Sure of his own skill and of 4WD's abilities on the uphill, he chooses to chase behind Keisuke Takahashi with the plan of observing his opponent from behind; confident that he can overtake if Keisuke is underwhelming.
Keisuke tunes his FD with as much power as possible with the plan of outrunning his opponent in the first round. This has a disadvantage, however, because the extra power causes the FD to oversteer easier and would wear the rear tires very quickly (Kobayakawa notes during the race that the FD was looking clumsy).
Kobayakawa becomes aware that Keisuke plans to lose him and attempts to anticipate when the FD driver plans to attack. The race progresses, however, without a sign of Keisuke's attack and Kobayakawa lowers his guard. Just when he did this, however, Keisuke initiated his attack and pulled away. Kobayakawa was unable to catch up and lost the race by a margin of 7 seconds.
Kobayakawa is his surname. His first name has never been stated.
Kobayakawa's Evo VII is the only Lancer Evolution in the series to use an aftermarket wing, as all of the other ones (except for Ichijo, who removed the wing of his Evo VI) use the stock rear wing.
Gallery[]
Manga[]
Kobayakawa in chapter 446
Kobayakawa seen battling against Keisuke
Him later on at Tsubaki spectating Project D's final battle
Anime[]
Fifth Stage[]
In Act 2, Kobayakawa's first appearance, shown practicing at Yabitsu
Ditto, Kobayakawa formally introduced
Ditto, battling against Keisuke
Kobayakawa and his Evo VII in a Fifth Stage eyecatch
Final Stage[]
Kobayakawa with Satoshi Omiya in Final Stage, spectating Project D's final battles against Sidewinder
.png "S5E2 Kobayakawa Practice Run (First Appearance).png (1.28 MB)")
