Meet The Drifter Part 19 Toni Arakaki
International man of drift!
Toni....he's an independent drifter based in Okinawa Japan, his passion for drifting and Motorsport began in 2002 when he learned how to drift on the streets and circuits of Okinawa.
Toni started competing professionally in 2011 in Okinawa at the Drift Muscle Series in mainland Japan.
Sarah: So, introduce yourself to Drivetribe and people who don't know you as well as I do!
Toni: Alright! My name is Toni Arakaki better known as Half Breeds. I’m half Japanese and half Filipino. I reside in Okinawa Japan!
Toni!
Sarah: What age were you when you first got behind the wheel?
Toni: I was close to 16 years old when my dad first took me driving. My first actual driving experience was on the freeway！
Sarah: What was the next step for you after that?
Toni: Nothing to be honest! I had to wait until I was actually 19 to final drive legally.
Sarah: What was your first 'legal' set of wheels?
Toni: I believe it was a Ford Fiesta!
Sarah: What first caught your attention about drifting?
Toni: It was around 2000 when my friend took me to Aja port ( famous drift spot in the early 2000's in Okinawa) to check out the local drift scene here in Okinawa! I’ve never heard of drifting up until that time! I just went since I had nothing better to do, I still can imagine the impact drifting gave me, multiple cars going sideways around the corner! It really got my attention! My initial reaction was, how in the world did they do that? Make a car move forward in a sideways manner! Right there and then I knew I was hooked with drifting!
Sarah: What age were you then?
Toni: I was 19 at that time!
Sarah: What made you think, I could actually do that?
Toni: I was always competitive ever since I was young. I liked being challenged in short I guess!
Sarah: What was your first proper competition car?
Toni: I’m not quite sure if it’ll be evaluated as a competition car by today’s standards but back in 2002 I had Sil80 with CA18 and with that car I joined my first competition drifting.
Sarah: Why did you pick the car that you have now?
Toni: I picked the Nissan Silvia S15 for the 2018 season since I always told myself before I retire from competition drifting since 2002 that I’ll eventually own a S15 and compete with this chassis!
Sarah: So you've been a spectator and a competitor. Has it good side bad sides etc?
Toni: Hmh, tough question but I’ll take it in a good perspective. Drifting is my life and passion, I can’t see my life without it to be honest. I met a lot good people through this sport and I have been blessed to have the opportunity to have traveled lot countries and compete in various events in the recent years.
Sarah: Best aspect of drifting for you personally?
Toni: Best aspect of it would be the tight niche it has with the whole drifting community; it’s like a big family to make it short!
Sarah: One thing you could change about drifting what would it be?
Toni: I can’t think of anything to change about it but I do miss the good old days where me and the boys would just have fun and drift all day long! It didn’t matter if we were dead broke, all it mattered was we were all having fun with whatever we had. I remember going to tire shops and going through their pile of used tires, trying to find some tires that I can still use, time has really gone by quick!
Sarah: Whose you best friend(s) you've made through drifting? Why?
Toni: My best friend to this date is a mate of mine from drifting, he resides in Okinawa as well. We both started drifting at the same time, that’s how we got to know each other. His name is Richard Hadley by the way, Rich and I can talk for hours over the same topic we once talked about in the past, its like playing a broken record but that’s how we clearly remember what we all did during the golden days of drifting.
Sarah: Have you got any advise for anyone wanting to get into drifting?
Toni: I’m not sure if I’m worthy enough to give advise to folks, but just like any other things we want to achieve in life, dedication and commitment would play a key role.
Sarah: Are you glad/happy you got into drifting? Why?
Toni: That’s a yes and a no! I don’t regret anything to be honest since this is the path I took in my life, and I accept the consequence that comes with my decision each time.
Sarah: One thing you hate about drifting from any aspect of it?
Toni: The endless money pit it makes just to be competitive every season but I guess it’s like that in different market whether it’s corporate or Motorsport, everyone needs to spend to earn from it.
Sarah: Tell us a random fact about your drifting career to date?
Toni: Random fact about my drifting career, one that sticks out the most would be all the travels and opportunities it has given me. It’s mind blowing to be honest, some of the places I have visited are even beyond my imagination.
Sarah: You have drifted and battled with some world famous drifters, who was the best and why?
Toni: There are so many to mention, but Daigo Saito, Naoki Nakamura, Luke Fink and Ahmad Daham would stick out the most from my personal experience. Each driver has his own unique style as I see it but for those guys I mentioned above, they are just some insane drivers I have ever met, I am sure there are a lot more that I haven’t met or drifted with around the world but hopefully I’ll get to meet some of them one of these days.
Sarah: If you could meet or battle against one other famous world known drifter who would it be and why?
Toni: That’s a tough question, since for me every driver is unique in their own way! They all have made sacrifices and commitments just to be there competing so I have a lot of respect for each driver I meet and battle against with no matter where I am around the world.
Sarah: Endless amount of money for a new car and build what would it be and why?
Toni: If I was given a chance to build a car with unlimited funds I think it would be a R35 GTR, always have been fascinated with this car, might be the only reason I could think of to be honest.
Sarah: When it's time for retirement what do you want to be remembered for in the drifting world?
Toni: To be honest, I don’t really know but hopefully some folks would remember the sacrifices I made for this sport to make it better during my career.
Thanks a million to Toni for doing this interview also to Half Breeds, Perfect Edge Motorsport, Eyedea media and RYO Graphics for the pictures!
Social media links below if you want to follow Toni for the 2018 season!
Join In
Comments (1)
Hi congratulations - your post has been selected by DriveTribe Drifting Ambassador for promotion on the DriveTribe homepage.