Mansfield, OH

  • Japanese Super Formula competitor Kakunoshin ‘Kaku' Ohta completes 104 laps behind the wheel of the Honda-powered DW12
  • The Japanese driver has impressed in his three-race stint as part of the Acura Meyer Shank Racing team in 2025
  • Ohta is the latest driver in a long history of IndyCar and IMSA crossover for Meyer Shank Racing

Japanese rising star Kakunoshin ‘Kaku' Ohta added another Honda-powered vehicle to his racing repertoire today, testing the Meyer Shank Racing DW12 Indy car at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

Ohta has been a vital part of the Acura Meyer Shank Racing #93 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship effort this season—his first racing in the United States. Ohta has scored a best finish of fifth in the top-level GTP class alongside teammates Nick Yelloly, Renger van der Zande and Alex Palou. And the most recent race, the TireRack.com Battle on the Bricks, Ohta was the fastest of all five Acura ARX-06 drivers.

Concurrent with his IMSA program, Ohta competes in the Japanese Super Formula Championship with the Honda-powered docomo Team Dandelion Racing. The Super Formula series has been a stepping stone to IndyCar for several drivers, including current Meyer Shank Racing driver Felix Rosenqvist and reigning four-time NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion Alex Palou. Ohta currently sits third in the Super Formula title fight—just eight points out of the championship lead—with four races still to run. Ohta has also scored three wins in Super Formula so far this season, the most of any driver in the series in 2025.

Ohta is the latest driver in the Meyer Shank Racing stable to crossover from sports cars to IndyCar and vice versa. MSR has notably run open-wheel drivers such as Justin Wilson, Katherine Legge and Helio Castroneves in their IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship teams. Conversely, they have also given opportunity for IMSA drivers to try their hand at IndyCar—such as with Tom Blomqvist in 2023 and 2024.

In today's test from Mid-Ohio, Ohta completed 104 laps behind the wheel of the Meyer Shank Racing Honda-powered DW12. Ohta will be back in action at Fuji Speedway the weekend of October 11-12 as he fights for the Super Formula championship.

Quotes

Kakunoshin Ohta: "My first INDYCAR test was not only about learning the car, but also about understanding the track, the tires, and the setups, which made it an incredibly valuable experience. I'm truly grateful to Mike and Meyer Shank Racing for giving me this amazing opportunity. It was a challenging day, but I'm very satisfied with many aspects and at the same time confident that I can do even better the next time I get behind the wheel. It would be fantastic to compete in this series in the future, and I truly hope it will become a reality."

David Salters (President, Honda Racing Corporation USA): "We have been really impressed with the performance Kaku has shown with HRC Car #93 and the Acura Meyer Shank Racing team this year and the way he has integrated seamlessly into the team and raced pinnacle prototype sportscars. I'm delighted for him to have this opportunity to test the Indy car with Mike Shank and Jim Meyer. Kaku is very disciplined, has great race craft, and, of course, is incredibly fast. We've known that since he was part of the Honda Formula Dream Project, and it has only been proven time and time (and time) again. He's been very impressive in Super Formula this year, and in the ARX-06, and I look forward to seeing what he accomplishes next." 

Mike Shank (co-owner, Meyer Shank Racing):"It was great to be able to give Kaku the opportunity to run our Indy car at Mid-Ohio. Kaku did exactly what I was hoping. He progressed very well and showed maturity on and off the track. It's a big day with lots of information thrown at you and he handled it very well."

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