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Tuesday, March 31, 2009
D1 Drift Japan 2009 Round 1 Ebisu Results
The 2009 D1 GP Japan drift series kicked off with the first round in Ebisu over the March 28th 29th weekend.A sell out crowd filled the Ebisu south course stands and braved the ZERO degree chills and snow to see the best drifters Japan has to offer!
To cut to the chase, here are the Top 8 results from Round 1 of D1 GP Japan 2009:
1. Nomura Ken (white R34 skyline)
2. Imamura Yoichi (red S15 slivia)
3. Saito Daigo (red JZX100 chaser)
4. Tezuka Tsuyoshi (yellow R32 skyline)
5. Suenaga Masao (white FD RX-7)
6. Kuroi (blue Toyo S13 one-via)
7. Kumakubo Nobushige (Evo 10 Lancer)
8. Koguchi (dark red 180sx)
All eyes were on Kumakubo in his new Evo 10 Lancer drift machine (7th place) so it was a shame to see him get knocked out against Tezuka in the R32. Tezuka was in fact drifting like a champ all day, so it was good to see him advance.Another upset was Saito Daigo (last years overall champ - JZX100) getting knocked out in the semi-finals vs. Imamura (red S15)....Saito's car is an abolute monster and he was driving it aggressively all day.
The final round brought Nomuken and Imamura head to head.
Imamura lead the first run but his engine broke, stopped and he couldn't start it for the second run so Nomuken won by default.
It started snowing just before the final round so everyone was in a hurry to get home anyway...so thanks Yoichi, you saved us a few extra minutes of pain!
A great day of drifting even though it was freezing cold!
The next rounds in Ebisu will be round 5 and 6 in August (summer) so it will be nice and hot and I can watch it without shivering and catching a cold.
Ueno's Series 3 BMW drift car was in the pits but never made it out to the track. The car is beautifully made and will be great to see it out drifting amongst the Japanese cars.Also, Saito Daigo's Mustang was on display but not driven...that car is supposed to be prepped and ready for the track during this season some time. Keep your eyes peeled for that!
Round 2 of the 2009 D1 GP Drift season will be held in Autopolis on April 26th.
Unfortunately, it's at the other end of Japan and as much as I'd like to go, I'll have to skip it. But I'll keep you updated on the results from that and the rest of the 2009 D1 drift season!
Live hard - Drift safe!
Stu
Owner of www.DriftinJapan.com
Labels: 2009, BMW-drift-car, D1, d1-2009, d1-japan, d1-japan-2009, D1GP, D1GP-japan, ebisu, evo-10, evo-X, kumakubo, kumakubo-evo-X-10, lancer drift car, lancer-evo-10-driftcar, mustang-drift-car, nomuken
Wednesday, September 03, 2008
D1 GP 2008 Japan Round 6 Ebisu Circuit
The final round of this years 2008 D1 GP Japanese drift competition was held in Ebisu circuit Nihonmatsu city Japan. The same place they help round 1 this year. But the results were different this time around....
With Ebisu being right in my back yard, (5 mins drive) there was no way I was going to miss it. I actually took my video camera because I wanted to take some video footage of the drifting and put it up here and Youtube to show you but, I had some bad luck and the battery went flat before I could even use it.
I only had my mobile phone camera with 2 bars of battery so my photo taking was limited by that too. Anyway, I was able to take a couple of "ok" photos.
To cut straight to the point, the winner of 2008 Round 6 D1 GP in Ebisu was none other than the owner of the track, Kumakubo Nobushige in his TEAM Orange Lancer Evolution 9.
This 2008 D1 GP drift season was tough for Kumakubo and his team. He hadn't had much luck with rankings, but the weather held off at Ebisu and he was able to score a win and boost his rank in the D1 points table in the final round in Japan! He was very pleased and it showed with tears of joy at the podium!
The final and closing round of D1 GP 2008 drift competition season will be in Irwindale USA in November. But as for me (and the monkeys) and drifting in Japan, I'll still be going to Ebisu from time to time and I'll be able to bring you more D1GP coverage next season!
