SPORTS
June 19, 2017
THE ASIAN REPORTER n Page 7
Asians in American sports w Asian Americans in world sports
Takuma Sato’s dream comes true at the Indy 500
VINDICATING VICTORY. Takuma Sato of
Japan celebrates (top photo) winning the Indianapolis
500 auto race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in
Indianapolis, Indiana, on May 28, 2017. In the bottom
photo, Sato crosses the Yard of Bricks at the end of
the race. Beyond redemption, the victory held deep
personal meaning for Sato since the Indy 500 inspired
him to pursue racing as a career.
By Mike Street
Special to The Asian Reporter
AP Photo/Rob Baker
AP Photo/Darron Cummings
A
sian athletes have made inroads
into many different professional
American sports, but open-wheel
racing has not been one of them. That is,
not until Japanese driver Takuma Sato
won the Indy 500, the quintessentially
American racing event. The former
Formula One driver created a thrilling
finish, winning just his second IndyCar
race on a track he’s had a special
connection with for a long time.
Sato has made Asian-American athletic
history before, when he became the first
Japanese driver to win an IndyCar race at
the 2013 Toyota Grand Prix at Long
Beach. Though less exciting than Sato’s
Indy 500 victory, Long Beach showed his
dominance, as Sato led 50 of the race’s 80
laps. In victory, Sato beat Dario
Franchitti, the 2009 Long Beach winner,
who had stopped Sato from winning the
Indy 500 in 2012.
In that Indy 500, Sato sat behind only
Franchitti and Scott Dixon with two laps
remaining. Franchitti passed Dixon, and
Sato followed, so just one driver stood
between him and victory at the biggest
open-wheel race in America. On the first
turn of the race’s final lap, Sato tried to
pass Franchitti but spun into the wall,
finishing in 17th place.
Beyond redemption, Sato’s 2017 win
held deep personal meaning for him, since
the Indy 500 inspired him to pursue racing
as a career. At age seven, Sato watched his
first race on television, the Indy 500, and
he was amazed at the speed of the drivers.
“After that, I was hooked on racing,” Sato
said. “I wanted to be a driver. I was going to
be a driver.”
The Tokyo native has worked a long time
to get to the winner’s circle. Sato began
pursuing his dream in 1996, when he went
from cyclist to kart driver. The following
year, he won a scholarship to Honda’s
prestigious Suzuka Racing School. Sato
could have been their driver in the 1998
All-Japan Formula 3 Championship, but
he knew his path to Formula One would
have to begin in Europe instead.
In Europe, Sato raced in the British
Formula 3 series, taking just three years to
rise to circuit champion, in 2001. The
following year, he raced in his first
Formula One event, the Jordan Grand
Prix. He later placed fifth at the Japanese
Grand Prix, earning his first points in the
Formula One World Championship race.
Sato became a full-time Formula One
driver in 2004, making his mark imme-
diately. Still with the British American
Racing team, he finished 10 times in the
top ten and five times in the top five,
including a third-place finish at the United
States Grand Prix. The track for this race
was the Indianapolis Motor Speedway —
the same one on which the Indy 500 is run.
That would be his best Formula One
finish ever and just the second time a
Japanese driver had reached the Formula
One podium. The first, Aguri Suzuki, took
third at the 1990 Japanese Grand Prix, but
never realized his promise. Sato, by
contrast, went on to take eighth place in
the 2004 Formula One championship, the
best finish ever by a Japanese driver.
2004 proved to be Sato’s best year in that
circuit, however. He never again ranked
higher than 16th or finished a race in the
top five, amassing only six more top-ten
finishes in the next four seasons. In 2006,
Sato signed with Aguri Suzuki’s Super
Aguri team, which fell apart in 2008,
leaving Sato without a team.
After a year layoff, Sato signed with the
KV Racing Technology IndyCar team,
finishing the 2010 season in 21st place on
the strength of a single top-ten finish at
Edmonton. Sato continued to rise in his
new circuit, changing teams in 2012 and
again to A.J. Foyt in 2013, when he
secured that first victory at Long Beach.
Before
the
2017
season,
Sato
consistently placed in the top 20 in the
championship rankings, collecting a
handful of top-ten and one or two top-five
finishes each year. This season, Sato
joined Andretti Autosport, a portentous
sign, since the team had won four Indy 500
races overall, including two in the previous
three seasons.
Sato remarked on this record after
signing with Andretti: “The team has
proven year after year that they are
ultra-competitive on all types of circuits.
