Sato Targets Maiden F1 Victory

Japanese driver Takuma Sato is targeting more podium places in the 2005 season and even dreams of scoring his maiden win in Formula One.

The 27-year-old has already qualified on the front row and led a race last season, both firsts for a Japanese. Sato scored 34 points last year - one more than the total number of points won by Japanese drivers in the history of Formula One.

His best finish of 2004 was a third position at the US Grand Prix in Indianapolis, but now the Japanese is hungry for more.

"2005 looks like it will be a very exciting season," said Sato at the launch of his team's new car. "The regulation changes will make it very interesting and a big challenge for all the teams, not only from a technical point of view, but also because of the rule changes.

"BAR had such a great season last year and are very fortunate to be carrying that momentum through to this season and I think that this will definitely help in our challenge for the 2005 Championship. I am going into my second season here with more experience, confidence and team stability.

"Obviously I want to push myself even harder to try and improve on my podium finish last year and my ultimate goal must be to challenge for more podiums and eventually to achieve my first win. This is a great feeling to have going into the new season and I am really looking forward to it."