Hirakawa Finished 13th in Mexico and Still Scored an F1 Point

Toyota endurance driver Ryo Hirakawa scored a point on his Formula 1 debut in Mexico City on November 1, finishing 13th on the road and rising to 10th through three other drivers’ penalties.

The 32-year-old Haas reserve driver got the race on a day’s notice when the team sidelined Esteban Ocon on Saturday morning, and he was eliminated in the first round of qualifying that afternoon. He then took the only Haas car to the finish, because teammate Oliver Bearman retired after contact with Nico Hülkenberg.

Crash.net reported that a post-race penalty for McLaren’s Oscar Piastri moved Hirakawa up to 12th, and that penalties for both Alpine drivers then lifted him into the points. Franco Colapinto, eighth on the road, took a 10-second penalty for passing a single yellow flag without slowing, while Pierre Gasly, 10th on the road, took a stop-and-go penalty for the same offense in a double yellow sector. Alpine lost all five of its points, Audi’s Gabriel Bortoleto and Isack Hadjar moved up to eighth and ninth, and the single point went to Haas.

Hirakawa told Crash.net he needs to "digest this moment, I’m really happy as today was my dream." After qualifying, SB Nation quoted him calling the call-up "a very big surprise" and saying he had been "always dreaming about it."

The result meant a good deal to Toyota as well. Chairman Akio Toyoda issued a comment, carried by Car Watch, saying he had hoped ever since Toyota left F1 in 2009 to see one of its drivers race there again, and that the opportunities built up through testing and practice sessions with Haas had led to this moment. He said he felt for Hirakawa after he missed out on a regular seat for next year, and he closed with a line we translate as, "Hirakawa, thank you for making my dream come true too." He also said he hopes a Japanese driver will one day win a Grand Prix. Toyota Gazoo Racing has been the Haas team’s title partner since the start of 2026.

The bigger question for Toyota comes on November 8. Hirakawa, Sébastien Buemi and Brendon Hartley lead the World Endurance Championship by 17 points over Toyota’s other car, and Toyota says a top-five finish at the 6 Hours of Monza on November 8 would give the #8 crew its third title together. The next Grand Prix, in Brazil, falls on the same day, and Haas has not said who will drive for it there.

The Toyota Report Take

A point from 13th on the road is a lucky point, and nobody should pretend otherwise, but luck only pays those who bring the car home. Hirakawa had one day in the seat, no Formula 2 background and a teammate out of the race, and the job was to finish cleanly. He did it, and that is why he was there to collect when the stewards finished their work.

What I like most is Toyoda’s comment, because it reads like a man who means it. Toyota walked away from F1 in 2009, and seventeen years later its chairman is thanking a driver for making his dream come true over one point in a borrowed seat. I’d still bet on Hirakawa being at Monza on Sunday, since a world title beats a guest appearance, and after this weekend he has earned the right to go there smiling.