View Full Version : Tiff Needell / 5th Gear Enter GT Battle Round 1!
Sumo Power Ltd
22-05-2006, 21:51
Just confirmed!
http://www.d1gb.co.uk/i/230406/Tiff.jpghttp://www.d1gb.co.uk/i/230406/5G%20logo.jpg
Channel 5's '5th Gear ' is set to join the D1GB this Sunday at Rockingham with presenter and former F1 driver Tiff Needell taking to the wheel alongside the 36 current D1GB drivers. Driving a 590bhp Toyota Soarer, Tiff will enter the competition as a provisional Licence holder and will be aiming to finish in the Top 16 to gain his full D1GB Licence. This feature and the event is to be filmed by 5th Gear on the day and will be broadcast on Channel 5 in the summer. A regular to side-ways power sliding and a previous contributor to the UK Drift scene, Tiff will be taking notes and guidance from one of D1GB's top drivers, Julian Smith in order to get to grips with the most powerful car on the grid and to get first hand experience of what being a D1GB driver is all about.
Can Tiff cut it alongside Europe's finest Drift drivers and will he succeed to gain his full licence? There is only one way to find out - get to Rockingham this weekend and see him and the rest of the boys in action.
Tickets and more info available online : www.d1gb.co.uk - Save £5 online :)
MeLLoN Stu
22-05-2006, 21:53
never know they may even finally have something interesting to put in an episode, but i doubt it :wack:
should be interesting as he knows how to throw a car around
Oooh, can't wait to see that. He did mention "those drifting competitions" in tonight's show :)
Aye, Tiffs an awesome driver!! This should be good to watch
Is he really awesome? I never really rated him tbh. Seems a bit ragged on the edge, used to crash a lot in touring cars.
Look forward to seeing how he does!
Butuz
He's far from awsome. He's good, but never exactly world class in any discipline, the only thing he ever won was Formula Ford IIRC. Only ever qualified for 1 GP and still gets touted as "former F1 driver".
Cool! Good to see 5th gear getting into this sort of thing... much better than Max Power getting in on the act ;)
Cool! Good to see 5th gear getting into this sort of thing... much better than Max Power getting in on the act
that's true...
i never really liked '5th gear', it such a boring program, just a bad copy op 'top gear'...the program just pisses me off in general:wack:
i never really liked tiff needel either, chrashed a lot, only qualified for 1 gp, and then call him 'former F1 driver'....pathetic
i wont say he would do bad in D1, but i just think, Tiff never new about drifting, and then suddenly it hits UK soil's media attention, and he wants to 'have a go'..:ghey:
increasing media exposure on respectable TV progs like 5th gear can only be for the good of the sport. much better than seeing it in mags like Max Power.
I don't rate Tiff very highly as a race driver either, but i think he knows how to throw a car around a bit, (he's a damn-sight better than me:wack: )and it'll be interesting to see how he fares against the more experienced D1 lot:) .
At the end of the day he's a professional driver paid to throw cars around all day.
He's got an almost unlimited supply of powerful cars, tyres, and empty tarmac.
Having seen him drive a couple of times, id have to say his car control is amazing. As for crashing in touring cars, show me a top driver thats in with a shout of winning races that doesnt crash a touring car reasonably often.
Hes been a regular in GT racing for a few years too. Hardly crap....
As for drifting, surely anyone that can raise the profile and scotch the fears of the Guardian readers that all Drifters are dangerous scum, mowing people down in Halfords car park, can only be a good thing. We all know the levels of engineering and preparation that go into the cars, and the talent of the drivers, surely someone kicking Tiffs arse on track would leave the drift community looking like heroes rather than villains?......
Is he really awesome? I never really rated him tbh. Seems a bit ragged on the edge, used to crash a lot in touring cars.
Look forward to seeing how he does!
Butuz
Depends who we're comparing to I guess?
I can't remember him in F1, but I'm guessing he was a pile of steaming turd?!
