Welcome! 00:01:06.257 00:01:17.176 [ VO ]The first car Fyodor Vorobyov drifted with was a Zhiguli. Now he’s the only Russian Draft Series pilot who drives such an automobile in the summer season. And now he’s getting his car ready for winter.
[ Fedor ]We're modifying this engine now, making it more powerful
We plan to make it 650 HP
It's 550 now, so we need to add 100-150 horse power
It's been seriously reworked
This one starts the engine, then the ignition,
the fuel pump switch, the fan,
and an extra engine cooling pump
A standard car wheel turns like this,
on a drifting car it's like this
My goal was to get into the top 5, but I didn't make it
I literally just needed 2 points
I could already taste and smell victory,
it was so close
I could almost touch it
and I know what I have to do in the future 00:02:17.726 00:02:21.126 [ VO ]Pilots who race in the summer use winter competitions as practice. 00:02:26.653 00:02:42.653 Sideways driving in winter calls for no more than an icy road and an inexpensive rear-wheel drive car. That means drifting became quite a popular winter leisure activity for men in Russia where there’s no shortage of free ice and where the Zhiguli is made.
Can you park here?
I want to go over there where there's room for a grill
- Can we? - The whole setup will be there
- Can we go there? - Sure!
- Dad, can I go over there? - Yes
He said yes!
Hi, hi!
This is Fedor's mum
Mrs. Vorobyova!
- Where's my little sunshine? - In the green car
Hi
Hi, my sunshine!
We've come to relax, to talk, and root for them
- To support them! - Yes!
- We don't see each other that often! - Oh, come on!
- I don't mean you! - Come on!
I mean my husband! He's off in the morning and comes home late
It's like a slow dance on ice,
performed, you could say, by the driver and car
It's not like in summer, that's a whole different story
Is Fedor stuck in a snowdrift?
- How did it happen? - Goodness, Fedor!
Oh my goodness!
[ Artyom ]Fedor's been driving…
I was 12 or 13 and went to Luzhniki when they drifted round the car parks
I've always followed him, and then we got acquainted
It's an interesting story, he spent ages building his car
and now he's in the top…
the top-5 or top-10 of the RDS
And now he's joined us for the first time, he'll drift with us in the winter 00:04:51.210 00:04:56.809 [ VO ]There are separate competitions in winter, with their own unique characteristics and stars.
In first place:
[ Announcer ]Artyom Shabanov!
Well done!
Let's hear it for the winner!
Take a photo so I can put it on Instagram!
[ Fedor ]I'm a nurse by training
Yes, my first job was as a nurse
My second was as an engineer
I worked for a pet shop
After that I worked for a motorcycle dealer,
then an auto dealer, then I thought I needed my own business
and opened a motorcycle dealership
Now, I have the chance to do what I love!
And all the money… It's like a cult, I suppose
You're fully aware you can't afford it,
but you still go out, spend your last money on tyres, tuning kits,
hoses, pistons,
exhaust pipes, good Lord…
racing suits
The costs keep piling up but,
when you get behind the wheel and drive off, you understand, yeah, that's it!
Well, it's worth it 00:06:40.006 00:06:44.726 [ VO ]Ilya Fyodorov, a television cameraman from the Far East, has recently moved to Moscow.
[ Ilya ]Last year, I was a rookie
It was my first time driving in the west of the country
I've mainly competed in the eastern part
I'm a four-time RDS-East champion: I won the Superdrift battle in 2012
I was at the D1 Grand Prix in Japan
Well, it's not the most powerful but…
- middling, upper-middle - What's the most powerful?
I don't even know!
This year, I'm planning to aim for 1000 plus
If you have the money, a powerful car will cost you a lot! 00:07:24.350 00:07:37.710 [ VO ]Building a car costs at least 3 million Roubles of $45000; tires alone cost at least 700,000 or $10,000 for the season. When you drift at that speed, each tire lasts just one race.
[ Aleksandr ]The RT guys are here to make a film about drifting,
and we have to say a bit about it
Drifting started in Japan, they're the gods
After I went to Japan, I understood the lifestyle
I practise in Japan,
and I'll keep going there until I achieve all my goals
To show the world I'm the best
So, you're the best?
I have to prove that
I honestly thought Russia, the first step, would be very easy
How naive I was!
