With Honda's focus shifting solely to British American Racing for Sato joined the Brackley-based outfit as a test driver. For the final round in Japan, Sato replaced Jacques Villeneuve and scored the second points finish of his career with sixth place, after a battle with Michael Schumacher. He was signed to race full-time in 2004. During the 2004 season, Sato qualified four times in the top-three, including a front row start and an overall lap record at the European Grand Prix. Sato's aggressive driving style paid dividends at the , where, after the team did not pit under safety car conditions, Sato fought back with some daring overtaking moves to score his first podium finish, and the first for a Japanese driver since Aguri Suzuki at the 1990 Japanese Grand Prix. Reliability issues caused him to retire six times, but he scored points in nine of the 11 races he completed to finish eighth in the championship with 34 points, the best-ever result for a Japanese driver in Formula One. His efforts helped BAR-Honda to finish second in the Constructors' Championship.