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Young Japanese racer Kanato Le competed in the non-championship UAE F4 Trophy race with Hitech GP this weekend at the iconic Yas Marina Circuit in front of the F1 paddock.
An excellent weekend for the young driver claiming his first single-seater podium alongside a top five finish.
The weekend started with Kanato landing himself P8 in his first-ever Formula 4 qualifying session.
The 15-year-old battled valiantly throughout race one, with some decisive close-combat Kanato managed to move up the grid to cross the line in P5.
The grid for Sunday’s race was decided by the order of fastest laps from Saturday’s race, which meant Kanato started P6 on the grid.
Kanato made good progress in the first few laps of the race moving up to P5 with contact up front between the leaders meant that a safety car was brought out.
When the race restarted on lap five, Kanato managed to pick up a tow from the third-placed Toparis on the back straight and was able to move up to a podium spot at the chicane.
With another safety car triggered by debris on track, Kanato readied himself for the restart putting pressure on his opponent from the get-on as they ran side by side down the main straight, Kanato was able to make his move stick and moved up to second place at the chicane.
Kanato maintained his position to cross the line in an impressive P2 finish in his first weekend in single-seaters.
Kanato's 2023 F4 UAE Championship season gets underway with a pre-season test at the Dubai Autodrome on January 9-10.
"I’m so happy to finish with a P2 in my first-ever race weekend in F4. This weekend was really fun being able to race at the Yas Marina Circuit and I would like to thank, Hitech GP for their hard work and support, Jonny for helping me improve every session, Tyler Hyde for making the best car possible. Also, I would like to thank Elliot Harvey, my family and MB Partners for always supporting me."
- Kanato Le
Images courtesy of James Gasperotti