MRUNknown's BLOG

Born January 1956

1977 Debut in Fuji Freshman series.

1977-1984 Ran selected entries in All Japan Touring Car championship.

1984 Fuji Freshman series race (Toyota AE86)= 6 wins

1985 All Japan Touring Car championship (Toyota AE86) 1^st in Class 3

1986 Corolla Sprinter Cup-2 podium places

1987 All Japan Touring Car championship (Honda Civic)-1 win

1988 Toyota Cup-1^st overall

     All Japan Touring Car championship (BMW M30)-3^rd in Class 2

     Macau Guia race (BMW M3)-4^th overall

1989 All Japan F3 championship

     All Japan Touring Car championship (Ford Sierra Cosworth)-1 win

1990 All Japan Touring Car championship (Ford Sierra Cosworth)

     Macau Guia race (Ford Sierra Cosworth)

     New Zealand Touring Car series (Toyota)

1991 All Japan F3 championship (Ralt-Mugen)-10^th overall

     All Japan Touring Car championship (Nissan Skyline......

Many attribute the return of drifting as a competitive sport to mountain-road racers of rural Japan. Informal challenges on back mountain roads eventually evolved into a heavily funded and advertised competitive events, sanctioned by organizations and held on private tracks.

Drifting started out as a racing technique popular in the All Japan Touring Car Championship races over 30 years ago. A motorcycling legend turned driver named Kunimitsu Takahashi was the foremost practitioner of drifting techniques in the 1970's. Takahashi's aggressive drifting skills — he was famous for hitting the apex (the point where the car is closest to the inside of a turn) at high speed and then drifting through the corner, preserving a high rate of speed — earned him several championships and a legion of fans who enjoyed the spectacle of burning tires and perilous speed.

A street racer named Keiichi Tsuchiya became particularly enthralled by Takahashi's drift techniques. Tsuchiya began practicing......