Experience the world of Drifting!

Learn about what is drifting, Irish drivers and Events in Ireland

Origins

Despite the popular belief that drifting originated in 1970s Japan, this driving technique was first practiced in Europe before 1950. Automotive icon Enzo Ferrari credits Italian driver Tazio Nuvolari as being the inventor of the four-wheel drift. Later, British racing driver Stirling Moss improved upon Nuvolari's technique, mastering the art of drifting through curves in Formula 1 races by steering with the accelerator pedal. More recently, drifting as a specialized competition became popular in Japan. It was most popular in the All Japan Touring Car Championship races.

Technical Bit

Drifting is a driving technique where the driver intentionally oversteers, with loss of traction, while maintaining control and driving the car through the entirety of a corner or a turn. The technique causes the rear slip angle to exceed the front slip angle to such an extent that often the front wheels are pointing in the opposite direction to the turn (e.g. car is turning left, wheels are pointed right or vice versa, also known as opposite lock or counter-steering).

Roots in Ireland

Just like other countries, drifting started in Ireland as a predominantly grassroots affair. You drove your car to the event, and you drove it home. Skill levels were relatively low in hindsight, but that didn’t deter anyone. Within the first three seasons, drivers had advanced rapidly, as had the preparation of their cars. Taking inspiration from Japan, courtesy of Video Option DVDs of dubious originality and low resolution video online these were pre-YouTube days the stakes and standards rose. In 2005, the arrival of two Japanese drivers in Ireland was the catalyst for the sport to absolutely explode in popularity. As early as 2007, the Irish Drifting Championship (then Prodrift Series) was televised nationally. It was becoming a lucrative sport as sponsors and tuning shops all fought for their share of the limelight.