It is unlikely that Kazuki Nakajima would have come to Williams’s attention but for his relationship with its engine partner Toyota.

However a solid first season proved that Nakajima was worthy of a place in Formula 1, and he stays on for 2009.

Ironically Williams lost its Honda engine supply 21 years ago when it refused to sign Nakajima’s father Satoru.

That’s not the only irony about Nakajima junior’s career, though, for while his father was a Honda protégé, the company’s arch-rival Toyota has taken Kazuki under its wing.

With former Japanese hero Takuma Sato no longer on the grid, Toyota will be hoping that Nakajima can generate similarly fervent homeland support as his career progresses.


Career log

Nakajima made his Formula 1 debut at the 2007 Brazilian Grand Prix after Williams’s retiring race driver Alex Wurz decided to step down early.

Although Nakajima had set some eye-catching times in testing and practice for Williams, being elevated to the race seat at an unfamiliar track was a big step.

There were some very public hiccoughs – a poor 19th on the grid and a collision with his mechanics at his pit stop – but Williams was impressed with Nakajima’s pace and spirit as he charged through the field to 10th and set the fifth-fastest race lap.

The team had insisted that his Interlagos outing was not an audition for a 2008 race seat, but Nakajima’s speed certainly helped his cause, and within weeks he was announced as a Williams race driver.

Attrition helped him to sixth in Melbourne, but taking out Robert Kubica along the way meant a grid penalty for the next race.

That lapse proved to be the exception rather than the rule, though, as Nakajima minimised the rookie errors and went on to take five points finishes and give highly-rated team-mate Nico Rosberg the occasional fright – although he couldn’t hold a candle to the German in qualifying.


The early years

After winning the domestic Formula Toyota series, Nakajima arrived in Japanese Formula 3 for 2004 and dominated his first two races.

More wins and a runner-spot finish in the 2005 championship followed before he headed for the Euro Series in 2006.

Once again Nakajima started strongly, taking a win in the fourth round, but he also had a habit of getting into scrapes.

That fast-but-erratic reputation was reinforced when he moved on to GP2 for 2007, by which time he was dovetailing his racing with extensive F1 testing for Williams.

He established himself as GP2’s top rookie, taking a string of mid-season podiums and claiming fifth in the championship, but there were many collisions along the way.

Although Nakajima would have been a title favourite for 2008 had he stayed in GP2, Williams and Toyota decided he was ready to step straight into F1.