Initial D fans rejoice with the premiere of MF Ghost! It is the latest addition to the racing anime genre and is the direct sequel to the iconic Japanese street racing manga series, Initial D. It stars a different protagonist named Kanata Katagiri (Rivington), but is Initial D’s Takumi Fujiwara in MF Ghost?
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Takumi Fujiwara: The Legendary Downhill Racer
Takumi Fujiwara is an iconic figure in the lore of Initial D and MF Ghost. He is originally from Shibukawa City in Gunma Prefecture and started out as a simple delivery rider for his father’s tofu store.
At first, Takumi had no interest in driving, so he had to rebel against his father to show his dislike for it.
He didn’t understand why guys like Itsuki (his close friend) were so hyped about driving and racing cars. He was even terrified of riding a racing car!
Over time, Takumi Fujiwara’s genius driving skills became known to the world. He even earned the nickname The White Ghost of Akina, due to his incredible inertia drift, which left Keisuke Takahashi in the dust.
He was also known for his iconic gutter runs, tricks, drifts, blind attacks, and more.
At the age of 20, Takumi flew across the ocean alone to race in the British Rally Championships, and in his third year, he was able to win the championship title.
He even earned the nickname Flying John because of his exceptional speed.
Takumi also raced on a few WRC allies, where he was able to produce stable results. However, Takumi suffered serious injuries during a test run before the opening rally of an event he joined under Toyota.
His drive shaft broke, and he had an accident. He fell into a ravine, where he suffered serious injuries that led to his immediate retirement.
Since then, Takumi has disappeared from the limelight, although there are speculations that he became a lecturer and instructor for racing schools in the UK.
Is Takumi Fujiwara in MF Ghost?
Yes, Takumi Fujiwara is in MF Ghost, but he has yet to appear in the flesh in both the anime and manga series. It was only his name, which has been mentioned countless times in the series.
Understandably, MF Ghost is the direct sequel to Initial D, and it was inevitable that Takumi Fujiwara’s name would make a noise in the new series.
Takumi Fujiwara was on the cover of MF Ghost Chapter 25, where his back can only be seen. He was talking to a 15-year-old Kanata Rivington (Katagiri) then.
How Is Takumi Fujiwara Related to Kanata Rivington (Katagiri)?
Takumi Fujiwara is Kanata Rivington’s (Katagiri) teacher at the prestigious Royal Donington Park Racing School (RSDS) in the UK. He was also Kanata’s father figure, who took care of the young racer in any way he could.
He even took Kanata out for private classes during their days off. They also used to sit on the pastures, eat lunch together, and laugh over silly things. He was also there for Kanata because of his broken Japanese skills.
This is the reason why a lot of spectators in Japan can see the resemblance between Takumi and Kanata’s driving skills. It almost seems like the viewers are watching Fujiwara’s old acrobatic driving style in Kanata’s style.
Kanata also applies Takumi’s teachings and advice to him whenever possible.
For instance, Fujiwara told Kanata that no matter how small the opening might seem in the race, as long as there was enough space to fit three cars next to each other, he could find a way through.
Fujiwara also told Kanata not to look for cars with power and that he should choose a car that has less power than his rivals.
His advice is always a little vague to encourage his students to figure things out for themselves, but he always hits the nail on the head.
On the other hand, Kanata believes that Fujiwara is a master at drifting, and his ability to freely pull off inhuman drifts is superb and amazing. He even thinks that his drifts are childish compared to Fujiwara himself.
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