Igor Fraga

Last updated
Igor Fraga
Nationality Flag of Brazil.svg Brazilian
Born (1998-09-26) September 26, 1998 (age 25)
Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan
Super GT career
Debut season 2023
Current teamArnage Racing
Car number50
Starts7
Wins0
Podiums0
Poles0
Fastest laps0
Best finish23rd in 2023
Super Formula Lights career
Debut season 2023
Current team B-Max Racing
Car number52
Starts18
Wins1
Podiums7
Poles1
Fastest laps1
Previous series
2020
2020
2019
2018
2017–18
2015–17 		FIA Formula 3 Championship
Toyota Racing Series
FR European Championship
U.S. F2000 National Championship
NACAM Formula 4 Championship
Formula 3 Brasil
Championship titles
2020
2017		 Toyota Racing Series
Formula 3 Brasil Academy Class

Igor Omura Fraga (born September 26, 1998) is a Japanese-born Brazilian racing driver, esports player, and former member of the Red Bull Junior Team. [1] He currently competes in the 2024 Super GT Series for Anest Iwata Racing with Arnage in the GT300 class, and is a reserve driver for Nakajima Racing in the Super Formula Championship. [2] He was the 2020 Toyota Racing Series champion, winning the title by six points ahead of Liam Lawson. [3] Fraga also currently serves as the esports ambassador for the Super Formula Championship. [4]

Contents

He has achieved success in esports as well, winning the inaugural FIA Gran Turismo Nations Cup and McLaren Shadow Project racing series in 2018. [5] Fraga holds a joint-record four total championships in the Gran Turismo World Series, tied with Takuma Miyazono, across three disciplines. He also competed in the 2017 Formula One eSports Series but with limited success.

Racing career

Early career

Fraga began his career through karting in 2004 at the Biwako SL Series. He won the Kids Karting class championship during consecutive years in 2004 and 2005, and continued to win the Mini ROK class championships in 2006 and 2007. Fraga would later win the 2008 Asian Karting Open Championship in the Mini ROK class the following year. [6]

2015-18: Junior formula in the Americas

Fraga raced in Formula 3 Brasil for three years, all with Prop Car Racing. Fraga's first season in 2015 did not start well, retiring in its first three races under Class B. At the following race, he finished eighth overall, and third in class. Fraga would earn a total of two pole positions, four fastest laps, nine podiums, and four class wins in the season and would finish third in Class B with 117 points. In 2016, Fraga was promoted to Class A, but only raced in four races, those being the first event at the Velopark and the last event at Interlagos. He would finish eleventh in the Class A standings, with one podium and 19 points. Fraga would return to the newly renamed Academy class in 2017. Fraga won the class, finishing the season with 190 points, with seven pole positions, seven fastest laps, 13 podiums, and 10 class wins. Simultaneously with Formula 3 Brasil, Fraga also raced in NACAM Formula 4 Championship in 2017. In his only season in 2017–18, Fraga finished second overall and earned 286 points, with five pole positions, seven fastest laps, 12 podiums, and six race wins. In 2018, Fraga participated in the U.S. F2000 National Championship. He ended the season in fourth overall, with three podiums and 213 points.

2019-20: Debut in European and Oceanian formula

In 2019, Fraga made his European debut in the inaugural Formula Regional European Championship with RP Motorsport, winning four races and finishing 3rd and therefore best of the non-Prema drivers, behind Frederik Vesti and Enzo Fittipaldi. [7]

The following year in 2020 saw him participate in the FIA Formula 3 Championship, racing with Charouz Racing System alongside Roman Staněk and David Schumacher. [8] Having only scored one point throughout the season, Fraga was set to switch to Hitech Grand Prix at the final round in Mugello, replacing Max Fewtrell, but Charouz would not authorize the move, which would place Fraga on the sidelines for the finale. [9] He would finish the season in 24th.

In March of that year, Fraga was named as a new signing to the Red Bull Junior Team, after winning the Toyota Racing Series championship in 2020, beating out fellow Red Bull Junior Liam Lawson. [1] He was released from the programme following the 2020 season.

