Who invented drifting?

There is no single inventor. The four-wheel drift was already seen in 1950s racing, for example with Fangio in the Maserati 250F. In Japan, Kunimitsu Takahashi is called the father of drifting because in the 1970s he slid his Skyline GT-R through corners in touring car races, and Keiichi Tsuchiya, the Drift King, turned it into a culture in the 1980s. As a professional championship, it took shape with the D1 Grand Prix in 2001.

Where and when was drifting born?

In Japan. The FIA places it on the Japanese mountain roads, the touge, in the 1980s. From there it moved to circuits with contests such as Ikaten (1988, according to MotoIQ) and with the D1 Grand Prix, whose first season was 2001.

Why is Keiichi Tsuchiya called the Drift King?

Because he drifted in circuit races that were not drift events and because he became the face of drifting in Japan: in 1987 he became famous with a video drifting a Toyota AE86 on a mountain road, he helped create Ikaten and he judged the first professional championship. In Japanese he is called Dorikin, short for Drift King. He also won the GT2 class at Le Mans in 1995 in a Honda NSX.

What are the main drift leagues?

The D1 Grand Prix in Japan (since 2001), Formula Drift in the United States (since 2004) and Drift Masters in Europe (since 2014). The FIA also runs the Intercontinental Drifting Cup, whose first edition was held in Tokyo in 2017 and won by Masato Kawabata; the 2026 edition runs at Serres, Greece, on 13 to 15 November.

What does touge mean?

Touge means mountain pass in Japanese. They are narrow, twisty roads where drift culture was born in the 1980s. Street racing got Tsuchiya himself his racing licence suspended: the drifting that became a championship is the one that moved to closed tracks.

Since when has there been drifting in Argentina?

As a driving technique, since the 1950s: Fangio's four-wheel drift is the best-known precedent. As a competition, the earliest judged event we found documented is Drift GP Argentina in Santa Fe, in March 2015; the same organiser announced a national championship for 2017 in 2016, and in March 2022 TargaSport called a Drift Series round in Córdoba the first national drift competition.

Oct 3, 20261 min read

History of Drifting: From Japan to the World

By Dmitrii McCarthy

History of drifting: from the mountains of Japan to the world

This article is available in full in Spanish. In short: drifting as a culture was born in Japan, and the FIA places its start on the Japanese mountain passes (touge) in the 1980s. There is no single inventor. In the 1970s Kunimitsu Takahashi slid his Nissan Skyline GT-R through corners in touring car races, which is why he is called the father of drifting, and Keiichi Tsuchiya, the Drift King, made it famous with a 1987 video in his Toyota AE86.

It became a professional championship with the D1 Grand Prix in 2001, followed by Formula Drift (United States, 2004), Drift Masters (Europe, 2014) and the first FIA Intercontinental Drifting Cup (Tokyo, 2017). The full timeline with sources, the leagues table and the chapter on Argentina are in the Spanish version of this article.

Frequently asked questions

Who invented drifting?: There is no single inventor. The four-wheel drift was already seen in 1950s racing, for example with Fangio in the Maserati 250F. In Japan, Kunimitsu Takahashi is called the father of drifting because in the 1970s he slid his Skyline GT-R through corners in touring car races, and Keiichi Tsuchiya, the Drift King, turned it into a culture in the 1980s. As a professional championship, it took shape with the D1 Grand Prix in 2001.
Where and when was drifting born?: In Japan. The FIA places it on the Japanese mountain roads, the touge, in the 1980s. From there it moved to circuits with contests such as Ikaten (1988, according to MotoIQ) and with the D1 Grand Prix, whose first season was 2001.
Why is Keiichi Tsuchiya called the Drift King?: Because he drifted in circuit races that were not drift events and because he became the face of drifting in Japan: in 1987 he became famous with a video drifting a Toyota AE86 on a mountain road, he helped create Ikaten and he judged the first professional championship. In Japanese he is called Dorikin, short for Drift King. He also won the GT2 class at Le Mans in 1995 in a Honda NSX.
What are the main drift leagues?: The D1 Grand Prix in Japan (since 2001), Formula Drift in the United States (since 2004) and Drift Masters in Europe (since 2014). The FIA also runs the Intercontinental Drifting Cup, whose first edition was held in Tokyo in 2017 and won by Masato Kawabata; the 2026 edition runs at Serres, Greece, on 13 to 15 November.
What does touge mean?: Touge means mountain pass in Japanese. They are narrow, twisty roads where drift culture was born in the 1980s. Street racing got Tsuchiya himself his racing licence suspended: the drifting that became a championship is the one that moved to closed tracks.
Since when has there been drifting in Argentina?: As a driving technique, since the 1950s: Fangio's four-wheel drift is the best-known precedent. As a competition, the earliest judged event we found documented is Drift GP Argentina in Santa Fe, in March 2015; the same organiser announced a national championship for 2017 in 2016, and in March 2022 TargaSport called a Drift Series round in Córdoba the first national drift competition.

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