Which American driver raced Honda's RA271 in the 1964 Formula One season?

American driver Ronnie Bucknum raced Honda’s RA271 during the 1964 Formula One season.

Bucknum made his Formula One debut with Honda at the 1964 German Grand Prix, where the RA271 became the first Japanese-built car to enter a World Championship race. The event took place on the demanding Nürburgring, making it an especially difficult setting for Honda’s first appearance.

Despite qualifying near the back, Bucknum finished 13th after many competitors retired. He later drove the RA271 at the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, where he qualified 10th before a brake failure ended his race. At the United States Grand Prix, a cylinder-head-gasket failure stopped him while he was again competing in the midfield.

Bucknum’s name is sometimes confused with Richie Ginther’s because Ginther later delivered Honda’s first Formula One victory. Ginther joined Honda for the 1965 season and won the Mexican Grand Prix in the RA272, the successor to Bucknum’s RA271.

Bucknum contested 11 Formula One World Championship Grands Prix overall, all with Honda, and later pursued a career in American racing. His 1964 campaign made him the driver who introduced Honda to Grand Prix competition.