2023-24: Super GT and Super Formula Lights

At the end of 2022, Fraga partook in a Super Formula test with B-Max Racing. [10] Fraga later took part in the post-season rookie test with Team Impul, driving Yuhi Sekiguchi's #19 car. [11] For 2023, he was confirmed to compete in the 2023 Super Formula Lights championship, racing with B-Max Racing, [12] later earning his first win in the series at Sportsland Sugo.

Fraga also participated in the 2023 Super GT Series that same year in the GT300 class, competing with Anest Iwata Racing with Arnage in the Lexus RC F GT3 alongside Yuga Furutani and Miki Koyama, the latter joining the lineup in five of the eight rounds. [13] Fraga and Furutani would score twice across the season, with two consecutive points finishes at Suzuka Circuit and Sugo, finishing 10th and 7th respectively. Koyama, who entered with the team for the Suzuka round, did not run a stint during the race and thus remained scoreless. Igor Fraga is set to return for a second season with Anest Iwata Racing with Arnage for 2024. In February 2024, Fraga was announced as a reserve driver for Nakajima Racing in the Super Formula Championship. [2]

Esports career

Fraga in esports
Career highlights and awards

In 2017, Fraga qualified for the first Formula One Esports Series final, having finished 4th and 2nd in his Heat group. His results in the final however weren't as good, finishing the three races 14th, 18th and scored six points in the last race where he finished 15th. He ended the final 18th out of 20 drivers.

Fraga has participated in the FIA-Certified Gran Turismo Championships, and made his first appearance in the series in the inaugural 2018 season, participating in the Nations Cup. On the build-up to the World Final, Igor Fraga won the Americas regional final event in Las Vegas, finishing first overall with 43 points in three races and securing a World Final spot. Fraga would take the inaugural Nations Cup championship in the World Final in Monaco with 54 points. [14] Fraga returned to the series in 2019 for both Nations Cup and Manufacturer Series championships. A first corner spin in Red Bull Ring at the first semi-final of the World Final sent Fraga to last place and he would later be eliminated in the Nations Cup as a result, finishing 10th. [15] He later won that year's Manufacturer Series championship for Toyota with teammates Rayan Derrouiche and Tomoaki Yamanaka. Fraga returned for the rebooted 2020 season in both competitive series. He did not qualify for the World Finals for the Nations Cup, but did finish 4th overall in the World Finals for the Manufacturer Series alongside Shohei Sugimori and Valerio Gallo. [16]

Fraga competed in the inaugural McLaren Shadow Project in 2018 and won the series, beating runners-up Nuno Pinto and Miguel Ballester in the grand final. [17] [18]

In 2021, Fraga would compete in the inaugural Olympic Virtual Series, participating in the 'Motor Sport' event in the Gran Turismo Sport game. [19] [20] Fraga scored a 2nd-place finish in the first race, but would not be able to complete the following two races due to a network problem, which he later clarified on his Twitter. [21] In 2022, Fraga won the Toyota GR GT Cup championship in the Gran Turismo World Series. [3] Fraga was also appointed as the esports ambassador for the Super Formula Championship later that year. [4]

Personal life

Fraga was born in Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan to Brazilian parents. [22] He previously resided in Ipatinga, Brazil, but later moved back to Japan in 2022, which he had announced on his Twitter account. [17] [23] Fraga is a multilinguist, capable of speaking Portuguese, English, Japanese, and Spanish. [24]

Karting record

Karting career summary

SeasonSeriesTeamPosition
2004Biwako SL Series — Kids KartingPeter Pan1st
2005Nishi Nihon Challenge — Kids KartingPeter Pan1st
Biwako SL Series — Kids Karting1st
2006Biwako SL Series — Mini ROKCRG Japan1st
2007Biwako SL Series — Mini ROKCRG Japan1st
Asian Karting Open Championship — Mini ROKNC
2008Asian Karting Open Championship — Mini ROKCRG Japan1st
Biwako SL Series — Mini ROKNC