No, in fact, the Russian championship is very tough
If you consider the difference in refereeing, the Russian championship is very tough
It'll be ridiculous in 2018: a fight to the death
Well done! Everything's ready
A little wipe
There, now the sticker?
- Yes? - Yes!
[ Wife ]He won local competitions in Khabarovsk
Then we moved to Vladivostok and he regularly appeared on the podium
Top 16, for sure
So, one thing led to another. If he's not on the podium now, I get upset
I tell him: 'Why race then? Win!'
The first race is important of course, as it sets the tone
for the whole season
- Key please! What's important? - The race!
The first?
The first race is…
a chance to take the podium while the other cars aren't ready and everyone's relaxed
- So, you're not relaxed? - Well, it doesn't always work, I'm relaxed too
[ Aleksandr ]We've had this car a few weeks, drove it for a day, and tuned it
In my view, the car doesn't matter, 93% of success depends on the driver
I hope and believe it won't let us down 00:10:18.521 00:10:26.881 [ VO ]A grease pump exploded when Fyodor Vorobyov tuned his car, so, he had to reassemble the engine the night before the race, literally.
[ Ilya ]I know everyone's tired,
so we shouldn't have come then, and just stayed home and got some rest
So, what do we do now? What now?
I'll tell you
We'll put on new rear wheels
Then I'm off
OK, let's do it
What's going on?
For now, practice sessions
Practising, observing, tuning the car all at the same time
Something like that
Why so sad? It's just… it's all fine
[ Aleksandr ]After one run it overheats and loses half its power and we can't do anything about it
Film that crazy stuff, look
Instead of 550 HP, we're only getting 150!
We'll drive what we have now, what can we do?
It's OK… We'll work with what we have
[ Dmitry ]I want it more powerful, I want it stronger
That, by the way, is one of the reasons
for the popularity of our sport… the huge scope of possibilities for engineering
I mean, I'm allowed to build a super engine,
or invent some super suspension, or create the most beautiful car
We can do all that, we need it
Classic motorsport is highly regulated
You can't make a motor that isn't like the others
We have creative freedom
You want 1,000 HP? Do it, 2,000? Sure!
If you can handle it
If you find a way to control it 00:12:59.119 00:13:04.719 [ VO ]Before the main competition, a qualifying round is run from which 32 participants are selected. 00:13:08.815 00:13:24.607 [ Annoncer ]And he can’t make the turn again. He was going straight for too long, without drifting, Fyodor Vorobyov. Would this be enough for the officials to give him a zero? Now they definitely will. 00:13:24.607 00:13:30.167 Both attempts are a zero. Fyodor Vorobyov! Basically, he deprived himself of the chance to participate in tandem races tomorrow. 00:13:34.567 00:13:41.207 It can be regarded as the first sensation of the day. Both attempts are a zero! Fyodor Vorobyov! How can that be…
How was it?
[ Dmitry ]I don't get it!
Something's wrong with his engine, he only fixed it last night
He barely made it through the tech and admin checks
He hit the circuit with no practice, no nothing
Something's wrong, he couldn't go sideways. He just kept on going straight
Thanks, thanks a lot
What's the car's power?
It's meant to be 700, but only produced 450
[ Ilya ]- It's running? - It is
I should have coped, it's that simple
anything else is just an excuse
You had to be ready for 5 am, then the qualifiers
Well maybe but still, it's no excuse, I'd say
[ Fedor ]Of course, it motivates you, but it's a pity because…
every race counts in the stages
And losing out in this stage…
is a serious blow for…
the overall result
So, we won't be working for the overall result this season,
but to do the best we can in every stage 00:15:33.263 00:15:45.823 [ VO ]In 2018, for the first time ever the Russian drift series season has been extended. Cities all over the country, from west to east, will be hosting races - with the first taking place in Moscow. 00:15:46.873 00:16:03.554 Each pair covers the circuit twice and they don’t just have to cover it, they must complete specific stunts set out by the officials. The chase car must mirror the lead car’s movement while staying as close as possible and maintaining maximum speed. 00:16:05.634 00:16:16.755 In a second heat the leader and chaser switch places. The officials judge how accurately the drivers, or pilots, follow the assignment while also assessing drift angle and speed.
