After Being Kicked Out Of The U.S., Is Daigo Saito’s Formula DRIFT Career Over?

Daigo Saito, the 2012 Formula DRIFT USA champion and one of drifting’s biggest names, made headlines with his shock long-awaited comeback to the series in 2025.

As the first driver ever to hold major titles in both Formula DRIFT and D1GP, his return was always going to be huge news.

After a decade away from U.S. competition, the 2025 Formula DRIFT season comeback was met with enormous excitement from fans worldwide.

But things haven’t gone according to plan.

After struggling through the early rounds and failing to advance beyond the Top 32, things got significantly worse for the Japanese legend.

Last month, he was refused entry at the U.S. border while attempting to travel to Round 5 in St. Louis.

Fans waited for updates, hoping the visa issues would be resolved quickly. Instead, they got the announcement that Wataru Masuyama would be taking his place behind the wheel of the Jerry Yang GR86.

Masuyama had been absent from the series since the 2022 season, where he was known for piloting his green Nissan Silvia S15.

Back after a 3-year break from the series, Masuyama’s return raised immediate questions about Saito’s future in the Jerry Yang Racing team.

Now, fans are left wondering if they’ll ever get to see the Japanese drift legend compete on American soil again.

Daigo Was Clearly Angry When He Was Refused Entry

Saito didn’t hold back his frustrations on Instagram. In a post that has since been deleted, he made it clear he was extremely unhappy with the way he was treated.

The whole ordeal involved a 60-hour-long detour via Amsterdam, where he was treated “as a criminal” before being sent home, despite offering to pay out of his pocket for a direct flight back to Japan.

The visa issue stemmed from his participation under the Visa Waiver Program (ESTA), which officials determined was inappropriate for competing professionally. The problem seems to lie with U.S. Customs officials not believing that Saito is competing for free rather than being paid.

In all fairness, the story is believable given his legendary status and owning one of the highest-regarded tuning houses, Fat Five Racing, with a selection of bonkers Lambos and Ferraris at his disposal (among many other crazy builds), it’s clear he’s not short of cash!

During my travels, witnessing the top tier of drifting first-hand, I’ve seen plenty of drivers turn up simply for the love of driving, with passion for the sport being the top priority. I have no doubt it’s the same story for Daigo.

Unfortunately, Things Weren’t Going Great Before Being Sent Home

A combination of mechanical issues and struggling to adapt to the twin-turbo VR38DETT-powered Toyota GR86 played major factors in his difficult return. But there’s more to it than that.

The last time he competed in FD, it was a completely different playing field. The stakes are higher now, and the level of drifting is on a whole other level than what it was before.

Daigo Saito was in the game early when he caused his initial aspect, bringing a bonkers car that changed the game.

These days, you’ve got incredibly talented drivers with huge budgets, along with the very best drivers from the European Drift Masters series also competing on U.S. soil. That includes James Deane (who has since overtaken Fredric Aasbo for the most FD titles ever) as well as “The Shanahans” bringing their A-game from across the pond.

The silver lining from the last round was getting to see another Japanese legend, Shinji Minowa, get behind the wheel of the unique BAPE-liveried Toyota GR86 (albeit for an exhibition as he’s not eligible to compete in FD) to put on a show for the fans alongside his wonderkid, Hiroya (Hiro).

Given that Daigo was extremely unhappy with being denied entry, it wouldn’t come as a surprise if he’s completely against the idea of returning to Formula DRIFT, at least this year. 

Having missed both the St. Louis and Seattle rounds, he’s left with just 12 points on the season rankings – that’s 208 points behind current leader James Deane. He’s also sitting in 32nd place out of 35 drivers.

Will Masuyama Fill Daigo’s Seat For The Remainder Of The Season?

Unlike the challenging season Daigo’s had, it was an epic return for Masuyama, who looked comfortable behind the wheel of the GR86 right away.

This is especially impressive considering he’d never driven a turbo VR38DETT before, paired with Seattle being one of the most challenging tracks on the FD calendar.

His weekend was a huge success, managing an 8th-place finish in the seeding bracket. In the main event, he put on an impressive show to knock out Connor O’Sullivan and Nick Noback before reaching the Great 8, where eventual finalist and series leader James Deane eventually knocked him out.

Team owner Jerry Yang couldn’t sound much happier with how things went:

After just one round, this already puts Masuyama 21 points above Daigo Saito in the overall series rankings. He’s also proven himself in recent years with an 11th place overall in his last Formula DRIFT USA season in 2022.

Given the instant success, clear delight from Jerry Yang, and the way he has gelled with the team, we feel it’s likely Masuyama will continue to occupy the seat for the remainder of the 2025 season.

With that said, we wouldn’t rule out an agreement between Jerry Yang Racing, the team sponsors, and Daigo Saito that could mean he makes a comeback.

However, the question is likely whether Daigo even wants to deal with the hassle of U.S. visa issues again, or if the whole ordeal put him off FD USA for good.