SAYONARA - from Stu!
www.DriftinJapan.com
:)
With Ebisu being right in my back yard, (5 mins drive) there was no way I was going to miss it. I actually took my video camera because I wanted to take some video footage of the drifting and put it up here and Youtube to show you but, I had some bad luck and the battery went flat before I could even use it.I only had my mobile phone camera with 2 bars of battery so my photo taking was limited by that too. Anyway, I was able to take a couple of "ok" photos.
To cut straight to the point, the winner of 2008 Round 6 D1 GP in Ebisu was none other than the owner of the track, Kumakubo Nobushige in his TEAM Orange Lancer Evolution 9.
This 2008 D1 GP drift season was tough for Kumakubo and his team. He hadn't had much luck with rankings, but the weather held off at Ebisu and he was able to score a win and boost his rank in the D1 points table in the final round in Japan! He was very pleased and it showed with tears of joy at the podium!
The final and closing round of D1 GP 2008 drift competition season will be in Irwindale USA in November. But as for me (and the monkeys) and drifting in Japan, I'll still be going to Ebisu from time to time and I'll be able to bring you more D1GP coverage next season!SAYONARA - from Stu!
www.DriftinJapan.com
:)
Labels: d1-2008-ebisu-round-6, D1GP, drifting, japanese-drifting, kumakubo, lancer drift car, silvia s15, team orange
Monday, March 31, 2008
D1 GP Japan Round 1 Ebisu Drift Coverage
March 29 -30 2008 and the D1 GP drift competition kicked off Rd. 1 in Japan with a bang with at Ebisu south course.
The rain held off but there was still cold winds and cloud cover making a very cool day to see the pro Japanese drift drivers bring out there drift machines and rival each other around the tight but fast Ebisu south course.
The top 16 was made up of the usual bunch of drivers.
Kumakubo (Lancer Evo) and team orange team mate Tanaka (WRX Impreza) made it to the top 16. They actually had to battle each other in the first heat and Tanaka beat Kumakubo to go through to the next round. However, Tanaka was knocked out in the following round.
Drift Samurai in the yellow FC RX7 side swiped his opponent in the first round so he was eliminated.
A new drift machine made it's debut D1 appearance in the season opener. More like a family car rather than performance Drift car, was a fully decked out JDM Toyota Crown.
Usually, only Japanese highway police and wealthy semi-retired Japanese business men drive these cars but done up in Drift spec, these cars are pretty bad ass!
Yes, there were a few crashes too! The beautifully made pink S15 Silvia ended up hitting the tire barrier at the end of the first straight, going really fast. The tires didn't cushion the blow much at all. His car was finished for the day.
Then there were the front wheel drive cars that were supposed to be an attraction but one was running like crap and broke down, then his mate lost it at the entrance to the front straight and ended up in the wall. That was the end of the mini car FF drift attraction. The crowd loved to see it bend its fenders though. Truly a great addition to the D1 GP experience!
The winner of the D1 GP series Round 1 opener was Kawabata in the blue Toyo Silvia. He was the overall champ of the 2007 D1 series so he still has the drift skill after the off season.
He battled out the final heat with Nomuken (R34 Skyline) but beat him in a snap. After the final lap and the winner was annunced, we all rushed to go home out of the snow top mountain driven wind.
D1 GP Round 6 is at Ebisu too, so it should be fine without a beanie and hopefully my favorite driver Kumakubo can make it a bit further next time!
Cheers,
Stuart
www.DriftinJapan.com
The rain held off but there was still cold winds and cloud cover making a very cool day to see the pro Japanese drift drivers bring out there drift machines and rival each other around the tight but fast Ebisu south course.
The top 16 was made up of the usual bunch of drivers.
Kumakubo (Lancer Evo) and team orange team mate Tanaka (WRX Impreza) made it to the top 16. They actually had to battle each other in the first heat and Tanaka beat Kumakubo to go through to the next round. However, Tanaka was knocked out in the following round.Drift Samurai in the yellow FC RX7 side swiped his opponent in the first round so he was eliminated.
A new drift machine made it's debut D1 appearance in the season opener. More like a family car rather than performance Drift car, was a fully decked out JDM Toyota Crown.Usually, only Japanese highway police and wealthy semi-retired Japanese business men drive these cars but done up in Drift spec, these cars are pretty bad ass!
Yes, there were a few crashes too! The beautifully made pink S15 Silvia ended up hitting the tire barrier at the end of the first straight, going really fast. The tires didn't cushion the blow much at all. His car was finished for the day.
