Category: Behind The Scenes

Behind the Scenes – Life of FD Staff

Daijiro Yoshihara Goes Back to His Roots

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Signing another year with Team Falken Tire/Discount Tire for the 2010 Formula Drift
season, Dai Yoshihara will be back to his driving roots and will be piloting a
Nissan 240SX S13. Having come off a struggling 2009 season, Dai has put last
year’s hic-ups in the past and is now ready to take vengeance and fight for
the championship for 2010.

Car builder and manager, Scott Dodgion of SPD Metal Works, was brought back to
rebuild the S13 that Dai competed in during the last two events of the 2009 season.
Having gone under the knife, the S13 has gotten a complete make over and will now
sport a new fresh aero package from Rocket Bunny with Volk Racing RE-30 wheels. The
new aero kit will also now be complemented with fresh new vinyl graphics, which were
all laid out by Race Designs. Under the hood will lay a massive 6.0-liter, LS-2 V8
motor that will be producing over 650hp.

“I am very excited for this year,” explains Dai. “The Lexus was a
good car, but it was unfamiliar to drive. I’ve driven a S13 before and have
won events in one, so this year, I expect to be on the podium many times.” In
2009, Dai gained enough points to finish in 11th in the championship standings with
a good amount of points coming from the last two events in which he drove a S13.

The first Formula D event of the season will be in Long Beach, CA on April 10th.
Long Beach has been the season opener for the past 5 years as the drift course is a
series of turns that will be in place for the Long Beach Grand Prix in the IRL
series.

EA TEAMS UP WITH TOP DRIVERS TO FORM ‘TEAM NEED FOR SPEED’ INTERNATIONAL RACING COLLECTIVE

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Drifters Mad Mike Whiddett, Matt Powers and
GT Racer Patrick Soderlund to be Sponsored by Need for Speed

REDWOOD CITY, Calif. – April 6, 2010 – From the hit videogame to the street, Need for Speed™ is the nerve center of gaming car culture. Electronic Arts Inc (NASDAQ: ERTS) today announced an entertainment program that brings together the top street, drift, GT racing, time attack cars and drivers. Dubbed ‘Team Need for Speed’, these individuals embody the spirit of the Need for Speed franchise – the adrenaline and rebelliousness of driving the world’s coolest cars. Together, this collective of racing influencers will carry the Need for Speed brand into a variety of events, films, competitions and more.

Team Need for Speed consists of an all-star roster of drivers renowned for their skill on the track and passion for the automotive lifestyle including Vaughn Gittin Jr. (Drift/USA), Matt Powers (Drift/USA), Edward Sandström (GT Racing/Europe), Patrick Söderlund (GT Racing/Europe) and Mad Mike Whiddett (Drift/USA, New Zealand, Japan). Additional drivers will be announced in the future. The season kicks off this week as three of the Team Need for Speed drivers hit the track. On April 9, Mad Mike Whiddett and Matt Powers compete in the ‘Streets of Long Beach’ Formula D event and on April 10, Patrick Soderlund and teammate Edward Sandström will compete in the VLN Series’ Stunden-Rennen race at the Nurburgring Nordschleife in Germany.

“Driving for Team Need for Speed is a great honor,” said Mad Mike Whiddett, Team Need for Speed driver and champion drifter. “I love the pure creativity and insane competition of drifting and partnering with Need for Speed is perfectly aligned with my personal and professional passions.”

The Team Need for Speed program also features a 12-part film series about the Team Need for Speed drivers and their cars directed by renowned automotive filmmaker, Will Roegge. Need for Speed is also expanding its Formula D sponsorship with the Need for Speed Lounge where attendees can meet the drivers, Mad Mike Whiddett and Matt Powers, and play the latest Need for Speed games.

Keith Munro, VP of Marketing for EA said, “Team Need for Speed launches an aggressive initiative designed to bring the core brand values of Need for Speed into the real world. By partnering with these tastemakers and by creating these specific programs, Need for Speed goes beyond the game into the real world of automotive lifestyle culture.”

With over 100M units sold, Need for Speed is the best-selling racing game franchise in the world and is known for delivering unparalleled white-knuckle racing, creative customization and street style. Last fall EA published Need for Speed SHIFT, the highest rated Need for Speed game in years, featuring an intense first-person crash dynamic and a signature cockpit view that delivers a true driver’s experience. Need for Speed World is a massively multiplayer online action racing game that is currently in the beta process and will be available this summer on the PC.

For more information on Team Need for Speed visit needforspeed.com, become a fan at http://www.facebook.com/needforspeed or follow us on Twitter at NeedforSpeed. Press can download assets at http://info.ea.com.

DRIFT ALLIANCE ACE BRIAN WILKERSON TO DRIVE BMI RACING 4-ROTOR RX-8 IN LONG BEACH

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TORRANCE, CA (April 4th, 2010)- BMI Racing is happy to announce that Drift Alliance Ace Brian Wilkerson will drive the BMI Racing 2009 Mazda RX-8 4-Rotor drift car at Formula Drift Round 1: Streets Of Long Beach on April 9-10th.

Brian Wilkerson has been a constant presence in the east coast grassroots drifting scene for years, competing in several amateur and semi-professional events since 2006 with impressive results. Brian has renewed his Formula Drift competition license for 2010 and is looking to punch a hole in the pro-drift circuit and show that he has what it takes to be a serious contender among the world’s best drifters in the top level American drift series.

BMI Racing is currently finishing up prep-work on their one of a kind 2009 Mazda RX-8 powered by a rare 4-Rotor engine. BMI Racing is the first performance shop to successfully install a 4-Rotor engine into an RX-8 chassis. Since the car’s completion it has been an internet sensation and has received over 80,000 video hits combined on YouTube.com and StreetFire.net as well as over 200,000 total impressions due to coverage on Autoblog.com and Mazda USA’s corporate website.

While both BMI Racing and Brian Wilkerson have years of experience in their respective specialties both parties are relatively (Brian competed in Round 2 in Atlanta in ’09) new to Formula Drift and expect tough challenges ahead. However, Brian and BMI Racing are also confident that together, they can make a strong impression at Long Beach.
For further information on BMI Racing and Brian Wilkerson you can visit http://www.bmiracing.net and www.brianwilkerson.com.
If you have any inquires on BMI Racing feel free to contact Andrew Beckford ([email protected])

ABOUT BMI RACING:
BMI Racing consists of Adam and Sarah Burgess a happily married couple that moved from Australia to the USA to pursue their shared passion for motorsport, and with over 25 years combined experience they have built extreme and diverse performance vehicles.
BMI Racing has successfully built the World’s only 2009 Mazda RX-8 4 Rotor, a naturally aspirated beast that has a unique engine sound that can only be compared to that of a Formula One car. The RX-8 4 rotor has been well received wherever it has been on display, including shows such as Seven Stock 12 held at Mazda Headquarters Irvine, the final round of Formula D at Irwindale, and the world largest automotive show – The SEMA show held in Las Vegas.