Career summary

Career summary

SeasonSeriesTeamRacesWinsPolesF/LapsPodiumsPointsPosition
2015 Fórmula 3 Brasil - Class B Prop Car Racing1642491173rd
2016 Fórmula 3 Brasil Prop Car Racing400011911th
2017 Fórmula 3 Brasil - Academy Class Prop Car Racing161077131901st
2017–18 NACAM Formula 4 Championship Prop Car Racing18657122802nd
2018 U.S. F2000 National Championship Exclusive Autosport1400032134th
2019 Formula Regional European Championship DR Formula RP Motorsport 24443113003rd
2020 FIA Formula 3 Championship Charouz Racing System 160000124th
Toyota Racing Series M2 Competition 1543393621st
2023 Super Formula Lights B-Max Racing Team 181117624th
Super GT - GT300 Anest Iwata Racing with Arnage80000523rd
2024 Super GT - GT300 Arnage Racing200000*—*
Super Formula PONOS Nakajima Racing Reserve driver

Complete U.S. F2000 National Championship results

YearTeam1234567891011121314RankPoints
2018 Exclusive Autosport STP
8		 STP
2		 IMS
8		 IMS
17		 LOR
7		 ROA
8		 ROA
5		 TOR
7		 TOR
2		 MDO
17		 MDO
3		 MDO
5		 POR
15		 POR
4		4th213

Complete Formula Regional European Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)

YearEntrant12345678910111213141516171819202122232425DCPoints
2019 DR Formula
RP Motorsport 		LEC
1
3		 LEC
2
3		 LEC
3
7		 VLL
1
7		 VLL
2
8		 VLL
3
C		 HUN
1
5		 HUN
2
DNS		 HUN
3
4		 RBR
1
2		 RBR
2
9		 RBR
3
1		 IMO
1
1		 IMO
2
3		 IMO
3
2		 IMO
4
3		 CAT
1
10		 CAT
2
4		 CAT
3
7		 MUG
1
5		 MUG
2
5		 MUG
3
5		 MNZ
1
1		 MNZ
2
1		 MNZ
3
3		3rd300

Complete Toyota Racing Series results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

YearTeam123456789101112131415DCPoints
2020 M2 Competition HIG
1
2		 HIG
2
7		 HIG
3
3		 TER
1
3		 TER
2
6		 TER
3
2		 HMP
1
1		 HMP
2
4		 HMP
3
1		 PUK
1
2		 PUK
2
5		 PUK
3
8		 MAN
1
1		 MAN
2
4		 MAN
3
1		1st362

Complete FIA Formula 3 Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

YearEntrant123456789101112131415161718DCPoints
2020 Charouz Racing System RBR
FEA
16		 RBR
SPR
25		 RBR
FEA
26		 RBR
SPR
14		 HUN
FEA
15		 HUN
SPR
Ret		 SIL
FEA
15		 SIL
SPR
Ret		 SIL
FEA
18		 SIL
SPR
10		 CAT
FEA
24		 CAT
SPR
18		 SPA
FEA
19		 SPA
SPR
27		 MNZ
FEA
24		 MNZ
SPR
17		 MUG
FEA
MUG
SPR
24th1

Complete Super Formula Lights results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

YearEntrant123456789101112131415161718PosPoints
2023 B-Max Racing Team AUT
1
Ret		 AUT
2
4		 AUT
3
7		 SUG
1
2		 SUG
2
6		 SUG
3
1		 SUZ
1
Ret		 SUZ
2
9		 SUZ
3
7		 FUJ
1
8		 FUJ
2
4		 FUJ
3
8		 OKA
1
2		 OKA
2
2		 OKA
3
2		 MOT
1
3		 MOT
2
2		 MOT
3
4		4th62

Complete Super GT Results

YearTeamCarClass12345678DCPts
2023 Anest Iwata Racing with Arnage Lexus RC F GT3 GT300 OKA
12		 FUJ
14		 SUZ
17		 FUJ
19		 SUZ
10		 SUG
7		 AUT
11		 MOT
17		23rd5
2024 Arnage Racing OKA
17		 FUJ
14		 SUZ
FUJ
SUZ
SUG
AUT
MOT
—*0*

