6. Nobushige Kumakubo
Born on February 10, 1970 in the Fukushima Prefecture, Japan, Nobushige Kumakubo is a Japanese drifting driver who competes in the D1 Grand Prix series and one of the most important and influential figures in the history of drifting. Having the nickname Kuma, he is considered as one of the pioneers of drifting. Currently, Kumakubo is competing in the European Drift Championship driving his Subaru Impreza WRX STI.
Kumakubu inherited a large piece of land in Nihonmatsu, in the Fukushima countryside on which he build the praised Ebisu Circuit. Besides being the owner and General Manager of the historic racecourse and the leader of Team Organge, since 2005 Kumakubo has also participated in the Japanese championship. He started the championship driving a Subaru Impreza with converted rear wheel drive. In 2007 he switched his car to Mitsubishi EVO 9 and in 2009 finally replaced it to a Mitsubishi EVO X. In the national championship he won the title in 2006 and 2012. No matter what car he drives, his known intence attacking style in Tsuiso remains the same.
His major drifting achievements are:
- Enter the championship 2001 Round 1
- 2002 D1GP 4th
- 2003 D1GP Runner up
- 2004 D1GP 6th
- 2005 D1GP 4th
- 2006 D1GP Champion
- 2007 D1GP Runner up
- 2008 D1GP 7th
- 2009 D1GP 7th
- 2010 D1GP 19th
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FD does not take place near Portland….it does take place in Monroe which is near Seattle. An important distinction in the Pacific Northwest:). Love watching drifting!