Particularly the speed that the team has
shown in recent years at the Indy 500 has
been incredible.”
The move paid immediate dividends, as
Sato placed fifth in his first race and ninth
in his third race. At Indianapolis, he
qualified fourth, his best starting position
of the season and the best in his eight
previous tries at the Indy 500. On the day
of the race, he later said, “It was the first
time in my career at Indy when I felt like I
could win it. When, in my head, I knew I
should win it.”
As the race progressed, Sato remained
at the front of the pack, waiting for his
moment to strike. With 22 laps to go, he
found it.
He flew around Helio Castroneves and
Ed Jones to set himself up among the top
three. Ten laps later, both Castroneves
and Sato passed race leader Max Chilton,
and the two battled for first throughout the
race’s final laps before Sato flew ahead for
good, holding off Castroneves until the
finish. “I know Helio is always going to
charge,” Sato said. “But he’s just such a
gentleman and such a fair player.”
After Sato emerged victorious, team
owner Michael Andretti said, “We had the
right guy … He drove a superb race.”
Andretti fielded six cars at this year’s Indy
500, and Sato seemed lost in the shuffle.
But he exceeded all expectations and, at 40
years old, may have finally found the right
combination to fulfill his childhood
dreams.
Filipino hoops sensation Kobe Paras seeks fresh start in L.A.
By Beth Harris
AP Sports Writer
L
OS ANGELES — Kobe Paras is back in
Los Angeles looking for a fresh start.
The guard, who is a celebrity in his
native Philippines, is hoping he finds it at Cal
State Northridge after a false start at the
University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)
and a single season at Creighton.
Paras was welcomed to campus by Matadors
coach Reggie Theus, who presented him with
his No. 21 jersey. As a transfer, Paras will have
to sit out the upcoming season because of
National Collegiate Athletic Association
(NCAA) rules.
“It’s a new beginning and it’s very humbling
for me,” Paras said.
He played at Cathedral High in Los Angeles
before transferring to Middlebrooks Academy
for his senior year. Paras was a highly touted
recruit, having shown off his skills in several
elite showcases and with the Compton Magic,
his Amateur Athletic Union travelling team.
Theus tried recruiting Paras back then, but
he committed to UCLA under coach Steve
Alford. Last June, the school said he had failed
to meet academic requirements.
“It’s been hard for me the last couple years,”
he said. “I’ve been through a lot of adversity and
my head’s still high.”
Looking for another opportunity, Paras head-
ed to Omaha, Nebraska. “I just took a chance,”
he said. It didn’t work out at Creighton.
Paras averaged 1.3 points in 15 games for the
Bluejays last season. He never started and
played a total of 70 minutes.
“As a freshman, I expected to play a lot,” he
said. “We had a strong lineup of older guys and
he (coach Greg McDermott) believed in the
older guys. Everything happens for a reason.”
At Northridge, Paras joins a team that went
11-19 and lost in the Big West Tournament
quarterfinals last season. The Matadors’ last
NCAA tournament appearance was in 2009, the
same year they last won the regular-season
league title.
Heading into his fifth season in Northridge,
Theus believes he’s found the player who can lift
the Matadors to new heights.
“Kobe has endless potential and his ceiling is
so high,” the former National Basketball
Association star said. “He went through some
adversity last year and some things that
weren’t so good for him. He kept his composure.
I’m really proud to have Kobe here.”
Paras shares a first name with retired Los
Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant. He also has a
high-profile father who is actively involved in
his son’s burgeoning career.
Benjie Paras was a star basketball player in
the Philippines, twice earning MVP honors in
the Philippine Basketball Association while
leading his team to two titles. The 6’7” center
retired in 2003 after 14 years and became an
actor.
“All I can say is he’s all yours,” the elder Paras
said, turning toward Theus. “I won’t interfere
with anything.”
Both father and son are celebrities in their
native country.
“It’s hard for me every time I go back home
because people ask for pictures and
autographs,” said the younger Paras.
Benjie Paras gets asked all the time whether
his son is a better player than he was.
“I always tell them he’s way better than me,
but I always tell them I’m better looking,” he
said, laughing.
He can practice with the Matadors next
season, although he won’t play in games or
travel with the team.
“He’s very hungry to prove what he can be as a
college basketball player,” Theus said. “We
have an extra 800 seats up top that maybe he
can put some people into.”
Paras sounded relieved to have finally found
a basketball home. “I’ve been recruited ever
since high school and coach Reggie is still
showing he wanted me to be here,” he said.
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