He has a lot of sports car history, so he must have some talent. And I'd put money on him destroying everyone on sxoc in a race :p
Drifting is a completely different world from racing though....... and it would be funny to see him make an arse of himself :D
i wont say he would do bad in D1, but i just think, Tiff never new about drifting, and then suddenly it hits UK soil's media attention, and he wants to 'have a go'..:ghey:
Tiff's been involved in the Autocar sideways challenge and also been a judge at a D1 event long ago. he's not jumping on the bandwagon now, he's been on the bandwagon for a few years. :thumbs:
and scotch the fears of the Guardian readers that all Drifters are dangerous scum, mowing people down in Halfords car park
WTF, have you ever read the Guardian :wack:
I think you'll find teh red tabs & the likes of the daily mail are likey to make comments like that without know shit all about it :nod:
I think Tiff is awesome and I'd imagine he'll do very well - he seems to be able to drift just about *any* car he gets in and I've seen plenty of so called 'pro drifters' doing barely more than embarressing themselves and their team, even with the car setup just right for drifting. Decent mods make a hell of a difference to how easy it is to drift a car so with a well setup 590HP (!!!!) soarer I imagine he'll do very well once he's got used to the car (which probably won't take long).
I'm pleased he's finally doing it in this drift event rather than just playing about in the auto tests and the like.
Strangely the car nut in me prefers 5th gear to top gear too. The opinions seem to matter more when they're coming from driving authorities rather than 3 entertaining blokes that can't drive that well. Top gear has the most amazing photography though and tends to be funnier.
WTF, have you ever read the Guardian :wack:
I think you'll find teh red tabs & the likes of the daily mail are likey to make comments like that without know shit all about it :nod:
Indeed the guardian is one of the few decent papers imo :thumbs: unlike the comics that opinionate the british work force you mentioned
no doubt tiff is a better race driver than any of the top gear presenters. :)
Coming back on the scene soon..!
cool matey :thumbs:
MeLLoN Stu
23-05-2006, 20:59
no doubt tiff is a better race driver than any of the top gear presenters. :)
yep, shite presenter though ;)
TG should enter The Stig for a bit of rivalry :thumbs:
TG should enter The Stig for a bit of rivalry :thumbs:
Now that would be awesome!
Ari Vatanen
23-05-2006, 21:30
TG should enter The Stig for a bit of rivalry :thumbs:
ohh yes :nod:
no doubt Tiff will get his license though
Will always remember him wacking Nigel Mansell :sleep: into the bridge at Donington on his BTCC guest appearence
slagging match insued :D
Will always remember him wacking Nigel Mansell :sleep: into the bridge at Donington on his BTCC guest appearence
slagging match insued :D
so do I, and (not solely) for that reason I've never liked the man - he's a bit of a tw@t
Ari Vatanen
23-05-2006, 21:34
so do I, and (not solely) for that reason I've never liked the man - he's a bit of a tw@t
tiff or Nigel ??
tiff or Nigel ??
Tiff, Nigel's a god :notworthy - Tiff awesome? I think not - Nigel awesome? Oh yes :nod:
Ari Vatanen
23-05-2006, 21:47
Tiff, Nigel's a god :notworthy - Tiff awesome? I think not - Nigel awesome? Oh yes :nod:
I agree/disagree on this
Good Old Nige was amazing, especially at Silverstone taking 18 seconds out of Nelson Piquet in 20 laps and the famous faint left-right on hanger straight with the temp gauge on melt down :eek:
+ nearly beating Senna's turbo McLaren in a non-turbo Williams at a rain soaked Silverstone + catching Senna in Monaco in 1990 but not quite being able to make the pass??
