Filed under: Motorsports, Japan
D1 Grand Prix: USA versus Japan
Click the above picture for a high-res image.
Over this past weekend Japan's D1 Grand Prix Professional Drift series was back in town at Irwindale Speedway in California. One of the events on the schedule pitted a five car team of driver's from Japan against a five car team of drivers from the United States (or at least drivers currently residing in the U.S) in an all out drifting battle. As expected the Japanese team drove all JDM (Japanese Domestic Market) vehicles such as a Toyota Soarer, Nissan Fairlady Z, Nissan Silvia, Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution and Nissan Skyline. The U.S. team was a bit more diversified with vehicles as they had two Ford Mustangs, a Porsche 911, Pontiac Solstice and Nissan 240SX. The rules of the match were simple; one car from each team went against each other in a tandem battle. The loser's car would get taken away until there was only one left standing, thus determining the winner. There were two judges for the event, one being D1's own Japanese judge and the other being Dodge sponsored drifter Samuel Hubinette. After the first round the American's were down in numbers with two driver's to Japan's three, despite efforts from Samuel in the judges stand to try and even things out. The second round saw the U.S. down again, one driver to two, but it was enough to keep things going to the end. The final pairing came down to two previous D1 Irwindale winners, Nobushige Kumakubo from Japan in his Evo and Vaughn Gitten Jr. (aka JR) from the U.S. in his Mustang. JR put up a good fight against the 2006 D1 series champion, but after one round of sudden death Kumakubo and team Japan won the title belt.
Check out the gallery below for some shots of each match-up and subsequent winning celebrations.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
nissanfreak87 1:14PM (11/27/2007)
man, congrats to the American drifters, it shows how fast they're progressing, I remember the only American drifter to make the top 16 in the first USA v. Japan was Rhys Millen. Now we're on a pretty level field it seems.
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mark_welby 1:18PM (11/27/2007)
To me, drifting, much like bike stunting, is interesting for about 10 minutes or so, then it's just "there". Just my opinion, but I'm right and you know it. I'm sure tire manufacturers love it.
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Mr. Oak 1:36PM (11/27/2007)
I find the mud buggies more interesting and entertaining. Drifting is the most retarded form of motorsports there is.
That said, I do however think it is a valuable skill to posses when it comes to car control.
nissanfreak87 1:58PM (11/27/2007)
it's pretty interesting to see the tandem drifting, more so than just being out there by yourself, but drifting is pretty fun, I've got a few friends who do it, and they haven't stopped yet, haha.
Drifting is just like freestyle motor cross, more show than racing, but it's still sweet.
stefan 1:19PM (11/27/2007)
The RWD kumakuba EVO is one of my favorite D1 cars.
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spence 1:37PM (11/27/2007)
Why are almost all of your photos underexposed?
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John R 2:03PM (11/27/2007)
a 911? i wonder if its engine placement makes things more difficult or easier in this type of application?
As for the haters: drifting, like golf, Formula or...*ahem* nascar, is difficult to watch on television. You have to experience it in person before you make judgements. Whether or not you like these sports.
You may not like golf, but try and tell me watching Tiger belt one out in person isn't impressive.
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nissanfreak87 2:16PM (11/27/2007)
the 911 is an amazingly good drift car, I saw a special on it on "Redline TV" on SPEED, it's mainly the suspension you have to be careful with, seeing as the car was designed to handle perfectly, oh yeah, and it's a 911 GT2
Jason 2:33PM (11/27/2007)
First off, this looks amazingly fun.
RWD 911's can be tuned to be exceptionally good drift cars. The same things that keep it planted normally let it slide once you tweak some of the base assumptions (suspension, tires, etc).
It's not terribly easy to get a stock 911 GT car to come out on you, but it is easy to power through it once you get it loose. I can only imagine what it'd be like with the normal drift tweaks.
The people who do this professionally deserve big props for the skill (and the nerves) they have. I'd love to get lessons from the guy driving the GT... just make sure there are no walls around during the instruction =)
nezromatron 2:07PM (11/27/2007)
I was there on Saturday to watch Kumakubo win the title, and it was the most entertaining motorsport event I have been to. The Montreal F1 race I went to in 2006 was a snoozefest in comparison. You haters can hate all you want.
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why not the LS2LS7? 2:42PM (11/27/2007)
'an all out drifting battle'
That's like an all-out figure skating battle.
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nissanfreak87 3:19PM (11/27/2007)
except with 600hp+ engines roaring, squealing tires, and concrete walls to hit if you screw up.
there are domestic drifters, and they usually top the imports, not sure why you're hating on it
why not the LS2LS7? 4:14PM (11/27/2007)
"top": meaning they score higher with the judges.
I'm not hating on it because who does it, I'm hating on it because it's at best artistic (like figure skating), it's not a real competition. There won't be any Roger Bannister of drifting, because there's no world records since it is judged not measured.
nissanfreak87 5:13PM (11/27/2007)
so is freestyle moto-x, snowboard halfpipe, ski halfpipe, or any other judged sport crap? I don't think that's a fair assessment to make.
and the domestics actually have a distinct edge, as they're usually fitted with V8s, giving them a good low-end, unlike many of the imports that are boosted.
the judges are usually some of the best drivers and experts in the industry, they know what they're talking about, and aren't biased, so this is better judged than lets say, oh college football, seeing as the BCS is crap. And honestly, all sports are judged in some way, umpires and refs can sway a game one way or another, but that doesn't make other sports crap.
henrykrinkle 2:47PM (11/27/2007)
You could add four wheel steering and fog machines for the price of all that rubber and get the same effect.
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Jimesq 3:18PM (11/27/2007)
Interesting competition.
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Wally 3:37PM (11/27/2007)
Oh come on Mr. Oak, give it a chance. Looks like a lot of fun and I'm pretty sure 95% of drivers, whether they be pro or amateur, couldn't hop in a drift car and perform as well as these guys. You could probably make the same statement about NASCAR. doesn't mean you have to like it, but to call it "retarded" is a pretty small-minded thing to say.
I'm not a big drift fan but it seems like a fun way to kill a day every now and then
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why not the LS2LS7? 4:15PM (11/27/2007)
I can't clean toilets as well as full-time janitor either.
Just because something isn't trivial doesn't mean it's automatically an amazing skill.
Wally 4:31PM (11/27/2007)
Oh come on now, don't sell yourself short, I'm sure you'd make a fine janitor.
I agree with your statement. They aren't the most amazingly skilled drivers. Neither are drag-racers or NASCAR drivers. Personally (and I might get flamed for this), I think that Formula1 is the paramount of driving skill but i don't think all other motorsports should be deemed "retarded" b/c they don't measure up.
why not the LS2LS7? 4:59PM (11/27/2007)
This is less of a motorsport than IASCA dB Drag Racing. At least that is measured.
I'm gonna start a new series "P1 Grand Prix", where the US competes against Japan in parallel parking. And don't think I can't get parallel parkers that put the average driver to shame, either.