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How
did you get into the sport of Drifting? |
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Well, to begin
with, I started off with motorcross at the age of 6. I
always loved the dirt tracks and I was doing my motorcross
thing for many years. My mom was into horses and we'd be at
the ranch for holidays and we'd see this old ATV-type
vehicle and me and my friends would just take it along the
dirt road near the ranch and start having fun with it going
sideways.
I competed in motorcross
actively and had loads of accidents and breaking some bones
in the process and then in my teens I'd gotten interested in
driving the car sideways at insane speeds in New Zealand and
that's when I started to get involved in the world of
drifting. |
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What was your
first car and did you start drifting with it? |
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I started
driving at the age of 13 and my first car was
a 1978 Mazda 323 rear wheel drive and I retro-fitted the 12A
engine from the Savanna RX-7 SA22C and started going
sideways with it. |
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What is your
current drift car? |
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Currently, I
drive a Mazda RX-7 26B Quad Rotor, Quad Throttle with over
500+ WHP at the rear wheels. I also have a triple rotor
Mazda RX-8, turbocharged with an insane and devilish 666 WHP. |
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How is the
setup like for your drift car in terms of engine performance
and handling? |
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For starters its
a 26B Quad Rotor All-Motor NA. It comes with a standalone
MSD ignition system. I've also removed the power steering
function for the RX-7. Its running on TEIN Super Drift
Coilovers with the TEIN EDFC for damping force adjustment
depending on the circuit. It also has Kranze chrome wheels
shod with Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric tires. |
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Who are your
drift idols? |
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I've got a few actually.
Nobushige Kumakubo-san of Team Orange is one of my personal favorites.
Travis Pastrana who's now a rally driver but was previously
involved in a lot of motorcross and other X-Games events.
Nomura Ken is also among the top in my list of favorite
drifters. |
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I understand
that tire choices are a pivotal choice for drifters and how
would you choose your tires? |
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Tire
choice is very important and personally it must come as a
good balance between dry and wet grip. I choose the Goodyear
Eagle F1 Asymmetric as they are very good in both dry and
wet weather. It gives me driving consistency and when it
pours, the grip on the Eagle F1 Asymmetrics' are phenomenal.
Also, when I stick with the same tires, the driving feel is
the same and i won't have to contend with trying to
understanding the limits, grip levels and performance of
other tires. I'd rate the Eagle F1 Asymmetric as one of the
best out there. |
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How different
are American Drifters drifting styles compared to the
Japanese Drifters? |
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The
American Drift scene has a huge variety of cars like
muscular V8's, lightweight fast fours, and a whole lot of
makes and models in between, which leads to a vast
difference in terms of driving styles and drifting strategy.
The large variety of audience also makes up for the
difference between the American drifting scene and the
Japanese drifting scene.
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How would you
describe the feeling of sliding your car sideways at
3-figure speeds? |
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Its purely
amazing I tell you. The adrenaline rush that comes with
sliding your car at that insane speed level and millimeters
from the wall is just priceless. |
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Who among
your current drifting peers that you consider to be your
closest competitor and rival? |
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I'd consider
Ryuji Miki to be one of my closest rival especially with his
red Toyota Supra. There's Tengku Djan as well as he's got
talent and his home base support in the Malaysian Formula
Drift round. |
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What's next
for you in year 2010? |
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2010 will be a
busy year for me. We'll be doing some promotional events and
shows and there's the Formula Drift Series in the USA as
well as the New Zealand Drift Series. I'll be back to
Malaysia and Asia for the Goodyear Formula Drift events as
well. |
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On a personal
note, how or what would you do to improve the sport of
Drifting? |
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The main thing
about bringing drifting to a higher level is to promote
drifting as a professional sport. Most of the general public
still views drifting as a boy racer play event. So far, I'm
pretty glad to say that drifting has evolved into a
different level from when it started years ago, but there's
always room for improvement. Compared to other forms of
professional motorsports like Rally, Touring Cars, Drag
Racing drifting doesn't cost as much when it comes to
building a decent drift car, so it should be quite
encouraging for those who are intending to start with
drifting.
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Any hints and
guidelines for individuals who want to start drifting? |
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Do it for the
fun of it, not because you want to win or gain fame and
notoriety. When drifting becomes fun, it puts things into
perspective and you're not pressured to give 1000 %. Just go
out there, have a blast and if you make a mistake, learn
from it and slowly build up your skills. A lot of drifters
have the wrong mindset about wanting to win so badly and
that pressures them into wanting to make things so perfect
until they lose the idea of having fun and putting on a good
show.
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Thank you and
all the best for you in 2010! |
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Thanks bro and
hope to see you again soon. All the best to you as well.
Happy New Year to you. |
