Latest // Mad Mike Whiddett - Speedhunters

MAD MIKE CONQUERS THE CROWN

When Mad Mike Whiddett gets behind the wheel of one his drift cars there are a few you things you can be guaranteed of. Big noise, big smoke and big angle are part and parcel of the Kiwi drifter’s repertoire; and recently he brought them all to a special video project named Red Bull Conquer The Crown. Filmed on the iconic Crown Range Road in Queenstown near the bottom of New Zealand’s South Island, the project presented a once in a lifetime chance for Mike to go maximum attack on the closed 10.47-kilometre (6.5-mile) stretch of tarmac in his 515hp quad-rotor MADBUL RX-7 – and he didn’t let the opportunity go to waste. Turn up your speakers and press play to witness one of Speedhunters’ own hit the vertical switchback section; find the limiter in sixth gear on the high-speed plateau; and slide through some classic touge-style corners on the final run to the 1.08-kilometre high summit. Epic stuff!

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BEHIND CLOSED DOORS: INSIDE MADMIKE HQ

Ask anyone who knows anything about drifting and there’s little chance they won’t recognize the name MadMike, or one of his world-renowned Mazda drift machines. But what about the guy behind the name? Last weekend I spent a day out at Mike’s workshop shooting a feature on his reloaded BADBUL RX-8, so thought I’d use the opportunity to take a look inside his compound and give you a glimpse into the day-to-day life of MadMike Whiddett.

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MADMIKE, DMAC, ROD AND FREDRIC ON GATEBIL 2012

Although the Speedhunters Gatebil 2012 drift and media team have now scattered to the corners of the globe, we are all still basking in the afterglow of the experience of a lifetime. The event was simply that great. And while we’d all love to hold on to the immediacy of these memories, it’s soon going to be time to move on to our next projects. But before this happens, I thought to round up Darren, MadMike and Fredric for one last look at their own Gatebil stories.

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