Ai Miura

Ai Miura has been a stalwart of the Japanese Formula 3 championship since 2014.

She has been racing since 2011, when she was still an Osaka University student. She began in club Formula FJ and scored an eighth place at Suzuka in her first-ever race. This followed several years of both junior and senior karting. 

She spent the next two seasons competing around Japan in Formula Challenge, a Formula Renault series. In her debut season, she did not crack the top ten, managing one eleventh place at Fuji, but in 2013, she achieved three ninths and two tenths, all at Fuji, as her best scores. She also made some guest appearances in an F4 car and finished as high as fifth. 

In 2014, she progressed into the National (N) class of the Japanese Formula 3 Championship and performed well, with one class win at Suzuka and several more podium places. She was fourth in class as well as getting her name in the records as the first female winner in Japanese F3. Her debut win could easily have been in the opening round at Suzuka; she started very rapidly from third but could only hold on for a third spot. She had to wait until the following day for a win.

As well as conventional, petrol-engined cars, Ai also races solar-powered vehicles, and won the Suzuka Solar Car Race six times, between 2009 and 2015. Other years have yielded class wins and a runner-up sport. She was part of the Sangyo Osaka University team. 

In 2015, she raced in Japanese F3 again in the National class and was second at the end of hte year, with three wins and thirteen second places. She was on the class pace from the first race at Suzuka, where she finished eighth and won class N. A battle with Ryo Ogawa followed and his six-race winning streak meant that Ai was not quite able to catch him, in spite of two further wins. 

She moved up to the main class in 2016 and was a consistent top ten finisher. Her best finish was eighth, at Fuji, and she almost got into the points. 

In 2017, she was eighth in the championship, with a best finish of fourth, at Okayama. She picked up an additional top-five with a fifth place at Fuji later in the season. 

She continued in Formula 3 in 2018 and was a regular top-ten finisher, albeit in the lower reaches of the top ten. Her final championship position was eleventh, just behind her team-mate. 

On paper, 2019 panned out in much the same manner, with seven top-ten finishes. However, she had to sit out some of the rounds after incurring an injury, crashing during the fifth race of the season at Fuji. She came back for the final two races at Okayama and finished tenth in both.

During the disrupted 2020 season, she made a surprising move into the all-female Kyojo Cup, which uses small Vita sportscars. She won the three-round series from 2019 vice-champion Miki Onaga and experienced sportscar racer Anna Inotsume. She won one race and came second and third in the other two.

Eventually she did get back to Japanese F3, now running to Formula 3 Regional regulations. She was third in her first race at Motegi and then fourth twice at Okayama, finishing eleventh in the championship. 

2021 started with a change of direction; Ai entered the Japanese TCR series for a part-season in both the Saturday and Sunday series. She was driving for Dome Racing in a Honda Civic. Her best result was a second place at Autopolis in her only Saturday outing. She also managed a third at Sugo in one of the Sunday races.

Away from single-seaters, she did some sportscar racing, making guest appearancs in the Super Taikyu series between 2020 and 2022. Her cars have included a Leuxs and a Toyota Supra. She did the full season in 2022, driving a Nissan Fairlady for FKS Team Fukushima. They were fourth in their class championship with two third places.

She won another Kyojo Cup title in 2023, from Miki Onaga.

She works (or did work) in motorsport, acting as a PR person for Exedy Racing Clutches. Her first two F3 seasons were with their racing team. 

(Image copyright ai-miura.com)