[ Aleksandr ]Here's how I see it: we go for it, or we don't
If we go for it, then we aim for first place, to be the best
We come to win, or we don't come at all
Why invest so much money, so much effort, and… here's my wife
There!
- I won't give up! - Good!
- We'll learn strategy this season! - Great
Alex Dee, don't let me down! 00:16:59.217 00:17:14.977 [ Annoncer ]It seems that going into drift and changing of the angle was done at the right time, Aleksandr Dmitrenko is getting more and more behind. He must get closer, he knows it, he’s trying to catch up with Katya… 00:17:16.740 00:17:18.619 And Altezza missed the turn and drifted right outside the circuit.
Go on!
You beauty!
You were just awesome! 00:17:32.925 00:17:41.324 [ Annoncer ]The reigning champion against one of the most experienced drifters in our country, let’s go, the first race, getting into the position…
- Who are you racing? - I guess Fedorov
- Fedorov lost - Who won?
Kaba Kaba is f***ing great,
just f***ing great
- No, it's fine! - You did great!
Well, he's well-respected! Just be more careful
Thanks a lot
I know! 00:18:54.412 00:19:13.131 Think about yourself, about what you have to do, about yourself. And with the straight wheels, out of the circuit…Aleksandr, Aleksandr… 00:19:28.036 00:19:35.555 [ VO ]They’ll have two weeks to fix their cars, travel to the RDS Grand-Prix second round and try to win the rematch. 00:19:41.396 00:19:50.238 This circuit is regarded as tricky and technically demanding. The slightest mistake could cause a car to crash into the wall at top speed.
- You're taking risks and it looks great, but… - It's all under control!
[ Ilya ]This track is especially technical and compact
Last year, I took first place here twice
- With the same car? - Same car, new sticker!
[ Aleksandr ]We completely rebuilt the engine and other parts…
We pulled the engine, took it apart, replaced all the parts, and put it back together
It's like day and night now
The whole front suspension and sub-frame is new…
new shock absorbers
So, we'll see where it gets us 00:20:44.838 00:20:57.878 [ Annoncer ]117 kph before the turn, but the trajectory was so bad that it didn’t matter that much. He entered the outer clipping zone on straight wheels, Aleksandr… but he made it to the finish.
I've never scored so low
Well, I'm going
So, in the left column…
Gocha will race Tvardovsky – a great pairing
Ilya Fedorov…
will face Styopa Azarov
Far eastern Derby, exactly! 00:21:45.717 00:21:47.476 [ VO ]But on competition day, technical problems forced Aleksandr Dmitrenko’s team to withdraw.
We've announced a technical withdrawal
Cheaper to have built a new one!
In short, damn!
- We need to think about the next round - Be strong, eh?
Actually, it really toughens you up…
What's that? Let's go!
This morning, the electronics system failed, it dates back 6 years to 2012
- All of it? - All of it
- How? - Just like that
So you mean…
That's it…
It's dead! 00:22:31.184 00:22:34.503 [ Annoncer ]Welcome to the venue of the second RDS Grand-Prix round. 00:22:35.220 00:22:51.300 As usual, we’ve got the best pilots from Russia and the neighbouring states here. The reigning RDS champion, Georgy Chivchan, aka Gocha. A pilot from Vladivostok, his name is Ilya Fyodorov! 00:22:54.903 00:23:06.984 The king of Lada-2105, that doesn’t have that much Lada in it anymore, and is rather a product of family engineering expertise! There’s his father here to take the car to the start with him, it’s Fyodor Vorobyov! 00:23:25.781 00:23:27.822 And Shikov can’t make the turn
What is it?
Shikov hit the wall and his car's on fire 00:23:36.588 00:23:55.148 The fire! What is burning there? Shikov jumps out of the car. He really shouldn’t open the hood all by himself now. And the rescuers with fire extinguishers are already here. That’s it!
What happened, guys? What happened? 00:23:59.186 00:24:09.186 I have a suspicion that the fire could have even started earlier, we just didn’t notice it, for obvious reasons.
Shikov's hogging all the air time again
We're on air!
I tried to steer, but nothing worked
I spun the wheel to turn, but the car didn't react and hit the wall
I had no time for anything and that's just how it turned out
I don't know what to say
The car was badly damaged, really badly:
a cracked windscreen and a fire under the hood
It's time! You're in the next tandem!
