Ken Nomura may be one of the oldest drifters hanging around the D1 paddock, but that doesn’t mean he is a step behind the competition in this youth oriented competition. Nomura made his professional drifting debut back in 2001 and has been piloting the same Blitz sponsored Nissan Skyline ever since. Unlike most drifters that prefer lightweight agile machines, Nomuken (as he is also known) prefers to celebrate the larger four-door skyline and is best known for his big smoke technique and comedic antics. He is also the reason why the aftermarket parts manufacturer Greddy made a high performance intake manifold for Nissan’s RB25 engine.
Continued after the jump.
As an amateur Nomura got his fix from late night drag racing and later progressed to touge racing in the mountains of Japan. In 1992 Nomuken was the runner up in the “All Japan Ikaten,” a driver’s search competition, which got him recognized in the realm of competitive drifting. In 1996 he opened the drift specific tuning shop Uras, the name come from the Japanese word for monkey (saru) and has earned him the nickname Monkey Man. Aside from being seen on the professional drifting circuit Nomuken can be seen in front of the camera providing comic relief in many of the Option Video titles.
| Ken Nomura |
| Nickname: Nomuken, Monkey Man |
| Born: May 19, 1965 Fukuoka, Japan |
| Drifting since: 2001 |
| Highlights: 2006 and 2008 2nd place D1GP Championship |
| 1996 Founded Uras, drift specific parts manufacturer |
| Comic relief for Option Video |
| Drift Team: Blitz |
| Drift Vehicle: ER34 Nissan Skyline |
| Power: 580 PS |
| Weight: 1280 Kg |
Posted on
04.25.2009 @ 02:38