Then there were the front wheel drive cars that were supposed to be an attraction but one was running like crap and broke down, then his mate lost it at the entrance to the front straight and ended up in the wall. That was the end of the mini car FF drift attraction. The crowd loved to see it bend its fenders though. Truly a great addition to the D1 GP experience!
The winner of the D1 GP series Round 1 opener was Kawabata in the blue Toyo Silvia. He was the overall champ of the 2007 D1 series so he still has the drift skill after the off season. He battled out the final heat with Nomuken (R34 Skyline) but beat him in a snap. After the final lap and the winner was annunced, we all rushed to go home out of the snow top mountain driven wind.
D1 GP Round 6 is at Ebisu too, so it should be fine without a beanie and hopefully my favorite driver Kumakubo can make it a bit further next time!
Cheers,
Stuart
www.DriftinJapan.com
Labels: 2008, D1, d1-gp-japan, D1GP, drift, drifting, ebisu, kumakubo, nomuken, round-1, tanaka, team-orange
Sunday, August 26, 2007
Kumakubo's New D1 Drift Lancer Evolution 9
Kumakubo's brand new D1 drift machine - Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9 (IX) was finally unveiled and made its debut run at Round 5 of the 2007 D1 grand prix series at Ebisu yesterday, 26th of August 2007.
Kumakubo qualifed in the Best 16 and made it through the first round but was knocked out after he missed a gear shift on one of his runs. He said the cause was a stuck clutch. Thwe clutch pedal didn't come up...OUCH! - The painful woes of a new drift car.
Here it is! - Lancer Evolution 9 D1 drift machine driven by Team Orange's front man Kumakubo Nobushige. As you can see in this picture the 500+hp 4G63 turbo engine is installed north-south like conventional rear wheel drive cars and not east-west how Lancers originally come from the factory.
Kumakubo said he wanted to change to a Lancer after he was a stunt driver in this years Hollywood movie Fast and Furious 3: Tokyo Drift and liked the way the Lancer Evo handled and moved.
The Lancer heading down to the main straight before the fast and aggressive first corner at Ebisu south course.
Kumakubo smokin the tires ang getting nice angle in the infield at at the end of his run. Notice the rear suspension is sinking pretty low. He must have the settings pretty soft.
Some of the TEAM ORANGE members. Kumakubo is in the middle, the manager second from the right and Igusa san (Team Orange and K-style cheif mechanic). Other Team Orange drivers that are not in this picture are Tanaka and Naoto Suenaga - both drive WRX Imprezas.
So now Kumakubo has 3 competition drift cars - S15 Silvia, WRX Impreza, and now the Lancer Evolution...and all orange.
Kumakubo qualifed in the Best 16 and made it through the first round but was knocked out after he missed a gear shift on one of his runs. He said the cause was a stuck clutch. Thwe clutch pedal didn't come up...OUCH! - The painful woes of a new drift car.
Here it is! - Lancer Evolution 9 D1 drift machine driven by Team Orange's front man Kumakubo Nobushige. As you can see in this picture the 500+hp 4G63 turbo engine is installed north-south like conventional rear wheel drive cars and not east-west how Lancers originally come from the factory.
Kumakubo said he wanted to change to a Lancer after he was a stunt driver in this years Hollywood movie Fast and Furious 3: Tokyo Drift and liked the way the Lancer Evo handled and moved.
The Lancer heading down to the main straight before the fast and aggressive first corner at Ebisu south course.
Kumakubo smokin the tires ang getting nice angle in the infield at at the end of his run. Notice the rear suspension is sinking pretty low. He must have the settings pretty soft.
Some of the TEAM ORANGE members. Kumakubo is in the middle, the manager second from the right and Igusa san (Team Orange and K-style cheif mechanic). Other Team Orange drivers that are not in this picture are Tanaka and Naoto Suenaga - both drive WRX Imprezas.
So now Kumakubo has 3 competition drift cars - S15 Silvia, WRX Impreza, and now the Lancer Evolution...and all orange.
Labels: d1 2007, D1GP, ebisu d1 2007, kumakubo, lancer drift car, lancer evolution, new lancer drift car, team orange, ドリフト, ランエボ, 新車, 熊久保, 選手
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