Formula Drift Japan slid into Fuji Speedway for Round 3, and we were there to catch up with our friend "Mad" Mike Whiddett and the TCP Magic HUMBUL. If you recall, we were with Mad Mike at Ebisu for Round 2 where he fought his way through rough conditions only to get knocked out by a controversial three one-more-times.
With the cloudy skies throughout the day and the threat of rain in the forecast, would history repeat itself at Round 3?
Qualifying presented a different set of challenges as the TCP Magic team worked hard to change the settings to suit the higher speed and grip of Fuji Speedway. Also, a disconnected vacuum line on one of the waste-gates meant the HUMBUL was down on power during qualifying, which made getting into the Top 32 even more challenging.
As he does, Mad Mike took everything in stride and was able to overcome both the under-steering and power issues to place himself 10th in the Top 32 brackets. This put him on the opposite side of the bracket from Andy Gray, which meant there was a possibility for the two to meet in the Finals.
UnpredictaBUL Top 32
Unlike D1 Grand Prix where the Top 32 is all solo runs, Formula D goes straight into tandem battles. There are always a few upsets on the road to the finals, and this Round 3 was no exception.
The biggest upset was when 20th qualifier Ishikawa (no relation, at least I think) in his S15 beat out 13th qualifier Oshiro in his Mark II. There were a few other standout moments during and even before the Top 32. The 26th qualifier Li put his car into the wall on the exit of zone 1 during practice. His day ended early and handed Takahashi a bye-run.
There was one point when several of us in the media cringed as we saw Tang and Tamagawa head back to the starting grid after their second run. The issue? They were driving in the opposite direction, taking them straight into zone 1, where inexplicably, Fukada and Tokita were already starting their first run. Luckily, nothing happened, but the potential was huge.
Similar to Round 2, Mad Mike faced off with the only other rotary on the grid: Yamamoto. Together, the two FD RX-7s made the loudest runs of the day as they launched from the starting area. Mike's lead run was a bit shallow into zone 1, not quite reaching the outer clipping area, but it was at this point that Yamamoto spun. Mad Mike just had to keep it cool and put in a solid chase run, and he was on his way to the Top 16.
Both the runs between 8th qualifier Hayashi versus 25th qualifier Saito, and the 15th qualifier Tokita versus 18th qualifier Fukada went one more time. Saito and Fukada were able to come out ahead on their second runs to advance to the Top 16.
The final OMT of the Top 32 was between 11th qualifier Saito Ikuo and 22nd qualifier Iizuka. Saito ended up straightening in zone 2 during his chase run, giving the win to Iizuka.
IncrediBUL Top 16
Mad Mike now faced the 7th qualifier Takahashi and his big body Mark X. From our spot, it looked very even between the two, but Mad Mike was able to take the win and make it through to the Top 8.
Joining him in the next round would be Gray, Minowa Shinji, Saito, DeJagger, Fukada, Yokoi and Yamashita.
UnbelievaBUL Top 8
There is no pause between the Top 16 and Top 8, so it was straight back into action. This was the most exciting run of the day for Mad Mike. In his lead run, HUMBUL exited from zone 1 — the loud brap of the four-rotor twin turbo was accentuated with the loud thunder as flames ripped from the external waste-gates and rear exhaust.
As the HUMBUL's waste-gates exit through the hood, the flames could be seen rising in front of the wind screen. It did this several times throughout the run and continued through to the end of the run. Perhaps it was this thunder that beckoned the rain to come.
Shinji, Gray and Yokoi won their rounds to join Mike into the Top 4. It was shaping up to be a rematch between Mad Mike and Gray.
AdmiraBUL Top 4
First up was Gray in his JZX100 against Shinji in his 370Z. The battles were close when Shinji sent two wheels off in zone 2 while giving chase, it would appear that Gray would get the win. But, the rain had started and just after zone 4 but before the end of the run area, Gray spun.
Up next was Mad Mike against Yokoi in his S15. Although Mad Mike gave it his best, the conditions had become difficult and there were a few corrections made during his runs while entering zone 3's inside clipping points. This would send Yokoi to the Final to go up against Shinji.
As Formula D does not run battles for third place, it would go to Gray as he qualified higher than Mad Mike. Not the kind of result Mad Mike was hoping for, but he was definitely still satisfied.
AcceptaBUL Final
The Final put the top qualifier Shinji against the third top qualifier Yokoi. Both drivers also compete in D1 Grand Prix and have a lot of experience on larger circuits like Fuji Speedway. Both drivers made stellar runs but Shinji was able to close the gap during his chase run which would make the difference in giving him the win.
ForeseeaBUL Future
After making the long walk back to pit area we caught up with Mad Mike, Kawato and the rest of the TCP Magic Red Bull team. Mad Mike was busy talking with fans who come from around the world to see him as the rest of the team started to get everything packed away.
When we were able to get a moment with Mad Mike, he seemed rather satisfied with the results and knew he had a successful weekend. There was no controversy and no what ifs after this round. He showed off his new Arton Senna helmet and new race suit.
Up next is Round 4 in Okuibuki Motor Park, and we can't wait to meet up again with Mike and see what he can do with HUMBUL. If the trend continues, he should be sitting on top of the podium in September.