Ami Saito is one of the most compelling drivers to emerge from Japan’s women’s racing scene in recent years — a two-time Kyojo Cup champion who has quietly become one of the harder names to ignore in Japanese motorsport. [1][2]

EARLY YEARS

Born on October 20, 1999, Ami Saito grew up in Japan and came to motorsport through karting, as so many do — though what she built from that foundation is anything but standard-issue. [3] She developed her skills through the junior ranks of Japanese motorsport, eventually finding her footing in the Kyojo Cup, the all-female touring car series that has become the proving ground for women’s racing in Japan. [4][5]

OTHER INTERESTS

Outside of the car, Saito has shown an interest in fitness and physical conditioning, which is part and parcel of competing at the level she does. [6] She is also known to engage warmly with fans on social media, offering a candid window into both her competitive life and her personality away from the paddock. [6]

EARLY SUCCESS

Saito made her mark in the Kyojo Cup — a series created by Toyota Gazoo Racing specifically to develop female driving talent in Japan — and established herself as one of its most consistent front-runners. [4][5] The Kyojo Cup runs alongside Super Formula and Super GT weekends, giving its drivers rare exposure to Japan’s top-tier domestic racing environment. [4] That proximity to the best isn’t lost on those competing for championships there.

Her progression through the Kyojo Cup was not a straight line. She accumulated competitive experience across multiple seasons before breaking through for her first race win — a hard-fought victory that signaled she was ready to contend for bigger things. [7] That first win of the 2024 season came under genuine pressure, and she delivered it cleanly. [7]

Beyond single-seaters and touring cars, Saito has also competed in endurance racing. She was part of the Toyota Gazoo Rookie Racing squad that made the team’s first-ever appearance at the Dubai 24 Hours, joining a five-driver lineup of Kyojo Cup regulars for the challenge. [8] The all-female crew completed the race and took a class podium in the TC category — a meaningful result for a team running a 24-hour race together for the first time. [9] That kind of endurance experience, navigating night stints and mechanical attrition alongside teammates under pressure, develops qualities that short-format sprint racing simply doesn’t. [8][9]

She also competed in the Super Taikyu series, where she claimed a class win in the ST-Q category — a result that demonstrated her versatility across different racing formats and car types. [10]

NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENTS

• 2024: Kyojo Cup Champion — clinched the title with a victory in the season finale [11].
• 2024: First race win of the 2024 Kyojo Cup season, described as hard-fought [7].
• 2024: Part of Toyota Gazoo Rookie Racing’s five-driver lineup for the Dubai 24 Hours — the team’s first appearance at the event [8].
• 2024: Class win (ST-Q) in the Super Taikyu series [10].
• 2024: Dubai 24 Hours TC class podium with Shimono, Onaga, Sato, and Sasaki [9].
• 2025: Competing in the 2025 Kyojo Cup season as a title contender [12].

INSPIRATIONS

The Kyojo Cup itself was designed with a specific philosophy in mind — to create a genuine pathway for women in Japanese motorsport rather than a sideshow. [4][5] For the drivers who have come through it, that institutional commitment matters. Saito has operated within that framework and, in winning the championship, has become part of the argument that the series works. [11]

The presence of Toyota Gazoo Racing as the organizational backbone of the Kyojo Cup means that drivers like Saito have access to genuine factory support, professional infrastructure, and the kind of visibility that comes with racing at major domestic events. [4] Whether that translates into something bigger further up the Japanese motorsport ladder is the question that tends to follow Kyojo Cup champions. [5]

REPUTATION

Within the Kyojo Cup paddock, Saito is regarded as a complete driver — someone who can qualify well, manage a race, and close when it counts. [7][11] The 2024 championship was not handed to her. She had to win the finale to secure it, which is exactly the kind of pressure-test that separates champions from contenders. [11]

Her willingness to take on the Dubai 24 Hours with a crew of fellow Kyojo Cup regulars — none of whom had completed a 24-hour race together before — also says something about her approach. Endurance racing rewards patience, consistency, and the ability to deliver lap after lap in conditions that punish overdriving. The fact that the team finished and podiumed suggests those qualities are present. [8][9]

She is also one of the more recognizable faces of the Kyojo Cup’s growing profile internationally, appearing in coverage that has brought the series attention beyond Japan. [6][12] In a series designed to produce the next generation of Japanese women in motorsport, she has become one of the clearest examples of what that pipeline can produce. [4][5]

FUTURE GOALS/PLANS

Saito is competing in the 2025 Kyojo Cup season, where she enters as the defending champion and a driver others are measuring themselves against. [12][13] The series itself continues to grow, and Toyota Gazoo Racing’s development motorsport program — which announced expanded plans for 2026 — suggests that pathways beyond the Kyojo Cup remain a real possibility for drivers who keep performing. [14]

What comes next for a Kyojo Cup champion is a live question in Japanese motorsport. The series has always positioned itself as a development ladder, and with the 2026 Toyota Gazoo Racing development program taking shape, the conversation about where drivers like Saito fit into the broader ecosystem is one worth watching. [14][5]

References:

Woman Spotlight Wednesday: Aimi Saito — Dive-Bomb
Saito Motorsport Official Site
Ami Saito — Wikipedia
Ami Saito Profile — Kyojo Cup Official
Kyojo Cup — Wikipedia
Sho Tsuboi and Aimi Saito: Motorsport’s Power Couple of 2024 — Dive-Bomb
Kyojo Cup: Saito Takes Hard-Fought First Win of the Season — Racers Behind the Helmet
Toyota Gazoo Rookie Racing Brings Five Kyojo Cup Regulars for First Dubai 24 Hour Appearance — Racers Behind the Helmet
24H Dubai: Shimono, Onaga, Sato, Saito, Sasaki Complete First 24-Hour Race with TC Podium — Racers Behind the Helmet
Super Taikyu: Inotsume Takes Overall Podium, Saito Wins ST-Q — Racers Behind the Helmet
Kyojo Cup: Aimi Saito Wins the Finale, Clinches 2024 Crown — Racers Behind the Helmet
Kyojo Cup 2025 Season Guide — Feeder Series
2025 Kyojo Cup Season — Wikipedia
Toyota Gazoo Racing Announces 2026 Development Motorsport Program — AutoRacing1