07-04-2025
NASCAR racing team owner dies in Huntersville crash
The owner of a NASCAR racing team died in a crash over the weekend in Huntersville, police said.
Shigeaki Hattori, of Mooresville, was driving a 2025 Toyota Crown at about 9:15 a.m. Saturday when he was involved in the two-vehicle wreck on N.C. Highway 73 near McGuire Nuclear Station Road.
Advertisement
Hamlin takes the lead out of pits and holds off Byron in overtime to win at Darlington Raceway
Hattori founded Hattori Racing Enterprises in 2008 and has fielded entries, including the NASCAR Xfinity Series, NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, and the ARCA Menards Series, according to its website.
Hattori, who was originally from Japan, won the Japan Formula Toyota championship in 1994 and moved to the U.S. after that to race open-wheel cars.
He won a pair of Indy Lights races in 1998 and made two starts in the Indianapolis 500, its website said.
The organization made the transition to stock cars in 2005.
Advertisement
'Hattori's organization reached its pinnacle achievement in 2018 when Brett Moffitt and the No. 16 team captured the Craftsman Trucks championship in the team's second full-time season,' according to its website.
On Saturday, Hattori crossed the center line on Highway 73 and crashed into an oncoming 2024 Lexus GX550.
Hattori died at the scene. The driver of the Lexus was taken to Novant Health Presbyterian Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries.
investigators do not believe speed or impairment were factors in the crash.
VIDEO: Retired NASCAR champion charged with DWI in Iredell County
