After a record-breaking season in British Formula Three, Takuma Sato entered Formula One this season as the man expected to change that negative image that has always been attached to Japanese drivers in Grand Prix Racing. Graham Holliday reviews the chances of the new star from the Land of the Rising Sun

Sushi, Pokemon, Godzilla, computerised toilets and love hotels. Oh yes, Japan has a lot to answer for. Be it revolutionary electronic gizmos or irritating animated puppets, Japan can make a success out of just about anything, apart from Formula One drivers it would seem.

In the recent past, Japanese drivers brought pockets brimming with lolly and liberally dispensed it to any team that would take it. Their legacy, a litany of battered cars and a reputation for indifferent or downright dangerous racing. So why is Jordan's Takuma Sato any different? Is he just another high paying customer at Bernie's big circus or is he the greatest thing since the Sony Walkman?

The recipe looked mouth watering. Take one Formula Three Championship winning driver with Honda connections, add a bright yellow racing car, a splash of petrol and baste in a Sepang oven at 40 degrees Celsius for 56 laps. Only the finished dish didn't exactly rise to the occasion so much as melt in the oven. At Sepang, Takuma Sato blew it. Making a good early impression doesn't usually involve slamming your car into the back of your teammate in an unforced error. Sato, quite rightly, was quick to take the responsibility, "I am really sorry about what happened with Giancarlo. I apologise very much, it shouldn't have happened."

In Malaysia, the promise that the young Japanese man had shown from his Formula Three days looked like a very distant memory. The season opener at Albert Park in Australia had been as equally disastrous for Sato. Due to mechanical difficulties and atrocious weather conditions he didn't even get the chance to set a decent qualifying lap time. It took a special ruling by race stewards under "exceptional circumstances" to give him a place at the back of the grid even though he qualified well outside the 107% time.

However, from such ignominious beginnings comes the promise of much better. At Interlagos, for the first time, the viewing public was able to see what the 25-year old was capable of doing. Barring the fact that, he ran a red light in practice which meant his best qualifying time didn't count. During the race he did what few other drivers did at Interlagos, he overtook cars. Olivier Panis, Eddie Irvine and Pedro de la Rosa. He may have been a little over-exuberant at the first corner in Sao Paolo on a couple of occasions, but he eventually made his moves stick and in the process outgunned drivers with a whole lot more Formula One experience than himself. Importantly, for the first time he enjoyed his Grand Prix.

As he said after the race, "I really enjoyed the race and the two stop strategy worked well. The first lap was very exciting with a lot of action. I then pushed hard and I enjoyed a battle with Jaguar's Eddie Irvine & Pedro de la Rosa and BAR's Olivier Panis. I feel I coped physically very well with the race, although my neck muscles will feel a lot better after a massage! I am looking forward to beginning the races in Europe."

Eddie Jordan announced the signing of Sato at the 2001 season closing race in Suzuka. Team owner Jordan, who had previously given Jean Alesi, Michael Schumacher, Ralf Schumacher and Eddie Irvine their first taste of Formula One believed in his raw speed enough to give him the ride. "The good thing is that he has probably the vital ingredient and that is speed and you will see he is very quick," said Jordan at the time. "I could say he is going to be the next World Champion but please give the guy a chance to breathe."

And essentially that is what he will need to do. If he is given that time, Sato will most likely blossom and keep improving. Over the first three Grand Prix he has narrowed the qualifying gap to his very quick and experienced teammate Giancarlo Fisichella. And in Sao Paolo he not only raced him wheel to wheel for the first three corners (without taking him off the circuit) but recorded the fastest Jordan racing lap too. Takuma is gradually ironing out the ragged edges. He knows some of the European circuits well from his Formula Three days and, depending on mechanical reliability, his qualifying times should continue to edge ever closer to his teammate as the European leg progresses. A steady approach on the technical side coupled with his attacking racecraft will bring the Tokyoite dividends in the long term.

Sato's season so far has been a baptism of fire in many ways and this would normally make or break a driver. If he can learn from the errors he will come out stronger and could well begin to justify the "hottest Japanese property ever" tag attached to him by Eddie Jordan. Sato is contracted to Jordan for two years with an option for a further two and fortunately for Sato he has an understanding boss who is prepared to wait out the hard times to reap the long term benefits, "What we need to do is to be tolerant, but nevertheless be supportive and critical as well so he doesn't make the same mistake twice," said Eddie Jordan in Brazil. "I don't think he will do what he did in Malaysia again in a hurry but he was extremely apologetic, very magnanimous and a very sporting young man. When people are really honest with themselves and inside the team, then it is your obligation to support them because they are of the calibre that will bring you success in the long term."

The Jordan team owner's commitment to Takuma Sato may come with a clause. It is unclear how long will the team continue to be powered by Honda. Signing an able Japanese driver could be considered an astute move should Jordan want to continue with Honda. But if the Japanese power unit continues to disappoint both the Jordan and BAR teams, the Honda engine connection might become more of a noose around the team's neck than their saviour. "We have to find power," Fisichella said in Brazil. "The car is actually not too bad, it is quite easy to set up and at the moment - we just need more power." The whole Honda/BAR/Jordan/driver equation is far too complicated an issue to go into here. However, the key point for Jordan is if the relationship with Honda is to continue, Takuma's involvement doesn't do the team any harm.

Sato entered the world of motor racing relatively late, at the age of 19, having been a successful bicycle racer up until then. His lack of early karting experience and car racing pedigree doesn't seem to have diminished his motor sports ambitions. Before entering Formula One, he won an unprecedented 12 races in Formula Three, clinching the British championship at Thruxton. Now he's aiming his sights higher. "I will be World Champion," said Sato during his first visit to the Jordan factory in October last year. "It is not going to happen immediately. I just want to concentrate on my job and hopefully soon I will reach the same level as my teammate Giancarlo Fisichella. That is my biggest target for next year."

Putting World Championship aspirations to one side for the moment, matching the extremely quick Fisichella is in itself no easy task and if anything that could be his downfall. In recent seasons Button, Raikkonen, Alonso and Montoya have all made a big splash early on, performing well in races and outqualifying their teammates. Sato has yet to do this and he needs to do it if he is to gain the respect of the paddock and the public. But there's no denying the fact that he has the potential. "I think I have succeeded now through talent and not through someone's money. That is good for me," said Sato last year. That is true and rare in a Japanese driver, but is it enough?

As the man said, his first and biggest target this season is his teammate and he couldn't have picked a tougher one to match. However, Sato is used to winning in all of his past racing series and he will want to continue doing so in Formula One. If he can manage to raise his game and keep the time differential between himself and Fisichella in a downward trend he might then be able to justify the "hottest Japanese property ever" tag. Until the time Takuma Sato amazes us with his driving skills, his fans will just have to quench their Japanese fantasies with Pokemon and Playstation.