🇯🇵 Tatsuya Kataoka

Tatsuya Kataoka is a professional sportscar driver classified as FIA Gold, competing primarily in Super GT across two decades. His rating of 4,592 places him among established professionals; he operates at the level of a full-time front-running seat in a strong field, where he consistently runs among competitive drivers but not as a regular race winner. Across 139 starts in Super GT from 2008 to 2026, Kataoka has scored two podiums and raced almost exclusively for Goodsmile Racing with Team Ukyo, a team that has fielded him alongside drivers of similar calibre. His career spans 21 seasons and 144 total starts, with a typical finishing position of P19 across classified results.[1]

The competitive context reveals Kataoka's standing within one of motorsport's most demanding professional fields. He has shared grid space repeatedly with multiple Super GT champions of Platinum grade, including Ronnie Quintarelli (three titles), Naoki Yamamoto (three titles), and Sho Tsuboi (three titles). Against these elite rivals his head-to-head records are heavily negative; he has finished behind Quintarelli in 115 of 127 shared races and behind Yamamoto in 115 of 128 shared races. His records against Takashi Kogure and Kohei Hirate, both rated as strong professionals, show a similar pattern of deficit. He has occasionally beaten higher-rated drivers in single outings, including five finishes ahead of IndyCar champion Alex Palou and thirteen ahead of Super GT champion Sho Tsuboi, but these represent rare results rather than sustained competitive advantage.[2]

Kataoka remains active in 2026, having contested two rounds of Super GT that season. His career reflects the profile of a professional endurance driver who has secured long-term employment in one of the world's top sportscar championships but operates as a mid-field runner among a field dominated by more accomplished rivals. Recent activity indicates his continued presence in the series through at least mid-year 2026.