Zen Mitani
Zen Mitani is a Japanese Grand Prix motorcycle racer who is set compete in the 2026 Moto3 World Championship with Honda Team Asia. He is the 2024 Asia Talent Cup champion.
Mitani made his Grand Prix debut at the 2025 Indonesian motorcycle Grand Prix, acting as a replacement rider. He will race full-time in the final two rounds of the 2025 Moto3 World Championship as well as the 2026 Moto3 World Championship with Honda Team Asia.
Career
Early career
Mitani was born in Iwase in Sakuragawa, Japan. He rode a motorbike for the first time at the age of three. After performing well in national junior categories, finishing runner-up in the Tsukuba Road Race Championship's J-GP3 class in 2021, he was selected to compete in the 2023 Asia Talent Cup at the age of 15. Mitani completed his first Cup season with six podium finishes, placing fifth in the final standings.In his second Asia Talent Cup season in 2024, Mitani won seven of the twelve total races on the calendar, and finished on the podium in all but two. This would crown him champion with still one more round to go. He also participated in the TVS class of the 2024 Asia Road Racing Championship as a wildcard entry at the Motegi round, where he set pole position and finished both races in second place, behind Hiroki Ono.
After his successful stint in the Asia Talent Cup, Mitani was promoted to both the 2025 [Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup|Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup] and FIM JuniorGP World Championship for the 2025 season. He started his Rookies Cup spell with consistent results, building momentum and climbing the order as the rest of the season unfolded, clinching two podium finishes in total, with a second place at Sachsenring and a third place in Race 1 of the final round at Misano, barely missing out on a third podium in Race 2.
Moto3 World Championship
Rivacold Snipers Team (2025)
On 2 October 2025, Rivacold Snipers Team announced Mitani would be making his Grand Prix debut at the 2025 Indonesian motorcycle Grand Prix, acting as a replacement rider for injured Nicola Carraro. On Saturday, Mitani qualified 24th and, despite running as high as 17th during the Sunday race, he crashed out on lap 11 and retired.Honda Team Asia (2025–)
One month after making his Grand Prix debut, Mitani was announced to make his full-time debut in the 2026 Moto3 World Championship with Honda Team Asia, alongside Veda Pratama. Ahead of the 2025 Portuguese Grand Prix, Honda Team Asia announced Mitani would race in the final two rounds of the 2025 season, effectively making an early debut with the team as he replaced the injured Tatchakorn Buasri.Career statistics
All Japan Road Race Championship
Races by year
| Year | Class | Bike | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | Pos | Pts |
| 2022 | J-GP3 | Honda | MOT 15 | SUG 8 | TSU 10 | AUT 8 | OKA 7 | SUZ | 10th | 32 |
| 2023 | J-GP3 | Honda | MOT 13 | SUG 7 | TSU | AUT | OKA | SUZ | 18th | 12 |
| 2024 | J-GP3 | Honda | MOT | SUG 4 | TSU 7 | AUT | OKA | SUZ | 13th | 24 |
FIM JuniorGP World Championship
Races by year
| Year | Bike | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Pos | Pts |
| 2024 | Honda | MIS1 17 | MIS2 18 | EST | CAT1 | CAT2 | ALG1 | ALG2 | JER1 | JER2 | ARA | EST1 | EST2 | 34th | 0 |
| 2025 | Honda | EST 8 | JER1 14 | JER2 11 | MAG 9 | ARA1 12 | ARA2 9 | MIS1 8 | MIS2 9 | CAT1 7 | CAT2 9 | VAL1 13 | VAL2 16 | 11th | 68 |
Grand Prix motorcycle racing
Races by year
| Year | Class | Bike | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | Pos | Pts |
| Moto3 | Honda | THA | ARG | Grand Prix of the Americas|AME] | QAT | SPA | FRA | GBR | ARA | ITA | NED | GER | CZE | AUT | HUN | CAT | RSM | JPN | INA Ret | AUS | MAL | POR 19 | VAL Ret | 38th | 0 | |
| Moto3 | Honda | THA | BRA | AME | QAT | SPA | FRA | CAT | ITA | HUN | CZE | NED | GER | GBR | ARA | RSM | AUT | JPN | INA | AUS | MAL | POR | VAL | NC | 0 |