Tatiana Calderon will become the first female driver in history to compete in Japan’s Super Formula series after signing with the Honda-powered ThreeBond Drago Corse team for 2020.
Former Honda driver Ryo Michigami has revived his Drago Corse team in-conjunction with the ThreeBond outfit, which is moving up from the All-Japan Formula 3 series.
Michigami has previous Super Formula experience, running the Drago Course outfit from 2014 to 2016 before dissolving the team after securing a WTCC seat in 2017.
2020 marks Michigami’s return to Super Formula after a couple of years away from the series.
On her new challenge, Calderon said: “I’m very happy to continue to race at a very high level in 2020 and take on the challenge of Super Formula.
“Everything will be new for me, which means there will be a lot to learn, but that motivates me as it will help me to continue developing.
“It’s a new country, a different language, new tracks and a new car, which seems to be massively quick.
“I thank Ryo Michigami, ThreeBond and Honda for their trust and I’m glad to count on them for my debut in Japan.”
Red Bull recently announced its junior driver Juri Vips will also race in the series with Team Mugen.
Calderon will also be up against the likes of the 2018 series champion, Naoki Yamamoto, who recently took part in a Formula 1 practice session with Toro Rosso, and other Japanese stars Nirei Fukuzumi and Tadasuke Makino, as well as Brazil’s Haas F1 tester Pietro Fittipaldi.
The Super Formula car runs a Dallara SF19 chassis which resembles a Formula 2 car but is around 80 kilograms lighter, the cars are also powered by 2.0-litre turbocharged engines from Honda and Toyota producing around 550 horsepower.
The 2020 championship gets underway on April 5 at Suzuka.