Shigeaki Hattori, known in the NASCAR garage as Shige Hattori, has died at 61.
The Huntersville (N.C.) Police Department confirmed Hattori’s death in a press release issued Monday. According to the release, officers responded to a two-vehicle crash on NC Highway 73 around 9:15 a.m. ET on Saturday, April 5, 2025.
The preliminary investigation indicates that Hattori was driving a 2025 Toyota Crown westbound when the vehicle crossed the center line and entered the oncoming lane, colliding with another car.
Hattori was pronounced dead at the scene. Investigators do not believe speed or impairment played a role in the crash.
Born on November 3, 1963, in Okayama, Japan, Hattori rose to prominence as a race car driver in his home country, capturing the Formula Toyota championship in 1994.
He moved to the United States in 1995 and, at the age of 32, began competing in the Indy NXT Series in 1996.
Hattori earned his first win at Homestead-Miami (Fla.) Speedway in 1998 and followed it up with another victory three races later at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway.
From Indy NXT, he moved on to compete in the Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) series before transitioning to the Indy Racing League, where he raced from 2000 to 2003.
He made back-to-back starts in the Indianapolis 500 and posted his best IRL finish — sixth at Texas Motor Speedway in 2002.
Hattori made a brief foray into NASCAR, competing in the CRAFTSMAN Truck Series with Germain Racing as a teammate to Todd Bodine.
He qualified seventh for his Truck Series debut at Daytona International Speedway and recorded a career-best finish of 24th at Kentucky Speedway.
Despite limited results, he demonstrated speed in qualifying, posting top-10 starts at Daytona, Atlanta (Ga.) Motor Speedway and Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway, and earning a lead-lap finish of 27th at Michigan International Speedway.
His greatest success in motorsports came not as a driver but as a team owner.
From 2008 to 2024, Hattori Racing Enterprises (HRE) fielded entries across the ARCA Menards Series, NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series and NASCAR Xfinity Series.
Hattori reached the pinnacle of his ownership career in 2018 when he and driver Brett Moffitt won the Truck Series championship. That season, Moffitt earned six victories, including the season finale championship race at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
In total, Hattori scored 14 Truck Series wins as an owner — six with Moffitt and eight with Austin Hill between 2019 and 2021. Hill also delivered HRE its best Xfinity Series finish, placing fifth at Kansas Speedway in 2020.
Throughout 212 Truck Series races, Hattori’s teams accumulated five poles, 14 wins, 50 top-five finishes, and 93 top-10s.
In addition to Moffitt and Hill, a wide array of drivers competed for HRE, including: Ross Kenseth, Jesse Little, Ryan Truex, Tyler Ankrum, Chase Purdy, Christopher Bell, Jake Drew, Sean Hingorani, Landen Lewis and Johnny Sauter.
After fielding a full-time Truck Series entry with Tyler Ankrum in 2023, HRE scaled back to a part-time schedule in 2024.
In a statement, NASCAR said: “Shigeaki Hattori was a passionate racer and highly successful team owner, but beyond all his team’s statistics – which includes a NASCAR Truck Series championship – Shige was a genuine, beloved member of the garage who worked tirelessly to lift our sport and his people. We are deeply saddened by his tragic passing. NASCAR extends its thoughts and prayers to his family and many friends.”
Before expanding into NASCAR’s national series, HRE also competed in the ARCA Menards Series, making 21 starts and earning three runner-up finishes with drivers Sean Caisse and Austin Hill.
A number of notable drivers also made starts under the HRE banner over the years, including Michael Annett, Alex Bowman, Ross Chastain, Matt DiBenedetto, Loris Hezemans, Matt Jaskol, Stephen Leicht, Max McLaughlin, Miguel Paludo, Sammy Smith, Chrissy Wallace and J.J. Yeley.
In a statement, Toyota Racing Development USA President Tyler Gibbs said: “Everyone at Toyota and TRD, U.S.A. is saddened to learn of Shige Hattori’s tragic passing. Toyota’s history with Shige spans decades.
“Through his long run as a driver to his history-making championship success as an owner, Shige’s motivation and work ethic to achieve at the highest level never wavered. His endearing personality was infectious and unforgettable. We are thinking of his family and friends as they process this terrible loss.”
The accident remains under investigation with the Huntersville Police Department’s Traffic Safety Section.
Follow Chris Knight on X (Twitter) @Knighter01 or email at cknight@catchfence.com.
— Hattori Racing (@Hattori_Racing) April 7, 2025
