Takuma Sato (left) and Katherine Legge are pictured.
Two groundbreaking drivers were inducted into the Long Beach Motorsports Walk of Fame Thursday ahead of this weekend's races on the famed street course.
Katherine Legge and Takuma Sato were honored at a ceremony in front of the Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center.
Legge was the first woman inducted into the Walk of Fame, which honors key contributions to the world of motorsports. Sato is the first Japanese-born driver inducted into the Walk of Fame.
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The honor adds to a long list of accomplishments for both drivers.
Legge won the Toyota Atlantic Championship race in the Grand Prix of Long Beach in 2005 and became the first woman to win an open-wheel race in North America. She also holds the record for the fastest woman qualifier in the Indianapolis 500, a mark set in 2023. She was the first woman to lead a Champ Car Series race in 2006 at Long Beach.
Legge has won three championships, six races and has 15 podium finishes in her professional racing career. She will return to the Indianapolis 500 this year.
"I am beyond honored to be inducted into the Long Beach Motorsports Walk of Fame," Legge said. "My professional racing career started here in 2005, and that win on these iconic streets remains one of the best lifetime memories that I get to carry with me. I'm humbled to be alongside such legends of our sport, and I can't express how much this means to me."
Legge had been competing full time in the No. 66 Gradient Racing Acura NSX GT3 in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, which races Saturday in Long Beach. Shortly after it was announced she would compete in the Indy 500, the team named Stevan McAleer to replace her as Sheena Monk's teammate.
Sato, a former Formula 1 driver, also is a familiar name to fans at the Grand Prix of Long Beach. He won the first race of his IndyCar Series career in the Grand Prix of Long Beach in 2013 and became the first Japanese-born driver to win an IndyCar Series race. He went on to win two Indianapolis 500s, becoming the first Japanese-born driver to win that race and the 20th driver to win the Indy 500 more than once.
Sato's motorsports career spans several series, including a stint in Formula One for seven years from 2002 to 2008. In his last race in the Grand Prix of Long Beach in 2022, he finished in 16th place. Sato will be entered in this year's Indianapolis 500 driving for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing.
The Grand Prix of Long Beach begins Friday with the IMSA race scheduled for Saturday and the IndyCar race set for Sunday. The Walk of Fame ceremony is a kick-off event for the weekend.
The Long Beach Motorsports Walk of Fame is a joint project of the City of Long Beach and the Grand Prix Association of Long Beach. Created in 2006, the Walk of Fame honors contributors to auto racing. Legends Dan Gurney and Phil Hill were the inaugural honorees. Thirty-five more honorees have been recognized.
The Walk of Fame is located in front of the Long Beach Convention & Entertainment building.
