For the last few decades, a new and particularly fascinating form of racing has swept the motorsports community. Commonly called drifting, this type of racing puts a focus on sliding through a turn at the ragged edge of traction, where instead of steering input, the throttle plays the larger role in controlling the vehicle.
To get the scoop on drift racing, we sat down with Summit Racing employee Michael Barbosa for an episode of the OnAllCylinders Podcast. In addition to being an accomplished drifter, Michael is well plugged into the drift scene. He actively volunteers to support grassroots drift racing, and travels all over the country to enjoy top-tier drifting events.
In other words, he’s the perfect dude to talk to about this sort of thing.
You can listen to the whole OnAllCylinders Podcast interview in the embedded player here, and we’ll also include some snippets from our conversation below as well.
You may also enjoy this article: Drifting, The Fastest Growing Motorsport
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All About Drift Racing with Michael Barbosa
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What Got You Into Drifting?
“My dad is what got me into everything originally. He had a 1972 Torino, which was his baby. He got into cars and motorcycles, and ever since then, I always wanted to be around that. I used to go to drag racing over at Kil-Kare Raceway in Xenia, Ohio. And a buddy of mine came to my house one day and said ‘Hey, we’re going to go to Kil-Kare today. The round track’s got this thing, got people drifting out there.’
“And I went there and thought it was kind of cool, kind of different. Then a guy came up and said ‘Hey, do you want to go for a ride?’ I jump in the car and my mind was blown. It was so good, because you were so out of control, but in control at the same time, the way your adrenaline’s pumping, like you’re seeing things go by, you’re sideways, tire smoke, screeching, engines roaring. It was great.
“I was hooked the second I got out of the car.”
How Do You Drift a Car? What’s the Technique?
“You’ve seen people do a burnout, of course, and in this case it’s basically like doing a burnout, but sideways. When we get to a corner or we get to a stopping point, we throw the car sideways as fast as we can with as much speed as we can throw into it.
“Because when you car throw your car sideways, your car wants to countersteer. What do you do? You give it more gas now to initiate more of a drift.
“Catching the countersteer and then you’re controlling it, not by the steering wheel, but by the throttle pedal. So essentially, the more gas you give it, the more the car wants to go sideways. The less gas you give it, the more the car wants to straighten out.
“So you basically have to play a dancing game with your car of where to balance it.”
How Did Drifting Begin?
“Back in the mountains of Japan, back in the late 1970s, early 80s, kids used to go up with their cars and just slide down the mountain. That was basically where drifting started, back in the mountains and then it became a sport.
“There’s a gentleman named Keiichi Tsuchiya, who I actually had met at one point in time, super amazing human being. But he used to be a huge GT racer. And the reason he got into drifting, doing it during a GT race, he said it was having more fun than just driving fast around a corner.
“And after that it became a big sport.”
And Drift Racing is Popular All Over the World?
“Back in 2001, 2002 they had an event called ‘U.S. Versus Japan’ at Irwindale Speedway. They brought out famous drivers like Rhys Millen and Vaughn Gittin Jr. And they brought people like Taniguchi, who is one of the biggest names in Japan. They also had brought in Kazama and a couple other big name drivers.
“And as soon as they brought that over, it just started to snowball. Like it wasn’t huge, but it was growing. People saw it. And then more people wanted to do it. People were buying cars. People were buying whatever they could to try it out.
“Now, it’s worldwide. Australia and New Zealand have huge drifting communities. Poland is huge with drifting. James Deane, for example, he’s considered the number one drifter in the world right now. He’s from Ireland.”
How Can Someone Get Started in Drifting?
“So there’s a great thing about technology nowadays: sim racing. You can get yourself a cheap used sim setup or get a new racing simulator from Summit Racing. ‘Assetto Corsa’ is one of the best games you can start with, even a small computer can run it. Then, try out your hand at that, see how you feel with it.
“If you don’t have the option, go to your local track or look up anywhere drifting within your area. Somebody’s going to hold an event somewhere, for example, and you can go to talk to anybody there, like the event coordinator. Say ‘Hey, I’m new to drifting and I kind of want to get into this or I want to see what it’s like.’
“A lot of event organizers will actually let you go out with a driver, they will put you in a passenger seat with a skilled driver so you can experience it firsthand.”
Learn more about sim racing here:
What Car Makes a Good Drift Car?
“So anything front engine, rear-wheel drive. And manual—I’ve seen some automatics do it. It’s interesting, but they can do it.
“But a front engine, rear-wheel drive manual transmission car is the best option to go with.
