N° 379 - TEAM TEAM UKYO
 - KATAYAMA
- Ukyo
- JPN
- 29/05/1963
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- TERADA
- Masahiro
- JPN
- 05/11/1968
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Ukyo Katayama will probably never satisfy his need for adventures and extreme sensations. After six years of Formula One where he tried his level best to keep his Tyrell on the track, after six participations in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the Japanese driver now lines up for his sixth Dakar. Ukyo is only happy when he can drive at high speed. He is equally fond of altitude and the highest summits in the world. In 2001, he accomplished one of his life long goals in scaling Everest and he hasn’t stopped since. “This year, I climbed Mount McKinley, the highest peak in North America (6194 metres)”, says Ukyo. “After the Dakar, I’ll maybe think about doing Everest again.”
Along with his very experienced and well known co-driver in Japan, Masahiro Terada, Ukyo won’t be chasing after a specific result. “It is a very special rally, so we would like to just finish it.” In his five previous Dakars, Ukyo has finished three times (40th in 2002, 30th in 2005 and 68th in 2007). He also knows the limits of his vehicle because, once again, this year it will run on bio-fuel, which reduces performance. Ukyo knows that the competition he knew in Formula One is a thing of the past and now, above all else, he does the Dakar for the human adventure. “There is nothing comparable between Formula One and the Dakar. There are so many differences, but more importantly, on the Dakar, all the competitors are friends.”