- Come on, bro! - Let's race!
- You've raced tandem? - Yeah
- How was it? - It was really great,
but he always wins for some reason
But this time, we'll see…
One more time!
Could be…
One more time!
OK, we'll see! 00:25:28.861 00:25:44.341 [ Annoncer ]The race-off for the semifinal is about to start. Right now… Oh, Ruzheynikov didn’t make the turn at the same angle as Fyodor Vorobyov… He took a narrower trajectory. And he needs to catch up with the opponent now. But Fyodor has got a bigger angle again…
Come on! It's done! 00:25:59.983 00:26:07.424 [ Annoncer ]The pilots have switched places. Fyodor had trouble with drifting, he did it too early… Ruzheynikov misses the first clipping zone, 00:26:07.424 00:26:16.699 so does Fyodor Vorobyov. The wheel was in the air, it touched the ground at the turn, he barely managed to stabilise the car, and finished far behind the leader…
I was sick of hanging behind you on acceleration. It was hell!
Well, I'm sorry…
- Let's go! - Did they say 'go'?
I started the drift and realised
I had no speed
What's taking so long?
Fedor did a good job. He's always stable and drives well
I have a lot of respect for him as a driver, he's really great, but actually…
I don't want to race with him anymore
- You've raced enough? - I'm sick of short cars, Fedor with his tiny…
Andrey
- Andrey who? - Astapov
- You're sick of him too? - Not at all
I don't have a tiny one 00:27:17.657 00:27:20.297 So, here are the results of officials’ assessment. Two for Vorobyov, one for OMT.
Well done! My man!
It's showing some kind of error
What are we going to do?
Let's leave it as it is, and I'll take it for a test
Give him the stick 00:28:06.589 00:28:16.990 Syncronised drifting, Ermokhin is approaching the leader too fast, there’s a contact, the bumper flies off… Dmitry Ermokhin didn’t keep enough space.
I lost the plug thanks to you
- Why did your bumper fly off? - I lost it somewhere
That means he turned so closely in sync, he even grazed him with his bumper
That's very cool in drifting
If something flies off,
a bumper, spoiler, or wing,
it doesn't say anything about who's lost or won
So… now it's all up to the officials and we're waiting for the results 00:28:51.362 00:29:13.482 [ Annoncer ]And here’s the verdict of the officials. It’s unanimous, Ilya Fyodorov goes through to the semifinals. Ilya Fyodorov will compete with Fyodor Vorobyov for the place in the final. Fyodor Vorobyov is one race away from the final, as well as his opponent, Ilya Fyodorov.
Turn, turn, turn…
Great!
Come on, come on, come on!
Yes! Yes!
Good job! 00:28:51.362 00:29:13.482 [ Annoncer ]And here’s the verdict of the officials. It’s unanimous, Ilya Fyodorov goes through to the semifinals. Ilya Fyodorov will compete with Fyodor Vorobyov for the place in the final. Fyodor Vorobyov is one race away from the final, as well as his opponent, Ilya Fyodorov. 00:29:13.482 00:29:51.019 The cars pass the left curve side by side, Tsaregradtsev makes the turn and stays close behind the opponent… and Fyodor Vorobyov hits the wall. 00:30:07.662 00:30:49.769 Fedya Vorobyov has a broken swivel in his car. Most likely the pilots will take 5 minutes off. Fyodor’s got only a slim chance to win, but his will to win commands a great deal of respect…
He's great
It's a sure thing
My friends, my friends, here's the team!
Look at the mechanics who managed to work a miracle in just four minutes!
Fedor here's a prime example of how it should be done! 00:31:21.031 00:31:25.031 Ilya Fyodorov represents Vladivostok, and Georgy Chivchyan represents Krasnoyarsk. And the final battle is on!
Good! Good!
That's…
Yeah, that's it! That's it!
- Gocha could do better, but that was cool too - Gocha won? 00:32:00.592 00:32:04.592 The second place in the tandem racing goes to Ilya Fyodorov. Arkady Tsaregradtsev, Ilya Fyodorov, Georgy Chivchyan.
We've come to get our prizes… where are they?
It was more or less OK, eh?
