The SileightyMania Podcast - Drifting Interviews with OGs and Pioneers

Benson Hsu
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  • UPDATED MONTHLY

Benson Hsu and Nadine Hsu interview guests who changed USA drifting culture. Listen as we attempt to document their stories in American drifting history. Follow us on IG: https://www.instagram.com/sileightymania Follow us on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/thesileightymaniapodcast

  1. Irwindale Speedway Tribute: Moto Miwa UNCUT Interview

    10/23/2025 · BONUS

    Irwindale Speedway Tribute: Moto Miwa UNCUT Interview

    Moto Miwa's Full Interview from our previous Irwindale Speedway Tribute Episode Moto Miwa is the founder of Club4AG, co-founder of Drift Association. He's the man behind providing instruction to some of America's first drifting events in the early 2000s as well as providing track support for some of the earliest Option Video and D1GP events in the USA. 00:17 Moto intro 00:37 Creation, function of Drift Association 02:50 U.S. Drift scene before Irwindale Speedway 04:59 Choosing Irwindale Speedway to host drifting events 06:52 Why D1 chose Irwindale Speedway to host events 08:31 The first D1 events held at Irwindale 10:05 The creation of the first drift course in a banked oval 13:16 Watching the first drifting along the walls of Irwindale Speedway 15:15 His favorite D1 memory (Watching Nomuken drift around the newly designed course) 17:27 How Irwindale Speedway’s amphitheater structure creates a sound like no other 19:30 Explaining how drifting’s uniqueness caters to the Irwindale Speedway layout 22:37 Thoughts on Irwindale’s closing 25:16 Moto’s experiences at Irwindale Speedway are collectively special 26:00 Transitioning from running D1 events to Formula D events 27:55 How drivers/vendors in Japan all miss Irwindale tremendously 30:04 How American fans cheered D1 so enthusiastically compared to Japanese fans 31:12 Moto displays his pit shirts from the years #driftinghistory #drifting #driftingpodcast #podcast #irwindale #irwindalespeedway #tribute #d1gp #d1grandprix #formulad #formuladrift #drift #motop #motomiwa #motohidemiwa #miwamotohide

    35 min
  2. Irwindale Speedway Tribute: Doug Stokes UNCUT Interview

    10/16/2025 · BONUS

    Irwindale Speedway Tribute: Doug Stokes UNCUT Interview

    Doug Stokes's Full Interview from our previous Irwindale Speedway Tribute EpisodeDoug Stokes is Irwindale Speedway's 2nd employee and retired after 20 years as the VP of Communications. He was instrumental in planning and building the track, and was often seen at the major events and early practice events. Fun fact: Doug can be seen in Option Video when Keiichi thought he was the track owner.00:14 Doug intro02:19 Doug’s start with the company that built the speedway and tenure with various owners05:56 The decision to build a racetrack at Irwindale07:49 What was at the property before the speedway was built10:27 Planning the construction of the track itself16:23 The decision to construct the drag strip19:59 Non-racing events held at the speedway23:03 More non- racing events25:49 The first meeting to host drift events at the speedway26:59 Falken Drift Showoff, spectator gets injured but would rather stay and watch the drifting29:49 Moving drift events from the parking lot to the actual track31:04 Memories from the first D1 event32:57 Learning the demographic of drift fans by looking at the cars in the parking lot33:46 How crowded the D1 events were35:59 What made Irwindale special39:26 Irwindale Speedway’s mailbox story42:36 Dealing with a fatality at the track on opening night45:57 Doug will miss the people most from Irwindale Speedway, co-workers and racers.#driftinghistory #drifting #driftingpodcast #podcast #irwindale #irwindalespeedway #tribute #d1gp #d1grandprix #formulad #formuladrift #drift #dougstokes

    54 min
  3. Irwindale Speedway Tribute: Ken Gushi UNCUT Interview

    10/09/2025 · BONUS

    Irwindale Speedway Tribute: Ken Gushi UNCUT Interview

    Ken Gushi's Full Interview from our previous Irwindale Speedway Tribute Episode Ken Gushi is a Formula D/Formula D Japan/D1 Grand Prix veteran and Toyota sponsored driver. In this uncut interview, he shares some memories from Irwindale Speedway and thoughts on how the famous track has helped shaped modern day drifting culture. https://www.youtube.com/kengushimotorsports #driftinghistory #drifting #driftingpodcast #podcast #irwindale #irwindalespeedway #tribute #d1gp #d1grandprix #formulad #formuladrift #drift #kengushi #kenshirogushi