Probably the best british GP racer every except
Jackie Stewart :notworthy
You must admit Tiff has got amazing car control though :)
You must admit Tiff has got amazing car control though :)
He has, he's just not "great"
Ari Vatanen
23-05-2006, 21:51
He has, he's just not "great"
:D
its that fine line between good and great ;)
ohh yes :nod:
no doubt Tiff will get his license though
Will always remember him wacking Nigel Mansell :sleep: into the bridge at Donington on his BTCC guest appearence
slagging match insued :D
Didnae hit him hard enough!:furious:
Ari Vatanen
23-05-2006, 23:15
Didnae hit him hard enough!:furious:
From that comment I take it you don't like Nige then :)
From that comment I take it you don't like Nige then :)
Na, Nigel the hopes of Britain rest on your shoulders Mansell, I think that him and Murray Walker's relationship was just a tad sinister. I do believe that they were having a bit of a bizarre homosexual anal reaming vibe going on.
And yeah, what a dick he is.
Good enough at his job I suppose but as much personality as a fooking bag of spiders.
:rant: :rant: :rant: :rant: :rant: :hurl: :rant: :rant: :rant: :rant:
Later
You must admit Tiff has got amazing car control though :)[/QUOTE]
Yeah he has, but give you the chance to do the driving that he has and we'll see what kind of driver you become. One thing to keep in your head is this; we all have the potential to be good or even outstanding drivers. It's just 99.999999% of us are never lucky enough to be noticed or have the opportunity to get into car racing at a competitive level.
Most of the drivers you see have been driving karts, F3 blah blah blah since they were kids. I don't know about you but my parents certainly could not afford to spend a fortune sending me on courses to learn how to drive, never mind a season of karting.
It's like musicians, how many stunning musicians are out there but never make it to recording an album.
Right place, right time and make it count!:thumbs:
There are plenty of people I've seen with amazing cars driving terribly and they still get the 'racing driver' ego because they've poured so much money into their car(s). I think Tiff is pretty good - you can hardly compare him to a proper F1 driver, but it's only a drift comp so I expect he'll do very well.
Yeah he has, but give you the chance to do the driving that he has and we'll see what kind of driver you become. One thing to keep in your head is this; we all have the potential to be good or even outstanding drivers. It's just 99.999999% of us are never lucky enough to be noticed or have the opportunity to get into car racing at a competitive level.
Most of the drivers you see have been driving karts, F3 blah blah blah since they were kids. I don't know about you but my parents certainly could not afford to spend a fortune sending me on courses to learn how to drive, never mind a season of karting.
It's like musicians, how many stunning musicians are out there but never make it to recording an album.
Right place, right time and make it count!:thumbs:
Agree with you to an extent, although I don't think any amount of money spent or time wasted would put my wife into an F1 chair, even 20 years experience behind the wheel wouldn't make her a natural born driver
not a guardian reader myself, but each to their own. Point was that good exposure is worth a lot to ensure we dont all get perceived as dangerous hooligans and a threat to the masses. May even open up a few new venues to trackdays/drifters/sprinters.....
Point was that good exposure is worth a lot to ensure we dont all get perceived as dangerous hooligans and a threat to the masses. .....
You want Tiff to lie for you, is that it?
:D
law of averages suggests theres someone on here that isnt dangerous (christ knows who tho:wack: )
i did say all we need is the PERCEPTION that we are all law abiding citizens....:thumbs:
Agree with you to an extent, although I don't think any amount of money spent or time wasted would put my wife into an F1 chair, even 20 years experience behind the wheel wouldn't make her a natural born driver
Maybe not, but I can say this If you chuck her in a car on a track and let her get used to the car and the track, let her get to grips with her abilities. Then as her confidence grows, you can start to mould and shape the way she drives. 20 years of driving on the streets won't make a good driver.
Basically i think like most things confidence is your friend. An example would be the first time you do 100 mph, it seems very fast first time round, if you do that everyday for a week come the end of the week it won't be a big deal, and as your confidence and experience increase so does your ability to take in more information to look around and see what's happening around you. It all becomes natural.
I will ask you this, in your daily life of driving there must be a stretch of road or a corner that you can fly round, am I right.
We learn, we look at our surrounding and we take the information and use it as base for actions. The first time you go round a corner, you approach it at a speed that allows your brain to process what you are seeing. Looking for pot holes, the shape of the corner, the camber, the balance of the car, the weight shift and tons of other things, this all happens instinctively. You may not think it, but it happens. You make thousands of the decisions on a 10 minute drive.
