Ken Block’s much-awaited Gymkhana Eight was released with much fanfare this week, and has already notched up over 4.4 million views on YouTube (you can watch it below).
Titled “Ultimate Exotic Playground, Dubai”, Block’s Ford Fiesta roars through the Dubai city and countryside in a series of well choreographed and well thought out stunts.
But how does it rate compared to his previous seven Gymkhana videos, and have we become harder to impress?
To me, it appears that Ken Block has become a victim of his own success. So good were some of the earlier videos, that the latest installation seems a little mundane and boring.
Okay, the scenery is spectacular and the stunts are brilliant, but the eight-minute clip seemed to do little more than demonstrate how well Block’s Ford Fiesta does donuts, and how much tyre smoke can be emitted from a set of tortured Toyo tyres.
I’m not for one minute questioning Block’s talent – there aren’t too many who could perform the stunts he does – but Gymkhana Eight certainly lacked the “wow” factor.
Where were the streets of San Francisco or the tearing up Universal Studios moments?
For me, there wasn't a lot in the latest offering that made you want to go back to the start and watch it again.
Some of the previous videos have been so good that we have begun to expect more and more – whatever that may be.
Tellingly, perhaps the most impressive stunt of the entire eight minutes came at the end, when Block did a backflip off the rail of a helicopter into the water (in his driving suit) – something that didn’t involve a car at all.
There’s a Gymkhana Nine coming, and while it will no doubt be another must watch clip, the Hoonigan team need to set the bar a little higher to bring back the “wow” factor.
- Peter Whitten
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