“Everybody thinks nowadays that you need a lot of horsepower, but take an old AE86 Corolla, an FC RX-7, or Nissan 240 SX—they had nothing more than maybe 150 horsepower. The 86 had less than 100 horsepower.
“Get some decent tires on there or overfill the tires enough to where it helps you slide a little bit better and you can just have fun. And that’s all you really need to just have fun.”
Tell Us About Your Drift Car.
“So I drive a 2004 Mazda RX-8. I know it’s not everybody’s favorite cup of tea. It’s mine because I started with RX-7s and I love rotaries. I ended up taking a RX-7 motor out of a third-gen RX-7, big single turbo on there, got a Haltech ECU for it, big injectors on it.
“Tuned by one of the best tuners I could find and we make about 500 horsepower right now.
“It’s got a great suspension kit on there. We do have a angle kit on it so we run a decent amount of angle.
“Everything from set on there is basic. I keep the car as chill as possible. Good cooling system on the car because you’re going to want the car to stay cool. So I have an overpowered Derale cooling system—oil cooler and fan set up. I don’t really worry about temps too much, which is great.
“And then I’m also running a welded diff in the back just because it helps out with predictability in the car.”
What are Some Good Beginner Mods to Make a Drift Car Better?
“So when it comes to getting into it, for a Toyobaru GR86/BRZ or anything like that, suspension is the best way to start—but getting used to your car is probably the first thing.
“As soon as you put coilovers on it, you have better control of your car. A little bit of angle kit on there, you have more steering angle to get deeper drifts. You can go faster if you want to as well.
“And that’s the easiest way to getting right into it.”
What Advice Do You Have for Someone Just Getting Started?
“First and foremost, get with a local person or local group or local organization for drifting. For example, I am part of Vegas Drift staff. I’ve been helping Vegas Drift for a while.
“We have our own skidpad that we have new people go to. We have figure eights, which you can learn, which is super great. We also have a section to the side where you can do a donut.
“So you learn your donut, learn your car control, learn your throttle control. Then you learn to do transitions around that other point they give you. So then you learn, okay, let me get one corner down. Let me do a donut or another donut, essentially on another point.
“Then you start doing it back and forth. So then you start doing figure eights and you get consistent at it. You’re learning your transitions.”
How Does Someone Find Local Drift Clubs or Online Resources?
“So Formula Drift is a big competition series, but they have a lot of information, which is super great as far as like how the sport is run, how the sport is done, you know, different things like that.
“Facebook is a great option as well. Look up anything drifting related. You could find all the information. Like if you have tires, for example, there’s a great group page called Drift Tire Reviews.
“Or Google online too as well, like ‘drifting in my area’ or ‘drifting communities’ or ‘drifting organizations.’ You’ll see a lot of good places. Club Loose, for example, I’ve run a couple of their events, which are usually in the Midwest. They have amazing events.
“Drift Indy is another great one. They just hosted a recent event over in Ohio as well. And they have probably the most inviting community that I’ve ever seen.”
What’s the Drifting Enthusiast Community Like?
“It is probably the most welcoming community you can come across in motorsports. And the reason why, is in drifting, the person you are battling up against is your best friend.
“For example, a recent Formula Drift event with Matt Field and Dylan Hughes. Dylan Hughes’ car ended up on top of Matt’s. What happened? They came both back to the pit, tried to help Matt get his car together—not even on the same team. They helped get his car together so they could both finish a run together.
“Drifting, it’s like we’re all a big, giant, happy family, and we’re all there to do the same thing. There’s no animosity towards each other or anything like that.”
What Are Your Future Plans?
“I actually started drifting in 2006. So it’s been a while. I’ve competed a couple times, which was fun, but competition’s really not for me. I just want to continue to keep having fun with my friends, keep having fun with events, helping new drivers out who need the help or have questions.
“My Instagram is open and free to anybody who has any questions or wants to learn how to get into it.
“I plan on staying with Drifting as long as I can.”
Any Closing Thoughts on Drifting?
“I’ll tell this to anybody: Go out and do it. Go out and try it. I guarantee you, you’re going to have more fun than you ever expected.
“Once you get in a car, you will never look back. The community is amazing. Everybody loves everybody there. We’re welcoming with open arms to anybody who wants to come and enjoy the sport.”
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You can catch the full interview in The OnAllCylinders Podcast section, where you’ll also find dozens of other episodes featuring famous celebrities, friendly gearheads, industry veterans, and really (REALLY) smart technical experts.
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