That is the difference between you and F1 divers they have a different set of obstacles to contend with, but use the same processes as you and me in making them.
I really believe that you could take a decent driver and make them great. But not many of us will ever have the chance to find out.
Later
There are plenty of people I've seen with amazing cars driving terribly and they still get the 'racing driver' ego because they've poured so much money into their car(s). I think Tiff is pretty good - you can hardly compare him to a proper F1 driver, but it's only a drift comp so I expect he'll do very well.
Would you compare a F1 driver to a rally driver??
Would you compare a F1 driver to a rally driver??
I don't know to be honest. Possibly, as they both make an incredible frequency of decisions when pitched against other motoring disciplines, but then the sheer power and speed difference they have probably means that generally one driver will be rubbish at the other one's sport.
Pretty hard to say really - I do think that the cutting edge drivers are a bit strange and probably lack most other skills we all take for granted, and while 90% of that is probably learnt I reckon you need the talent in the first place. Totally agree there are many more out there who are never found though - you can't be skint and learn to drive F1 cars well can you?
I just think most drifters outside of Japan are not part of this upper echelon, so comparitively Tiff will do very well. Given the chance Nigel monotone Mansell would probably do even better if Tiff didn't smash him into something hard :wack:
Regardless of all that I still like them both.
Tiff's been involved in the Autocar sideways challenge and also been a judge at a D1 event long ago. he's not jumping on the bandwagon now, he's been on the bandwagon for a few years.
if thats true i'll take back what i said(better get my facts right next time..)
still is a sh!7 presenter! lol:wack:
SteveCarter200
24-05-2006, 19:15
but it's only a drift comp .
Only?? I take it youve perfected drifting and all other motorsports so you can make a reasoned comparison?;)
Fifth Gear has improved greatly this series and they are trying to get their own identity, what with the excellent feature about that donut world record and talking to the drivers about drifting. Plato has took to it quite well i reckon too.
I used to go to the very first UKD1 events at Silverstone when hardly any of the cars had flashy paintwork and some were bairly modified. To see how quickly it has expanded is amazing, and Tiff competing this Sunday can only be a good thing for the sport IMO.
Only?? I take it youve perfected drifting and all other motorsports so you can make a reasoned comparison?;)
heh I wish :)
No one here has perfected F1 driving or scoring goals for the England team but we still have opinions. If I need to master drifting or be better than anyone on this forum to say my bit then I guess I should just be quiet, but I'm quite enthusiastic about motorsports so its hard not to form an opinion on which are the more difficult disciplines and its easy to see that the general standard is not as good as it is in Japan yet.
As a seasoned drifter would you say drifting is harder than winning BTCC races or GT races etc? genuine question btw, not trying to bait. :)
PS. I love drifting! Even if I'm not that good I've always enjoyed trying it - but its just fun for me ;)
SteveCarter200
24-05-2006, 20:16
As a seasoned drifter would you say drifting is harder than winning BTCC races or GT races etc? genuine question btw, not trying to bait. :)
Just 'drifting' isnt more difficult than winning BTCC or GT obviously.
However, winning a D1GB/D1GP competition round is as difficult I reckon.
The upper levels in the UK is pretty bloody high now, IIRC the entry speed at Rockingham this weekend is going to be 100+mph and then slowing the car and changing direction, while still sideways, to around 30ishmph while maintaing a good line so that the fella behind cant get past. I suspect theres not many 'race' drivers that could do that without a hell of a lot of practice plus getting over the mental block of allowing the car be sideways when youve trained yourself to do exactly the opposite.
Point taken.
I just know that I find it harder to win kart racing than have fun drifting those things all the time. 100mph plus entry speed changes things quite a bit, but I thought that Tiff was in the clubman (or equivalent) class?
I honestly didn't realise the UK scene had come on that far yet. Hopefully Tiff's involvement will get some media coverage anyway - that will certianly be a good thing!