- It could have been better, but it'll do - It'll do
- Congratulations! - Thanks
We watched the broadcast and saw the clip…
what we saw was OK 00:32:38.109 00:32:42.909 And that concludes the second round of the RDS Grand-Prix, thank you very much, bye everyone!
The 5th round was way more interesting
I managed to reach the finals
But, to start at the beginning,
the opponent I remember most is Georgy Chivchyan 00:33:07.432 00:33:19.673 [ Annoncer ]And… Oh my God! Look at what’s going on! Now Gocha becomes a leader! Georgy Chivchyan is the number one in the individual rankings. 00:33:29.118 00:33:38.957 The decision is made. 1,2,3, unanimously, Fyodor Vorobyov! Top-4. Against Daigo Saito. The winner of this race is going to be in the final. 00:33:48.926 00:34:03.045 Fyodor Vorobyov is trying to challenge the Japanese with a difficult task at top speed. The Japanese pilot is close behind… and Fyodor Vorobyov is through to the fifth round semifinals! 00:34:09.413 00:34:20.172 So, let’s greet the finalists. Fyodor Vorobyov! He’s about to race in the final! And with whom! With one of the living legends of the world drifting. Fyodor Vorobyov who started drifting with 00:34:20.172 00:34:38.691 a Lada-2105, with a regular Zhiguli engine. And now he’s here. It’s the culmination of the Round five, and he will race in the final! He meets the opponent with a respectful bow, but as an equal, he greets Naoto Suenaga 00:34:38.691 00:34:57.650 Sochi, are you ready? Let’s go! A reminder for you, this is the first heat! Suenaga took a wide turn, really wide turn, and Fedya didn’t go. That could be a problem. 00:34:57.650 00:35:05.817 It can get between Fyodor and the long-awaited victory. The pilots are ready for the second heat, and are you ready too? 00:35:12.976 00:35:25.976 Who could’ve thought that Suenaga himself wouldn’t be able to catch up with Fyodor, riding a more powerful car at that! That’s how legends come into being! Fyodor Vorobyov! Give him a big round of applause. 00:35:27.926 00:35:39.325 And now we’d like to hear the officials. Maybe they decide that Suenaga’s small angles will compensate for Fyodor’s little stop. 00:35:41.206 00:35:44.686 2nd place! Fyodor Vorobyov!
Fedor!
Two world-famous drifting stars and I'm in 2nd place
Of course, the podium was really top-shelf
Well done!
Good job!
Come on, bring it on!
- Hello! - Hello!
Hi! Hi!
Take your sister's hand
Here he is, our big hero!
The repairs, moves, drifting, and preschool,
she handles it all…
333 delights
Come on in! Come on in dear! Come on!
Let's go, let's go!
You've just moved in?
- Two days ago - Two days ago?
Come on in!
So, I'm in the hall opening the door and I hear this voice say:
'What a shame, Fedor!'
I turn round and there's a young guy with a stroller holding a baby
He says: 'Jeez, what a pity So, now you won't go to Vladivostok?'
'Well, no', I said
This is an epic video
Of course, it's a pity they aren't going to Vladivostok
Ok, then we'll bring Styopa now
A new place and I have 2 kids. It's tough with no help
The kid's go to school and preschool, he's off to Vladivostok, so…
Of course, we've just moved in
Of course, I was glad, I said: 'Hooray!'
Of course, it's sad that all happened,
but, as they say, whatever happens, it's for the best
So, I was glad
I said: 'Whew, thank God! We'll stay home, we'll take care of the kids'…
We won't travel anywhere with the kids, living from race to race
Of course, I get tired! Of course, I get on his back about it
It's a costly,
expensive,
and nerve-wracking
hobby
Papa's coming
The schoolboy's here! They found you at school…
Mum, they told me to do tomorrow's lesson
So, that's mathematics…
It was a friendly race to test and fine-tune some things with no stress
before going to Vladivostok to finish the season in good shape
But that wasn't to be… It just wasn't to be
How? What the hell was that?
