Second Stage followed directly from the success of Initial D First Stage (1998), which had run for 26 episodes and introduced the franchise to Japanese television audiences. Where First Stage established the core characters and Takumi's emergence as a touge driver on Mount Akina, Second Stage continued the narrative as Takumi's fame attracted new challengers and the scope of the story expanded beyond the immediate Gunma locality.
The series was animated by Pastel, replacing the Studio Gallop and Studio Comet team that had produced First Stage. It aired on the same network, Fuji TV, where the first series had broadcast.
Second Stage ran for 13 episodes on Fuji TV, airing from October 15, 1999, to January 21, 2000. The shorter episode count compared to First Stage reflected the manga material available at the time and the pacing of the adaptation.
A two-episode original video animation, Initial D Extra Stage, was released by Avex on November 10, 2000, as a companion piece following the conclusion of Second Stage. Extra Stage shifted focus to characters outside Takumi's main storyline, continuing the franchise between numbered television series.
Second Stage adapted manga chapters that expanded Takumi's racing career beyond the initial Mount Akina arc. Having established himself as a remarkable driver, Takumi graduated from high school during this period and continued racing while facing new adversaries. The arc includes his defeat of rivals such as Wataru Akiyama in a Toyota Levin and Takumi avenging an earlier loss against Kyoichi Sudo on the Nikko Irohazaka.
A personal crisis runs through the arc: Takumi's girlfriend Natsuki Mogi is kidnapped, leading to a dramatic rescue at Lake Akina during winter, though their relationship eventually ends amicably. These personal developments ran alongside the racing narrative throughout the manga's second major arc.
In North America, Tokyopop licensed Second Stage alongside First Stage and Extra Stage, releasing the series across fourteen DVDs from September 16, 2003, to November 8, 2005. The Tokyopop release altered character names, added slang to the script, and replaced the original eurobeat soundtrack with rap and hip-hop music — changes that drew significant criticism from fans.
Funimation subsequently re-released and re-dubbed Second Stage with a new English dub that restored the original Japanese music. Second Stage and Extra Stage were released together in a single set on February 1, 2011, as part of Funimation's comprehensive re-release of the franchise.
Second Stage continued the Initial D anime franchise's momentum following First Stage's debut and set up the transition to the feature film format of Third Stage (2001). The two Fuji TV broadcast stages — First and Second — established the franchise's broadcast identity before it moved to satellite and on-demand distribution for later installments.
By April 2021, the Initial D manga had over 55 million copies in circulation, making it one of the best-selling manga series in history. Second Stage represented an early chapter in an anime franchise that would run across five television series, a feature film, and multiple OVA releases through 2014.