Tiff's a fine driver but not a great 'television' personality.
Who's is the Soarer he's borrowing?
(Cue mycroft and the 'soarers just want to go straight' argument :D )
SteveCarter200
24-05-2006, 20:29
Sibs... there isnt a Cluman grade, youre either D1GB or youre not. I'm not.:D Twin competition drifting is much much harder than drifting alone as I found out on saturday.:)
Candy... Hes using Glens (Tokyo).
:mad: :mad: So now Carter is calling me candy! Algie, you're gonna pay!
Tokyo has a Soarer! Good lad :D This is THIS sunday though? Bugger, gonna miss it :( Look forward to the TV show / spectator video :)
:mad: :mad: So now Carter is calling me candy! Algie, you're gonna pay!
PMSL :D Can't wait til Alg see's that :D
SteveCarter200
24-05-2006, 21:25
:mad: :mad: So now Carter is calling me candy! Algie, you're gonna pay!
Not sure why but it sort of suits you. I might even change your username.:D
Not sure why but it sort of suits you. I might even change your username.:D
Don't make me enter your mission control from behind :mad:
Also why have you headbutted a table/wall/reflective_surface ?
SteveCarter200
24-05-2006, 22:15
Don't make me enter your mission control from behind :mad:
Also why have you headbutted a table/wall/reflective_surface ?
Youre getting no where near my behind Mr Frogg.:eek:
My nose lets me.:D
LexDakarDatsun
24-05-2006, 22:43
Here is Glen's Soarer from the Drift Demo @ Redline Rumble :D
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b226/Missysx/Drift%20demos%202006/redline%20rumble/greek.jpg
cossykiller
24-05-2006, 22:55
trying my hardest to go on sunday, but its hard as im also trying to do the trackday on the monday. i dont finish work untill about 7pm on saturday then its a 5 hour drive from cornwall, trying to get your head down at 2am (if it all goes to plan) in a travel lodge/b&b and then get up ready for the world will be hard!
but worth it:nod: oh the 200 has been crashed AGAIN straight down teh bloody side while i was parked up IN IT!
the other party has admitted FULLY that it was his fault and im getting a hire car tomorrow. closest thing to my 200sx is a...........RX8:D and im allowed to take it on the track, so..... track on monday here i come:thumbs:
--Lorien--
28-05-2006, 17:49
Tiff didn't do well today at all! :no:
--Lorien--
28-05-2006, 18:01
Apart from the fact his car broke after the warm up today, he smashed the rear splitter off it, span /hit cones on almost every run and generally didn't have a good time of it!
He looked pissed off yesterday after he had been out practising too! God knows how pissed off he was today :)
Should make a good episode of 5th gear then - he's usually supercool doing bits to camera whilst on full lock :confused:
Daniel H
28-05-2006, 19:39
It's true. Tiff was a bit poo at drifting.
Its a shame he couldnt make his mark out there, he really seemed to be struggling with the car
Richy_Boy
28-05-2006, 19:54
Should make a good episode of 5th gear then - he's usually supercool doing bits to camera whilst on full lock :confused:
You can have countless retakes with a camera though ;) Damn, even I could do a prefect drift given a month and enough film, petrol, time, training, balls :wack:
Rich
Jezz_S13
28-05-2006, 20:21
I can't believe they gave him that car, a nice 300bhp S13 would have been better suited to that laggy bitch that no on seemed to be able to drive.
I got a piccy of Sumo and the TV crew pushing him backwards up the pit lane just after it pop banged and farted it's way past me to a clunking halt.
He gave me a wave but my sodding flash was on and hadn't recharged.
Would have made a cool pic LOL
Thanks to Jez for letting me & the missus be his bitches today. :thumbs:
Was a good day but am fooked now.
Jezz_S13
28-05-2006, 20:38
http://www.sxoc.com/vbb/attachment.php?attachmentid=33358
The bloke was a professional through to the bone, he was taking the competition seriously but when everything went wrong he shrugged it off with good grace and put his sffort into making the TV program.
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