I heard the noise from the crash, but I didn't see it
I got out to take a look at the car and realised right away…
My first thought was: 'That's it, I'm going home'
Right after the RDS, after the final, there'll be the D1 Grand-Prix
Japan versus Russia
The best drivers will come from Japan to race the best Russian pilots
I wanted to be there more than anything, but…
This whole thing's really a shame
because so many hopes, so much effort, so much money was put into it
and to have it all end up like this is a real bummer
But, what can I say?
What's done is done
So, we'll fix it and move on to race another day
When? Next season?
- Well, yeah! - With new hope
Yeah, Olya! So, we'll go next season?
For sure! But first we'll go on holiday
On holiday, right… We definitely need a holiday
Yeah, with all these races,
we didn't manage to go anywhere on holiday,
the car crashed again
So, in general…
nothing went according to plan
But that's OK, we'll fix it
- We'll go to the sea, right Olya? - For sure!
So, everything's going to be fine
The plan for tomorrow: take my ride in for waxing,
pass the inspection and go straight to practice
Then we win the race, take a week off, and then there's another race
That's the plan?
Where are you going?
To win! 00:41:44.455 00:41:55.295 Hello, dear friends! We went through Moscow, Ryazan, Nizhny Novgorod, Sochi, Krasnoyarsk to say hello to Vladivostok now!
- Are you ready? - Yes
The officials are ready!
Ilya, you're next! 00:42:34.261 00:42:47.261 [ Annoncer ]The first semifinal. Ilya Fyodorov is the leader in this tandem. Double kiss-the-wall. Both pilots kissed the wall, and Ilya Fyodorov hits the foam. 00:42:52.138 00:43:08.459 And Ilya Fyodorov’s car will be towed away. Well, I don’t know. Will they get his car ready for drifting in time for the 3rd place race? He never surrenders, like the Varyag cruiser. He’s not a Varangian though, he’s local.
Take this off
If you've got nothing to do, tape up the bumper! 00:43:32.623 00:43:41.663 Let’s go, Arkady Tsaregradtsev is a lead car, he starts this duel against Ilya Fyodorov. 00:43:38.615 00:43:41.414 [ VO ]But Ilya’s car stalled during the final. 00:43:45.800 00:44:01.319 [ Annoncer ]Ilya stayed there. His car just didn’t want to continue and returning to the motherland will happen like this. As soon as Ilya Fyodorov’s car is towed to the shop, he’ll have 5 minutes to fix it. Ilya, will we fix it? No, says Ilya. This is it! 00:44:07.791 00:44:14.751 But we’re still celebrating. That’s right! It’s the end of the season! So this is it, everyone is silent, waiting for the main battle of the day.
I had a good run and reached the top-4
- I didn't win, but crashed well - So, next year, your plan is the same?
Well, this year's plan was to show what we're capable of
Next year's plan is to prepare, enter the competitions…
and what will be, will be 00:44:56.343 00:45:14.663 [ Annoncer ]He hasn’t just won the second Russian Drift Series title in a row, he’s become a winner of the round seven. Georgy Chivchyan! So, this is the end of the first RDS Grand-Prix super-season.
So? A dream come true?
Not yet!
Only when we host the world championship, and a Russian pilot wins it
Sorry it's taken us so long to meet, but…
my schedule's just crazy!
And, so I realised it was now or never
After Ryazan, we decided to skip the race in Nizhny Novgorod
Meanwhile, I began to look for a car to buy in Europe
We bought the car in a big rush
When it arrived in Sochi, we looked under the hood and saw
that it had a large number of shortcomings
We chose not to give up and just race as best we could
So, we planned trips to Krasnoyarsk and Vladivostok
The 1st week of August, I realised I couldn't make Krasnoyarsk because I needed to be at work
After missing Krasnoyarsk, I saw no point in risking the trip to Vladivostok
I remember when we were sitting in my office, we discussed…
what's our aim?
What's the point of these events and why is this all necessary
At that time, I said the purpose was to prove I'm number one in the sport
But the goal transformed during the course of the season
I began to realise I was at a crossroads:
either I do this five times a week,
like I need to in order to get results…
or I don't do it at all
But I'm sure everything's going to be fine and work out OK 00:47:16.176 00:47:22.096 [ VO ]In September 2018, for the first time ever, the Russian team beat Japan in the D1 drifting Grand-Prix. 00:47:24.658 00:47:30.218 In November 2018, RDS champion, Georgy Chivchyan became world drifting champion.