Notes

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    References

    1. 1 2 Hensby, Paul (2020-03-23). "Igor Fraga Joins Red Bull Junior Team Programme For 2020". The Checkered Flag. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
    2. 1 2 Evans, Andrew (2024-02-14). "Igor Fraga Secures Super Formula Reserve Seat at Ponos Nakajima Racing". GTPlanet. Retrieved 2024-03-01.
    3. 1 2 "Igor Fraga Wins 2020 Toyota Racing Series Title in Final Race Decider". GTPlanet. 2020-02-16. Retrieved 2020-02-28.
    4. 1 2 "Real and virtual – a two-sword athlete in motorsports! Japanese-Brazilian Driver – Igor Fraga Appointed as "SUPER FORMULA e-Motorsports Ambassador" | SUPER FORMULA Official Website". superformula.net. Retrieved 2022-12-09.
    5. ↑ "The First Nations Cup Champion is Crowned! - gran-turismo.com". www.gran-turismo.com. Retrieved 2019-03-28.
    6. ↑ "The inside scout – Igor Fraga". FIAFormula3® – The Official F3® Website. Retrieved 2022-05-05.
    7. ↑ "Can an Esports star end Brazil's F1 drought?". The Race. 2020-02-23. Retrieved 2020-02-28.
    8. ↑ "F1 Esports finalist Igor Fraga becomes first sim racer to join FIA F3 grid | Formula 1®". www.formula1.com. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
    9. ↑ "Red Bull junior misses F3 finale amid contract saga". Motorsport Week. 2020-09-12. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
    10. ↑ Klein, James (18 November 2022). "B-Max to hold SF Lights test for international drivers". Motorsport.com . Retrieved 18 November 2022.
    11. ↑ "Super Formula reveals Suzuka rookie test entry list". www.motorsport.com. 5 December 2022. Retrieved 2022-12-09.
    12. ↑ "Igor Fraga completes B-Max Super Formula Lights line-up". www.motorsport.com. Retrieved 2023-03-03.
    13. ↑ "Anest Iwata Racing with Arnage Introduces All-Rookie Crew For Their Lexus RC F GT3". dailysportscar.com. 7 February 2023. Retrieved 7 February 2023.
    14. ↑ Lumb, Tim (18 November 2018). "Brazil's Igor Fraga wins GT Sport Nations Cup World Final in Monaco". Autosport.com. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
    15. ↑ "Reigning champ Fraga in shock exit from Gran Turismo Finals". www.motorsport.com. 22 November 2019. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
    16. ↑ "Competitors - gran-turismo.com". www.gran-turismo.com. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
    17. 1 2 "McLaren Racing – Igor Fraga wins McLaren Shadow Project 2018". www.mclaren.com. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
    18. ↑ "Igor Fraga earns spot on McLaren Shadow F1 Esports team". F1Esports News. 2019-01-18. Archived from the original on 2020-11-25. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
    19. ↑ Lyon, Peter. "Olympic Season Kicks Off With Virtual Racing World Final". Forbes. Retrieved 2021-08-04.
    20. ↑ "Inaugural Olympic Virtual Series concludes successfully – Olympic News". International Olympic Committee. 2021-07-15. Retrieved 2021-08-04.
    21. ↑ "About what happened today in the OVS final..." Twitter. Retrieved 2021-08-04.
    22. ↑ "McLaren Racing – Getting to know: Igor Fraga". www.mclaren.com. Retrieved 2019-06-22.
    23. ↑ https://twitter.com/1gorfraga/status/1555532938850504704 [ bare URL ]
    24. ↑ "Igor Fraga - USF2000.com". USF2000. Retrieved 2019-06-22.[ permanent dead link ]
    Sporting positions
    Preceded by Toyota Racing Series
    Champion
    2020     		Succeeded by
    Incumbent
    Preceded by New Zealand Grand Prix
    Winner
    2020     		Succeeded by
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