Is drifting a legitimate form of motorsport?

[djmojo]

I've been into it for a while now, but I'm constantly amazed at how many people have no idea what it is.
The other, more traditional forms of motorsport tend to look down their noses at it (generalisation I know, but it's what I have experienced), yet everyone that's into it loves it, and most spectators can't get enough of it once they've seen it!
What do you all think of it?
Why do you think a lot of traditional motorsports regard it as the illegitimate second cousin of motorsport? Is it the 'street' origins? The type of vehicles that are driven, or they way they are driven?

[patmahe]

Its very suited to entertainment, both for competitors and spectators alike, I dont think I'd consider it a legitamite motorsport - not necessarily a bad thing. I think its like the WWF to real wrestling its more entertaining but a bit less of a proper sport.

I am however open to persuasion

ETA: I think its the Fast and the Furious image that I associate with drifting that has put me off, probably my own prejudice, though I do appreciate there is terrific skill involved

Edited by patmahe on Wednesday 6th August 10:49

[bad_roo]

As much as I enjoy watching good drifting, I think any form of motorsport where timing isn't the sole arbiter but which also relies on subjective judging is always going to be a poor relation.

[photo_ed]

I see it more as 'entertainment' rather than motorsport, which isn't a bad thing, just different.

[Xaero]

I think, the main issue has nothing to do with cars or origin, but the fact it isn't a race, so there is cases of a non-clear winner at the end. And it comes down to judges. Which is not the usual way for motorsport. Although its commonplace in boxing and such like sports.

I suppose the nearest comparison would be stunt motorbikes and such like.

It is spectacular to watch though, and gets most motorsport crowds going more then races itself. So I think opinion will change overtime when it is more known as competitive as opposed to entertainment. I woudn't say its unrecognised though as most circuits have hosted a drifting event in the UK now.

[OJ]

bad_roo said:

As much as I enjoy watching good drifting, I think any form of motorsport where timing isn't the sole arbiter but which also relies on subjective judging is always going to be a poor relation.

+1

I was going to post similar words to that effect

[hornetrider]

bad_roo said:

As much as I enjoy watching good drifting, I think any form of motorsport where timing isn't the sole arbiter but which also relies on subjective judging is always going to be a poor relation.

Exactly. It's fun to watch but quite how it can be 'motorsport' where being quickest is the be all and end all is a different thing.

[mat205125]

I've put yes.

There are many forms of motorsport. The majority of motorsport forms are either grid races (circuit stuff), or against the clock (hill climb / rallying), however there are other forms of the sport.

Car trials, and motorcycle trials (where we are lucky enough as a nation to have the most successful competitor competing at the moment) are not timed. Neither is drifting, yet it is still a legitimate form of motorsport.

[YZF600R]

No it isn't motorsport, it is entertainment for the Chav masses.

Motorsport comes in many flavours, and this isn't one of them! (IMO, of course).

[onomatopoeia]

I've seen it on Motors quite a few times and it appears that the result is determined by judges and is subjective.

That's not my idea of motorsport, it's more like Strictly come dancing with motorcars.

[ettore]

mat205125 said:

I've put yes.

There are many forms of motorsport. The majority of motorsport forms are either grid races (circuit stuff), or against the clock (hill climb / rallying), however there are other forms of the sport.

Car trials, and motorcycle trials (where we are lucky enough as a nation to have the most successful competitor competing at the moment) are not timed. Neither is drifting, yet it is still a legitimate form of motorsport.

Car and motorcycle trials can be timed and, if they are not, they still have an absolute measurement of success (how far up the hill you get). You don`t get any marks for style!.

Like others have stated this is the reason that I could never consider it a proper motorsport.

Edited by ettore on Wednesday 6th August 10:57

[ih8thisname]

I voted yes, the reason being that I can appreciate the huge deal of skill involved in the sport.

