Category: FD News

Vaughn Gittin Jr. to Debut All-New Competition-Spec Ford Mustang RTR at Round One of Formula Drift: Streets of Long Beach

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On April 9th, 2016, World Champion drifter and Professional Fun-Haver, Vaughn Gittin Jr, will debut his new 2016 Competition-Spec Monster Energy Nitto Tire Ford Mustang RTR at the first round of the Formula Drift Championship in Long Beach, California.

Vaughn had this to say about the 2016 season, “I cannot wait to battle it out with the world’s best at Formula Drift with my brand new competition-spec 2016 Ford Mustang RTR. The new Ford Mustang is so much fun to drive in its stock form and with only 1 year of development in the new car, my team has really turned it up to 11 by making this the most exciting car I have ever been behind the wheel of. This Mustang RTR is a 900 horsepower, nine-second drag car that can turn left and right on a dime — who wouldn’t have fun behind the wheel of it?”

In late 2014, Ford started shipping the globally-available and new-from-the-ground-up Mustang. Aside from the fresh body, the Mustang received a new suspension configuration that includes Independent Rear Suspension (IRS). The introduction of the IRS in the 2016 Ford Mustang presented the team with some new positive engineering opportunities in comparison to the previous generation’s solid rear axle.
Power-wise, the Ford Mustang RTR is utilizing a 436 cubic-inch Ford Performance/Roush Yates Racing engine making over 900 horsepower. The team gained about 100 horsepower over previous years by simply switching to  VP Racing Fuels C85 product.
In addition to increasing horsepower and optimizing the all-new suspension to utilize the massive grip provided by Nitto NT05 Tires, shedding pounds was a big focus for the team to maximize performance. Utilizing light-weighting processes similar to what Ford is deploying in its production vehicles, the RTR Drift Team utilized composites as well as stronger and lighter alloys throughout the build allowing it to weigh in at under 3000lbs.
After just one year of development, a recent test at NCCAR was the first real opportunity for the team to open the car up and stretch its legs with long sweepers and technical sections. Following the test, Vaughn and the RTR Drift Team had huge smiles on their faces as it seemed all the long nights and hard work had paid off.
“I was a bit nervous about where we would end up initially,” says Vaughn, “as we have had over 10 years of development of the previous generation S197 Mustang and it was dialed. But following this final test, that nervousness has turned into confidence.”
April 9th marks the first round of the Formula Drift 2016 Championship in the streets of downtown Long Beach California. Vaughn and the RTR team are pumped to get back into competition mode with their eyes set on a podium finish.
“We know we are going to continue learning and adapting to what this new Mustang likes out on the track,” says Vaughn. “I feel very good about where we are after only 1 year of development and we just cannot wait to battle it out with the world’s best and leave it all on the track. We are Ready to Rock!”

If you can make it out to the Formula Drift event, swing by the RTR Drift Team booth to slap Vaughn a high-five and check out the car in person. If you can’t make it out, follow along on Vaughn’s social media (links below) or watch the Formula Drift live stream HERE.

Kyle Mohan Reveals New Formula Drift Fighter for 2016 Season

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Kyle Mohan Reveals New Formula Drift Fighter for 2016 Season

GT-Radial / Mazdatrix Mazda MX-5 to debut at Formula Drift Long Beach this weekend

April 5, 2016 (Signal Hill, Calif.) – The new Formula Drift season will bring a new vehicle for Formula Drift veteran Kyle Mohan, who will park his familiar Mazda RX-8 for a new car built on the Mazda MX-5 platform.

The KMR-built Mazda MX-5 is new but in some respects will be familiar to Mohan, as it is powered by a turbocharged, nitrous-fed three-rotor engine developed by Mazdatrix. Improvements to virtually every aspect of the drivetrain has resulted in more horsepower than the engine has produced before,

“I think ever since we first built the RX-8, we always considered what kind of car we would eventually replace it with,” said Mohan. “However as a small team, we always felt that we would be better off by continuing to improve the RX-8 instead of trying to build an entirely new car. But we made the decision last season to switch to the MX-5, and not only that, to build it to make the best use of our GT-Radial Champiro SX2 tire package. Considering how quick and nimble it felt in our first tests, I think we’ve accomplished that.”

Recent testing with the car left Mohan looking forward to competing with the car in the first Formula Drift event of the season this weekend on the Streets of Long Beach.  Mohan grew up and lives in Long Beach, and enjoys strong support for his team in the city.

