Mitsuo Itoh (伊藤光夫, Itō Mitsuo; 1 January 1937 – 3 July 2019)[1] was a Grand Prix motorcycle road racer from Japan.[2]
Itoh was a lifelong employee of Suzuki (mainly concerned with racing and competitions) and began his Grand Prix career in 1961 at the French motorcycle Grand Prix. There he was a DNS in the 125cc Grand Prix and retired on the 3rd Lap in the 250cc Grand Prix.[3] He finished in fifth place in the 50cc world championships, four consecutive years between 1962 and 1965. In 1963, Itoh became the first Japanese rider with a Japanese motor-cycle (Suzuki) to win a race at the Isle of Man TT when he won the 50cc Ultra-Lightweight TT race.[4][5] He remains the only Japanese rider to have won an Isle of Man TT race.[6] Itoh won two Grand Prix races during his career.[2] Itoh stayed with Suzuki for most of his racing career, even for his brief foray into car racing.
In cars
Itoh competed in a Can-Am style Suzuki Fronte RF single-seater in the JAF Grand Prix Formula Junior “Junior Seven Challenge Cup” race, held at Fuji International Speedway in 1970. He won the race with an average speed of 130.9 km/h.[7] While he was also supposed to have started in the JAF Grand Prix Tournament (also at Fuji) two weeks later, the Junior Seven Challenge Cup victory remained his only start in a JAF race.[8] Itoh also famously partnered with Stirling Moss in December 1968 for a publicity high-speed run along Italy’s 750 km (466 mi) Autostrada del Sole, which leads from Milan to Naples. In the end, the average speed attained was 122.44 km/h (76.08 mph), respectable for a car with a mere 356 cc engine.[9]
Motorcycle Grand Prix results
| Position | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
| Points | 8 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
(key) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year[2][10] | Class | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Points | Rank | Wins |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 125cc | Suzuki | ESP – |
GER – |
FRA NC |
IOM NC |
NED – |
BEL – |
DDR – |
ULS – |
NAT – |
SWE – |
ARG – |
0 | – | 0 | |
| 250cc | Suzuki | ESP – |
GER – |
FRA NC |
IOM NC |
NED – |
BEL – |
DDR – |
ULS – |
NAT – |
SWE – |
ARG – |
0 | – | 0 | ||
| 1962 | 50cc | Suzuki | ESP – |
FRA 6 |
IOM 5 |
NED 5 |
BEL – |
GER 3 |
DDR 2 |
NAT 2 |
FIN – |
ARG 4 |
23 | 5th | 0 | ||
| 125cc | Suzuki | ESP – |
FRA – |
IOM – |
NED – |
BEL – |
GER – |
ULS – |
DDR – |
NAT – |
FIN – |
ARG 3 |
4 | 13th | 0 | ||
| 1963 | 50cc | Suzuki | ESP – |
GER 5 |
FRA – |
IOM 1 |
NED 5 |
BEL 5 |
FIN – |
ARG – |
JPN 6 |
20 | 5th | 1 | |||
| 125cc | Suzuki | ESP – |
GER – |
FRA – |
IOM – |
NED – |
BEL – |
ULS – |
DDR – |
FIN – |
NAT – |
ARG – |
JPN 6 |
1 | 20th | 0 | |
| 1964 | 50cc | Suzuki | USA 3 |
ESP 3 |
FRA – |
IOM 5 |
NED 3 |
BEL 4 |
GER 3 |
FIN – |
JPN – |
19 | 5th | 0 | |||
| 125cc | Suzuki | USA 2 |
ESP – |
FRA – |
IOM – |
NED – |
GER – |
DDR – |
ULS – |
FIN – |
NAT – |
JPN – |
6 | 8th | 0 | ||
| 1965 | 50cc | Suzuki | USA – |
GER 4 |
ESP – |
FRA 4 |
IOM NC |
NED 4 |
BEL 4 |
JPN 3 |
16 | 5th | 0 | ||||
| 1966 | 50cc | Suzuki | ESP – |
GER – |
NED – |
IOM NC |
NAT – |
JPN 4 |
3 | 6th | 0 | ||||||
| 125cc | Suzuki | ESP – |
GER – |
NED – |
DDR – |
CZE – |
FIN – |
ULS – |
IOM – |
NAT – |
JPN 3 |
4 | 9th | 0 | |||
| 1967 | 50cc | Suzuki | ESP – |
GER – |
FRA – |
IOM – |
NED – |
BEL – |
JPN 1 |
8 | 6th | 1 |
References
- ^ “Japan’s only TT winner Mitsuo Itoh passes away”. MotorCycle News. 3 July 2019.
- ^ a b c “Mitsuo Itoh career statistics”. motogp.com. Retrieved 28 December 2010.
- ^ Clew, Jeff (1980). Suzuki. Sparkford: Haynes. p. 109. ISBN 0 85429 243-8.
- ^ Daily Express page 7 Saturday 15 June 1963
- ^ Motor Cycle Vol 110 No 3132 page 774-775 ALL-JAPANESE MITSUO ITOH (SUZUKI) WINS 50 c.c. T.T. 20 June 1963 Motor Cycle (1963) London SE1 “As Itoh sat up and grinned at the chequered flag – the first all-Japanese T.T. win – Degner limped to the Waterworks and there retired.”
- ^ “Mitsuo Itoh profile”. iomtt.com. Retrieved 28 December 2010.
- ^ “Motorsports Results: Junior Seven Challenge Cup Race 1970”. Japan Automobile Federation. Retrieved 7 February 2012.
- ^ “Motorsports Results: Driver: Mitsuo Itoh”. Japan Automobile Federation. Retrieved 7 February 2012.
- ^ Ozeki, Kazuo (2007). Suzuki Story: Small Cars, Big Ambitions (in Japanese). Tokyo: Miki Press. p. 31. ISBN 978-4-89522-503-8.
- ^ “Mitsuo Itoh Isle of Man TT results”. iomtt.com. Retrieved 28 December 2010.