However, I can also say that I enjoyed it a lot more before films like Tokyo Drift came along. Once the general teenage viewers got their hands on that film it all changed a bit. From what I've noticed, they seem to appreciate drifting more than "proper" racing (ie. Smooth, fast lines around corners/overtaking skill etc.) and this in turn has changed their favourite cars from Exotic Italian designs made with passion and soul to all these Japanese imports.

Bit of a shame really, but nothing against the sport in itself. It's brilliant!

[LukeBird]

I think it is, it involves cars and is a sport.
I don't agree that motorsport has to be timed, but each to their own
Regardless, it is quite good fun to watch!

[otolith]

I'd say yes. It certainly involves cars, so the question is whether it can be a sport if it's not a race. Figure skating and gymnastics are considered Olympic sports, and are essentially the same sort of thing.

[djmojo]

As you were saying, the results come generally from judges, but are you excluding drifting as a motorsport on that basis? If so, are you dismissing boxing, gymnastics, diving et al as olympic sports? I guess my point is, if it's competitive and it involves a motor then surely it's a motorsport?

The reference to the WWE/F is absolute nonsense, given that winners are decided before a bout in WWE. The winner of a drifting event comes down to the best performance on the day (or occasionally the poor performance of a competitor).

Also, with the ever increasing cost of motorsport in general, surely its a good thing that you can go out with a small sum of money and get started in drifting (eg. GSI Carlton or Senator, roll cage, race suit and helmet, around £1500). Even the most competitive cars are still relatively humble money (can be bought for around £15k).

[djmojo]

In response to a few that have said about timing etc, a lot of the better competitions are now measuring corner entry speed and considering this when scoring, therefore an element of time (speed = distance/time) is involved in deciding the result.
(Clutching at straws with the time reference, but you know what I mean!)
Also, there is still overtaking in a drift event. When in a battle if you pass under drift you get a higher score (therefore there's more overtaking than in F1! )

[H_Kan]

djmojo said:

As you were saying, the results come generally from judges, but are you excluding drifting as a motorsport on that basis? If so, are you dismissing boxing, gymnastics, diving et al as olympic sports? I guess my point is, if it's competitive and it involves a motor then surely it's a motorsport?

The reference to the WWE/F is absolute nonsense, given that winners are decided before a bout in WWE. The winner of a drifting event comes down to the best performance on the day (or occasionally the poor performance of a competitor).

Also, with the ever increasing cost of motorsport in general, surely its a good thing that you can go out with a small sum of money and get started in drifting (eg. GSI Carlton or Senator, roll cage, race suit and helmet, around £1500). Even the most competitive cars are still relatively humble money (can be bought for around £15k).

Totally agree.

It takes huge amounts of skill to drift like the pros do and it's nothing like WWE etc which is all make believe and scripted. (Still watch it now and then when feeling like some trashy tv!)

Again, I don't believe you can dismiss it purely down to judging system either. Boxing, martial arts (both patterns or sparring), gymnastics, figure skating etc are all judged subjectively against relatively loose criteria yet are all considered sports.

[Fetchez la vache]

otolith said:

I'd say yes. It certainly involves cars, so the question is whether it can be a sport if it's not a race. Figure skating and gymnastics are considered Olympic sports, and are essentially the same sort of thing.

Show and shine involves cars. But that's not a sport either

[SwissCamel]

As other posted have suggested, any activity where there isn't an impartial and clearly definied method of scoring such as timing or first past the post to determine the winner cannot really be termed a sport, although I accept that it looks good and requires a great deal of skill.

[djmojo]

Fetchez la vache said:

otolith said:

I'd say yes. It certainly involves cars, so the question is whether it can be a sport if it's not a race. Figure skating and gymnastics are considered Olympic sports, and are essentially the same sort of thing.

Show and shine involves cars. But that's not a sport either

What drivel are you talking? Commuting involves cars, and it's not a sport! That is a completely irrelevant statement!