    37 min
  4. Irwindale Speedway Tribute: Dai Yoshihara UNCUT Interview

    10/02/2025 · BONUS

    Irwindale Speedway Tribute: Dai Yoshihara UNCUT Interview

    Dai Yoshihara's Full Interview from our previous Irwindale Speedway Tribute Episode.Dai Yoshihara, a Formula D veteran and champion, tells us that Irwindale Speedway is the first place he drifted in the USA and considers it his home track. In this full interview, he shares some of his highs and lows at Irwindale Speedway, and walks us through an ideal lap at the infamous House of Drift that no longer exists.https://www.youtube.com/daiyoshihara#driftinghistory #drifting #driftingpodcast #podcast #irwindale #irwindalespeedway #tribute #d1gp #d1grandprix #formulad #formuladrift #drift #daiyoshihara

    13 min
  5. Irwindale Speedway Tribute: Teddy Phu-Thanh-Danh UNCUT Interview

    09/25/2025 · BONUS

    Irwindale Speedway Tribute: Teddy Phu-Thanh-Danh UNCUT Interview

    Teddy Danh's Full Interview from our previous Irwindale Speedway Tribute Episode. Teddy Phu-Thanh-Danh⁠ is the founder of drift team Auto Factory Realize, was there for opening night of Irwindale Speedway in 1999, and champion of early 2000s Japanese style drift cars. ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@AutoFactoryREALIZE #driftinghistory #drifting #driftingpodcast #podcast #irwindale #irwindalespeedway #tribute #d1gp #d1grandprix #formulad #formuladrift #drift

    13 min
  6. Irwindale Tribute w Teddy Danh, Dai Yoshihara, Ken Gushi, Moto Miwa, Doug Stokes, Manabu Orido, Vaughn Gittin Jr.

    03/28/2025

    Irwindale Tribute w Teddy Danh, Dai Yoshihara, Ken Gushi, Moto Miwa, Doug Stokes, Manabu Orido, Vaughn Gittin Jr.

    Our beloved Irwindale Speedway had its last event and closed its gates for good in December of 2024.  It was a very important place for many people's careers and passions, and it was especially important for the sport of drifting in the USA. In this episode, we provide some history about the track, and we share some details about the sale that lead to its closing.   We also interview several notable people, each with different perspectives, about the closing of the infamous House of Drift. Interviews: Teddy Phu-Thanh-Danh - Founder of drift team Auto Factory Realize, was there for opening night of Irwindale Speedway in 1999, and champion of early 2000s Japanese style drift cars. https://www.youtube.com/@AutoFactoryREALIZE Daijiro Yoshihara - Formula D Champion from Japan, had many memorable battles at Irwindale Speedway, and considers Irwindale Speedway his home track  https://www.youtube.com/@DaiYoshihara Kenshiro Gushi - Drifting OG from the San Gabriel Valley and Formula D veteran who had his first sanctioned drift event experience at Irwindale Speedway  https://www.youtube.com/@KenGushiMotorsports Moto Miwa - Founder of Club4AG and Co-Founder of Drift Association, who hosted the first sanctioned drift event at Irwindale Speedway in 2002 and provided track support for D1GP and Formula Drift Sabine Hsu - Benson and Nadine's daughter, who saw drifting in person for the first time at Irwindale Speedway Doug Stokes - VP of Communications at Irwindale Speedway for 20 years, involved in the planning and construction of Irwindale Speedway Manabu Orido - Drifting legend from Japan, former D1GP judge, former D1GP competitor, JGTC/Super GT/Super Taikyu Champion Vaughn Gittin Jr. - Multiple time Formula D champion, winner of the D1GP USA vs Japan competition in 2005 at Irwindale Speedway  https://www.youtube.com/@VaughnGittinJr Be on the lookout in the following days, as we release longer longer length interviews for some of our guests! 00:00:45 Episode Start 00:07:10 History of Irwindale Speedway 00:11:07 Details on Irwindale Speedway being sold 00:17:06 Teddy Phu-Tanh-Danh interview 00:23:26 Staff's favorite memories at Irwindale Speedway 00:31:25 Daijiro Yoshihara Irwindale Speedway 00:37:16 Staff's feeling about Irwindale Speedway closing 00:41:14 Ken Gushi interview 00:49:09 Moto Miwa interview 00:58:00 Sabine Hsu shares her memories 01:01:10 Doug Stokes interview 01:14:19 Manabu Orido interview 01:17:36 Vaughn Gittin Jr. interview 01:20:35 Callista Hsu's essay 01:22:40 Benson's closing thoughts 01:25:00 We will be releasing full length interviews #driftinghistory #drifting #driftingpodcast #podcast #irwindale #irwindalespeedway #tribute #d1gp #d1grandprix #formulad #formuladrift #drift

