EVENT DETAILS
Date: Friday, July 15, 2022
Location: World Wide Technology Raceway, Madison, IL
Event: Formula DRIFT PRO Championship Round 5: Crossroads
 

1. Kazuya Taguchi (Japan) – ISR UpGarage / GT Radial Scion FRS
2. Justin Pawlak (USA) – 2022 Falken Tire Ford Mustang
3. Dylan Hughes (USA) – DHR / Royal Purple / Falken Tire BMW

• Formula DRIFT revised the course layout at World Wide Technology Raceway, removing the previous Inside Clip and creating four Outside Zones to improve the track flow
• The weather was 88˚ and humid for qualifying, with the first four drivers experiencing light rain. They were allowed sighting laps before their qualifying run
• Surprise winner of qualifying was Japanese driver Taguchi, who scored 91 points and claimed the top position for the first time since joining the series in 2018
• Pawlak scored 90 points with a characteristically aggressive run that caught the judges’ eye
• Third place Hughes repeated his Round 4 qualifying position and maintains his title push after the Round 3 win
• 2022 FD PRO points leader, Matt Field (USA) had a rocky start in the Drift Cave / Falken Tire C6 Corvette. Running first, he hit the wall in Outside Zone 2, pushing him off the track. However, with the following drivers allowed a sighting lap for the rain, Field was granted a second run in light of the track conditions. He scored 85 points, placing fourth
• Other qualifying surprises included top ten Championship contenders Fredric Aasbo (Norway) in 11th, Chelsea DeNofa (USA) in 22nd, Chris Forsberg (USA) in 23rd and Aurimas “Odi” Bakchis (Lithuania) in 29th. The results have led to some interesting Top 32 matchups, including Aasbo versus DeNofa
• Top Rookie was Daniel Stuke (USA) who scored 82 points in the Stuke Racing / MspeK Performance Nissan S14.9, placing him ninth overall
• Thirty five drivers attempted to qualify for the Top 32 competition heats, which meant three would be eliminated in the Knockout Qualifying Format (KQF), which sees the bottom eight drivers run a second time
• After KQF, Alec Robbins (USA), Jhonnattan Castro (Domincan Republic) and Trenton Beechum (USA) failed to score sufficient points to continue