“Testing the car at first was very different than the RX-8,” said Mohan. “But I felt extremely comfortable right away. After burning down my first set of GT-Radial tires I could really feel the potential that this car has. I have to give a lot of credit to our partners and our crew for giving us the resources to get this new car completed. There were a lot of long days and lost weekends to get ready to be here, and I hope to bring them a good finish this weekend. I’ll be honest – slinging our brand new car in between those concrete walls makes me a little nervous, but we did the exact same thing when we first came out with the RX-8 and there’s no event I enjoy more than Long Beach.”

Qualifying for this weekend’s Formula Drift season opener on the Streets of Long Beach will be streamed live on Friday, April 8 at 4:00 PM EST. On Saturday, April 28 the round of top-32 competition will be streamed starting at 2:00 PM EST with the round of top-16 starting at 6:30 PM EST. All the sessions will be streamed at Formulad.com

About Kyle Mohan Racing

Kyle Mohan competes in the Formula Drift Pro Championship in the no. 99 GT Radial / Mazdatrix Mazda MX-5. More information can be found at www.kylemohanracing.com.

Contact: Efrain Olivares | 818.254.7196 | [email protected]

Aurimas Bakchis Partners with Drifz for 2016 Formula Drift Season

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Aurimas Bakchis Partners with Drifz for 2016 Formula Drift Season

Genesis 2016

Ontario, CA – Bakchis Motorsports is excited to announce a new partnership with Drifz for the 2016 Formula Drift season. Drifz offers multiple wheel styles and sizes and Aurimas ‘Odi’ Bakchis will be driving the Ark Performance Feal Suspension Falken Tires Hyundai Genesis on Drifz 308B Spec-R wheels.

Drifz has been working with Bakchis to produce a custom race ready wheel that is machined from billet forged 6061 aluminum alloy. Bakchis will debut these superlight one-piece wheels at Formula Drift in Long Beach, CA on April 8-9th. He will be running 18×9” wheels on the front and 18×10” wheels on the rear of the car.

Bakchis is looking forward to showcasing the style and performance of the Drifz wheels throughout the season. He stated “I’m very impressed by the resources Drifz has to make a one-of-a-kind billet custom race wheel from concept to reality. And it’s been a pleasure to work with a wheel company that is open to the specific needs of my drift car and then makes it happen.”

Jhonnattan Castro Joins Papadakis Racing

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Jhonnattan Castro Joins Papadakis Racing

Professional Formula Drift driver teaming up with series leader

Portland, OREGON (March 30 2016) – Jhonnattan Castro has officially announced the move and formation of a satellite team to Papadakis Racing, and with him will bring sponsorship from Nexen Tire and longtime sponsor Gerdau Metaldom, KW and Advan Racing.

As part of the new partnership Jhonnattan Castro Racing will take on an ownership role as a semi-works team to Papadakis Racing, and will be driving the 2016 Scion FR-S alongside current series champion Fredric Aasbo.

“I’m very excited and proud to be forming this strategic partnership with Papadakis Racing, this is the #1 team,” Jhonn shared. “I’m looking forward to taking my career to the next level and I’m grateful for the opportunity from Stephan to race with him and Fredric. Stephan Papadakis is a team owner who keeps winning and keeps surprising people, and always is advancing, and I’ve worked hard to make this a reality and I knew I needed to make a change if I was going to advance. I’m really looking forward to our future together.”

“It is our pleasure at Papadakis Racing to partner with Jhonnattan Castro and Nexen Tire with our organization,” said Stephan Papadakis, owner of Papadakis Racing. “We think Jhonn is a great addition to our team and a dedicated competitor, and we look forward to his success on the track in 2016, we expect this year to be his best season yet. We are also honored to welcome Nexen Tire and Gerdau Metaldom to our team alongside Jhonnattan, and we look forward to working with them and helping them maximize their results on and off the track.”

Jhonnattan Castro is managed by Motorsports Marketing Agency Drive Motorsports International.

MORE ON PAPADAKIS RACING

For More Information on Papadakis Racing, please visit www.papadakisracing.com, Facebook, and Instagram.

MORE ON JHONNATTAN CASTRO

For More Information on Jhonnattan Castro please visit him on www.jcastroracing.com, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.