    1h 26m
  7. Hiroshi "Kaicho" Takahashi Pt 2 - AE86 Drifting Legend from Team RUNNING FREE (S2E12)

    06/12/2024

    Hiroshi "Kaicho" Takahashi Pt 2 - AE86 Drifting Legend from Team RUNNING FREE (S2E12)

    Hiroshi Takahashi aka Kaicho is back for part 2 of his interview, and he does not disappoint. Listen as he provides first-hand accounts of significant people and events related to drifting in Japan! Get ready for some serious history lessons! Kaicho discusses many topics, such as Akira Nakai of current day RWB fame becoming the inspiration for Kaicho's drifting style, the origins of the term "missile car" and the infamous jump at Ebisu Minami, learning English from team Hey Man!, the early days of D1 Grand Prix, his battle against Ueo at Tsukuba and so much more. Duck Off runningfree86 x SileightyMania Podcast stickers: https://sileightymania.square.site/product/runningfree86-x-smp-duck-off-sticker/17?cs=true&cst=custom This episode and all episodes of Season 2 are brought to you by Falken @falkentire , a supporter of drifting since 2003 and a major reason drifting is where it is today. Check out their ultra-high-performance(UHP) Azenis RT660, Azenis RT615K+ and their UHP Azenis FK460 at https://www.falkentire.com. Follow Kaicho on IG: https://www.instagram.com/runningfree86 Follow us on IG: https://www.instagram.com/sileightymania #drifting #driftinghistory #driftingpodcast #ae86 #hachiroku #japandrifting #runningfree #hiroshitakahashi #kaicho #runningfree86

    1h 54m
  8. Hiroshi "Kaicho" Takahashi Pt 1 - AE86 Drifting Legend from Team RUNNING FREE (S2E11)

    05/15/2024

    Hiroshi "Kaicho" Takahashi Pt 1 - AE86 Drifting Legend from Team RUNNING FREE (S2E11)

    Hiroshi Takahashi aka Kaicho is an AE86/hachiroku drifting legend from Tokyo, Japan. He started drifting in 1989 and is a self-proclaimed 2nd generation drifter. In this episode, Kaicho gives us a history lesson and describes the drifting scene in Japan in the 80s and 90s, and some of the people who inspired him. He tells us about joining team RUNNING FREE, and shares some stories about teammate Kouichi Yamashita and team leader Shingo Murao as young men in the early 90s. Make sure to stay tuned for part 2 of this interview, dropping 6/11/2024! Duck Off runningfree86 x SileightyMania Podcast stickers: https://sileightymania.square.site/product/runningfree86-x-smp-duck-off-sticker/17?cs=true&cst=custom This episode and all episodes of Season 2 are brought to you by Falken @falkentire , a supporter of drifting since 2003 and a major reason drifting is where it is today. Check out their ultra-high-performance(UHP) Azenis RT660, Azenis RT615K+ and their UHP Azenis FK460 at https://www.falkentire.com. Follow Kaicho on IG: https://www.instagram.com/runningfree86 Follow us on IG: https://www.instagram.com/sileightymania #drifting #driftinghistory #driftingpodcast #ae86 #hachiroku #japandrifting #runningfree #hiroshitakahashi #kaicho #runningfree86

    1h 1m
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About

Benson Hsu and Nadine Hsu interview guests who changed USA drifting culture. Listen as we attempt to document their stories in American drifting history. Follow us on IG: https://www.instagram.com/sileightymania Follow us on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/thesileightymaniapodcast

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