ART Grand Prix’s Taito Kato heads into the fifth round of the 2026 F3 season in Silverstone with strong momentum after securing a double points finish in Austria last week. The Japanese driver continued on his points-scoring streak and enjoyed a standout weekend, qualifying P7 before converting that pace into a P7 and P6 finish in the Sprint and Feature Races respectively.
Currently sitting 9th in the Drivers’ Standings, the ART driver will be hoping to continue building on his existing points tally. Ahead of the 2026 British GP, Kato spoke to Pit Debrief and other media outlets, detailing how he has prepared for his first experience at the iconic and historical circuit.
“I think for sure Silverstone is already a challenging track. It’s a lot of high speed corners and also it’s kind of low speed, medium speed corners as well. I think we are doing a lot of preparation with the simulator, with the team. I think pace was working good in the simulator, so we have confidence.”
He noted some of Silverstone’s similarities with Suzuka and its high-speed nature. Nonetheless, the Japanese driver heads into the fifth round of the season with excitement, and while he acknowledged it will be challenging on track, he remains confident he can adapt as the weekend progresses.
“And also, I think Silverstone in Sector 2, I think quite similar is Suzuka on track in Sector 1, which is Japanese famous track in Suzuka. I think I do a lot in Suzuka, which is helping for me.”, Kato said. “I’m looking forward to driving in Silverstone, and I think for sure [it will be] challenging on track, but I will adjust in FP and then I will send it for qualifying.”
Kato: Confidence in the high-speed corners key to success in Qualifying
When asked by Pit Debrief whether tackling Silverstone’s high-speed nature is instinctive or something that must be trained, Kato echoed similar sentiments to DAMS Lucas Oil’s Nicola Lacorte and Campos Racing’s Théopile Naël, saying: “Yeah, as those guys said, I think it’s obviously a challenging track in the Silverstone.”
“And I think [for] qualifying, [it] is an amazing track. In qualifying, it is a lot to grip in the high-speed corners. It’s going to be amazing. And also if you want to gain some lap time, you need confidence with the high-speed corners.”
He added: “So I’m really looking forward to the qualifying laps. And you imagine if we put all together in the lap, it’s going to be such a good feeling in the track.”
Tyre degradation will be “a different story” in Silverstone
As extreme heat and high track temperatures brought a significant tyre degradation challenge last weekend, Kato believes Silverstone will present a very different picture.
Speaking about the demands of tyre degradation and if any learnings will be brought in this weekend, the ART driver said: “Yeah, I would say really, really hot at the Red Bull Ring. That was over 60 degrees of the track temp. I think still we’re quite managed to work with the tyre degradation in both races. We have a strong pace and very consistent.”
“I think this weekend will be more colder, and as both drivers said, it’s different compounds, softer to hard compounds. It’s going to be a different story with the tyre degradation, but I think we have quite confidence with the tyre degradation and I think we can manage quite well.”
Having watched previous races, Kato noted that drivers will need to be wary of front-tyre graining and expects a significant amount of management required. However, he added that they will have to see how it unfolds this weekend.
“And also, I saw the race from a couple of years ago. I think the main issue is the graining for front axle. Some drivers say the rear axle as well. So I think we have to manage it with the graining. Yeah, let’s see how it goes this weekend.”
