RX-8

Make
Mazda
Segment
Coupe

Sitting sideways gives you a hell of perspective on the world. Sometimes, somewhere during the rat race, it pays to take a walk in a different pair of shoes and see things differently. From there, trivialities and the act of working until the skin rubs off the bone seem stupid. Why spend so much time taking life seriously if play cannot be taken equally as seriously? Taking it seriously means practicing, however, especially if play is to be done safely.

For those with a set of tires to kill and a hankering to get into a sideways perspective, Mad Mike is here to show how it's done. As one of the world's best professional drifters, he knows quite a bit about how to get a car sideways, keep it there hanging in the balance, and make his lines so clean that turning conventionally looks like the sloppier option.

And just like a world-class surgeon needs a world-class scalpel, Mike needs a car that can keep up with his tire slaying antics. His weapon of choice is a Mazda RX-7 that sends 537 horsepower to the rear wheels. But first our Australian presenter needs some time in the practice car, a Mazda RX-8, in order to lean how to properly do the deed. Like anything in life, drifting is an art and must be practiced and constantly reconstructed in order to become refined. Here's how to at least get that part started.