Japanese racer Osamu Kawashima began competing in the UK in 2013, going on to race a variety of sports car machinery over the following seasons and recording numerous class victories and podium finishes.

Kawashima got his first taste of BTCC machinery in November 2016, when he tested a Speedworks Motorsport Toyota Avensis at Donington Park alongside now-Team VERTU teammate Tom Ingram. At the time, he outlined his ambition to one day compete in the championship and help grow the BTCC’s profile in his native Japan.

A decade after that first touring car test, Kawashima joined EXCELR8 Motorsport as its reserve driver during the 2026 season and completed a run in the Team VERTU Hyundai i30 Fastback N at Snetterton ahead of his long-awaited BTCC debut.

He steps into the Team VERTU line-up for the final two events of the campaign at Silverstone and Brands Hatch, becoming the first Japanese driver to race in the championship since Kunimitsu Takahashi in 1985.