Cory Talaska wins Round 1 of Formula DRIFT Link ECU PROSPEC Championship and claims his first career victory
EVENT DETAILS
Date: Friday, May 9, 2025
Location: Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta, Braselton, GA
Event: Formula DRIFT Link ECU PROSPEC Round 1 Competition Results
RESULTS FOR FD PROSPEC ROUND 1
- Cory Talaska (USA) – Talaska Creative E36 BMW 2JZ
- Dmitriy Brutskiy – Never Settle BMW
- Cody Buchanan (USA) – SRD Auto / Bumz Eyewear Nissan 350Z
NOTES
- Despite a number of strong Rookie performances during Seeding Bracket Qualification, it was left to the veterans to occupy the podium for the Opening Round of the 2025 Formula DRIFT Link ECU PROSPEC Championship
- For Talaska this would be his first win since his Rookie year in 2021. It would also be his first victory over Brutskiy and hopefully the kickstart he admitted his Formula DRIFT career needed
- Brutskiy remains the only double PROSPEC Champion in the sport’s history, winning the title back-to-back in 2020 and 2021. Brutskiy claimed his most recent win at the PROSPEC Final Round in 2024 at the end of a season where he also competed in the FD PRO Championship. Repeating the formula this year, he unfortunately failed to qualify for PRO in Atlanta, so this second place in PROSPEC is a just reward for his efforts
- Third place Buchanan joined PROSPEC in 2023 and finished equal-third in the 2024 Championship standings. Tonight’s result reinforces his impressive ability
- Josh Stuart (USA) finished fourth in only his fifth PROSPEC Round driving the StuartFamDrifting C6 Corvette
- The 2025 Link ECU PROSPEC Championship Rookies included Collete Davis, Brian Hoplamazian, Chellee Hansen, Joshua (Jerry) Johnson, Ryan Kaufman, Feras Qartoumy, Carsen Ruger, Justin Ruth, Camren Sorensen and Collin Zielinski
- Hoplamazian (USA) and Ruger (USA) failed to qualify for Round 1 but Sorensen (USA) achieved notoriety for being both the youngest Formula DRIFT competitor to date at just 13 years old, and the winner of the Seeding Bracket Qualification yesterday. With the points amassed from Qualification and Competition, Sorensen sits sixth in the Championship standings driving the Sorensen Motorsports / Spyder E46 BMW
- Zielinski (USA) was the highest placed Round 1 Rookie finishing eighth. His tally with Qualifying points moved him to fifth overall at the wheel of his Fitment Industries Nissan S14.5. He leads the Rookie of the Year title chase by one point from Sorensen
- All teams in the Link ECU PROSPEC Championship must use Link engine management and GT Radial tires
FD PROSPEC ROUND 1 TOP 16 DRIVER POSITONS
| POSITION | DRIVER |
| 1 | Cory Talaska |
| 2 | Dmitriy Brutskiy |
| 3 | Cody Buchanan |
| 4 | Josh Stuart |
| 5 | Hooman Rahimi |
| 6 | Trevor Root |
| 7 | Adam Knapik |
| 8 | Collin Zielinski |
| 9 | Nate Chen |
| 10 | Nik Jimenez |
| 11 | Cole Richards |
| 12 | Kelsey Rowlings |
| 13 | Luis Lanz |
| 14 | Jack Davis |
| 15 | Matthew Bystrak |
| 16 | Camren Sorensen |
FD PROSPEC TOP 16 DRIVER CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS
| POSITION | DRIVER | POINTS |
| 1 | Cory Talaska | 50 |
| 2 | Dmitriy Brutskiy | 40 |
| 3 | Cody Buchanan | 30 |
| 4 | Josh Stuart | 30 |
| 5 | Collin Zielinski | 23 |
| 6 | Camren Sorensen | 22 |
| 7 | Hooman Rahimi | 20 |
| 8 | Trevor Root | 20 |
| 9 | Adam Knapik | 20 |
| 10 | Nate Chen | 10 |
| 11 | Nik Jimenez | 10 |
| 12 | Cole Richards | 10 |
| 13 | Kelsey Rowlings | 10 |
| 14 | Luis Lanz | 10 |
| 15 | Matthew Bystrak | 10 |
| 16 | Collete Davis | 9 |
