA Class in 2004, he entered Formula Toyota Racing School and took scholarship of Toyota. He began his car racing career in the 2005 Formula Toyota season, at the seventh round of the season in Tsukuba.
He competed in Formula Toyota and Formula Challenge Japan in 2006 and 2007, and won the championship of Formula Challenge Japan with three wins and ended runner-up in Formula Toyota in 2007.
In 2008, he raced in the All-Japan Formula Three for TOM'S and in the Super GT for apr, as a Toyota young Drivers Program (TDP) driver. He finished runner-up in the first Formula Three season.
2008 Macau Grand Prix
At the end of the season, Kunimoto went to Macau with TOM'S and won the Macau F3 Grand Prix, becoming the second Japanese driver to win the race after Takuma Sato.
Formula Renault 3.5 Series
Kunimoto joined Epsilon Euskadi for the last two Formula Renault 3.5 Series rounds of the 2009 season. He replaced Spaniard Dani Clos in the team's line-up at the Nürburgring and at the season finale at the new Ciudad del Motor de Aragón circuit.[3]
He will return with the team for the 2010 season, partnering 2009 Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 champion Albert Costa.[4]
Racing record
24 Hours of Le Mans results
| Year | Team | Co-Drivers | Car | Class | Laps | Pos. | Class Pos. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 |  Navi Team Goh |
Seiji Ara Sascha Maassen |
Porsche RS Spyder Evo | LMP2 | 339 | DNF | DNF |
Complete Formula Renault 3.5 Series results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | Pos | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Epsilon Euskadi | CAT 1 |
CAT 2 |
SPA 1 |
SPA 2 |
MON 1 |
HUN 1 |
HUN 2 |
SIL 1 |
SIL 2 |
BUG 1 |
BUG 2 |
ALG 1 |
ALG 2 |
NÜR 1 16 |
NÜR 2 13 |
ALC 1 17 |
ALC 2 21 |
32nd | 0 |
| 2010 | Epsilon Euskadi | ALC 1 Ret |
ALC 2 14 |
SPA 1 15 |
SPA 2 16 |
MON 1 18 |
BRN 1 5 |
BRN 2 Ret |
MAG 1 16 |
MAG 2 18 |
HUN 1 9 |
HUN 2 15 |
HOC 1 12 |
HOC 2 13 |
SIL 1 12 |
SIL 2 13 |
CAT 1 11 |
CAT 2 18 |
22nd | 8 |
References
- ↑ Ａ１グランプリ韓国代表は在日３世のイ・キョンウ (in Japanese). joins.com. 2008-02-03. Retrieved 2008-02-04.
- ↑ "A1팀코리아, F3 월드 챔피언 이경우 선수 영입" (in Korean). A1 Team Korea. 2008-02-04. Retrieved 2008-02-04.
- ↑ English, Steven (2009-09-14). "Kunimoto to join Epsilon for two races". autosport.com. Haymarket Publications. Archived from the original on 2009-09-16. Retrieved 2009-09-14.
- ↑ "Epsilon Euskadi announces World Series 2010 drivers' line up". Epsilon Euskadi. Consultec. 2010-02-22. Retrieved 2010-03-07.
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Keisuke Kunimoto. |
- Keisuke Kunimoto official website (Japanese)
- Profile – All-Japan Formula Three official website
- Profile – Super GT official website
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Yuhi Sekiguchi |
Formula Challenge Japan Champion 2007 |
Succeeded by Yuji Kunimoto |
| Preceded by Oliver Jarvis |
Macau Grand Prix Winner 2008 |
Succeeded by Edoardo Mortara |