Category: FD News

Inaugural Formula DRIFT Super Drift Challenge to Run at 2013 Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach

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Inaugural Formula DRIFT Super Drift Challenge to Run at 2013 Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach;
Invitation-Only Formula DRIFT Event to Become Grand Prix’s First Night Race

Long Beach, Calif. – December 5, 2012 – LONG BEACH, Calif. (Dec. 4, 2012) – For the first time in its 39 years, the world-famous Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach, April 19-21, 2013, will offer night racing with the inaugural Formula DRIFT Super Drift Challenge on Friday and Saturday nights during race weekend.

The Formula DRIFT Super Drift Challenge, which will take place at 7 p.m. on the eastern end of the race circuit – turns nine, 10 and 11 – is expected to feature 16 of the sport’s top cars and drivers including 2012 Formula DRIFT champion Daigo Saito, 2011 champ Daijiro Yoshihara, plus Frederic Aasbo, Aurimas Bakchis, Michael Essa, Conrad Grunewald, Ken Gushi, Tyler McQuarrie, Robbie Nishida, Justin Pawlak, Matt Powers and others to be announced. Friday’s action will include practice and qualifying runs, while Saturday will see the teams compete for a $25,000 prize. On Sunday, the Super Drift Challenge cars will drift the entire race circuit after the featured IZOD IndyCar Series race.

Grand Prix fans that purchase any admission ticket for Friday or Saturday racing activities will be able to see that day’s Super Drift Challenge.

Seating for the Super Drift Challenge will be in Grandstands 16, 18, 24, 25 and 26 on a first-come, first-serve basis beginning at 6:30 p.m.

“We are excited to change up the drifting action during the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach weekend from an exhibition show to a competition. By doing this we will be able to showcase the true form of competition drifting to the Grand Prix fans,” said Jim Liaw, president and co-founder of Formula DRIFT. “The icing on the cake comes in the form of night time drifting on the streets. We are truly honored to be the first Series to be competing on the streets of Long Beach at night!”

“The Grand Prix has enjoyed a long and productive relationship with Formula DRIFT and this newly designed event takes it to a new level,” said Jim Michaelian, president and CEO of the Grand Prix Association of Long Beach. “And all this added excitement will be presented at no additional cost to our race attendees. Plus, because of its unique location, there will be no impact in any way on the businesses around the rest of the track.”

Ticket prices for the three-day event range from $28 for a Friday General Admission ticket to $130 for a three-day ticket that includes Sat./Sun. reserved seating in grandstand upper levels. Pre-paid parking packages are also available, along with handicapped seating, IndyCar Paddock passes, Super Photo tickets and a wide variety of Hospitality Club packages. Fans can select and pay for their 2013 Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach seats, parking and paddock passes online at the new gplb.com. Ticket orders can also be placed by calling the toll-free ticket hotline, (888) 82-SPEED.

Redline 360’s Casting of Formula DRIFT: The Movie

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CLICK HERE for the full article.

Formula DRIFT Hurricane Sandy Disaster Relief Fundraiser Announced; Irwindale Speedway to Host Charity Drift Event on December 13

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Formula DRIFT has announced a special charity event to benefit the American Red Cross’s Hurricane Sandy relief efforts on December 13 at Irwindale Speedway. Professional drift ride-alongs from Formula DRIFT stars will be for sale to the public with proceeds to going to the relief fund.

“Hurricane Sandy affected a lot of people on the East Coast and we realize the help that is needed to restore the quality of life for many,” said Jim Liaw, president and co-founder of Formula DRIFT. “The Series has many friends, fans and family living in the affected parts of the country and we invite everyone to come attend this special event to help support those in need.”

Formula DRIFT ride-alongs from the Series top drivers such as Daijiro Yoshihara, Justin Pawlak, Odi Bakchis, Kyle Mohan, Jeff Jones, Danny George and more will be available to give once in a lifetime ride-alongs that will be for sale.

Raffle tickets will also be on-sale at the event for a chance to win great prizes from Formula DRIFT partners including:

ACT, EBC Brakes, Electric, Fatlace, K&N, K1 Speed, Keep Drifting Fun, Motegi, Racers Edge, Tony Angelo, Scion Racing and Vaughn Gittin Jr.

Those that purchase a ride-along will be entered into a raffle for prizes donated by the following companies:

Alpinestars, America’s Tire, Falken Tire, K&N, K1 Speed, Fatlace, NItto Tire, Discount Tire Center and Racers Edge. 

The event is FREE and open for all fans to attend from 6 – 9 PM. Companies and Individuals can purchase ride-alongs via the Formula DRIFT website: www.formuladrift.com. Donations are also welcome with all proceeds to be donated to the American Red Cross.

CLICK HERE TO BUY A RIDE ALONG

Schedule of Events:

6:00pm: GATES OPEN TO PUBLIC

6:00 – 6:30pm: Driver Practice / Warm-Up Session

6:00 – 6:30pm: Ride-Along Check-In

6:30 – 7:30pm: Ride-Alongs

7:30 – 8:00pm: Raffle Drawing

8:00 – 9:00pm: Additional Ride-Alongs

9:00pm: GATES CLOSE TO PUBLIC

GSR AUTOSPORT Announces Partnership With Bilstein For 2013 Formula DRIFT Season

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LAKE FOREST, CA., November 27, 2012 – GSR Autosport Racing is partnering with BILSTEIN (a division of ThyssenKrupp) for sponsorship and technical assistance during the upcoming 2013 Formula Drift season.

GSR Autosport will be launching a new car for the 2013 season based on the BMW E46 chassis. Michael Essa, Co-owner, Director of Motorsports at GSR Autosport and driver of the #101 drift car explains. “As the sport continues to progress we felt we needed to make a few changes to keep pace with some of the top competitors. With increasingly higher speeds we needed a bit longer wheel base to provide for more stability and more fluid transitions — the E46 chassis gives us nine more inches of wheelbase over the Z4.”

BILSTEIN and GSR have been working together over the last several months to custom build BILSTEIN motorsport MDS (Modular Damping System) dampers specific for the E46 drift application. “Much of the mechanicals carry over from the Z4 so we have a good base of knowledge to start from,” said Dirk Walk, Sales & Product Manager – Tuning at BILSTEIN. “We will be providing engineering support for the GSR drift program from our staff of top motorsport engineers. This combined with the data we will be collecting during testing and throughout the season will give us the ability to progress the suspension tuning quickly.” In early development GSR was able to model the E46 suspension in SolidWorks (3D CAD System) to simulate camber and toe changes as the suspension articulates using different suspension pick-up points.

“We’re absolutely excited to be working with BILSTEIN on our drift program,” said Nick Richards, President of GSR Autosport. “We have a lot of experience with BILSTEIN products from our road racing and street tuning business. The products are really second to none when it comes to outright performance and they have a storied past of success that backs that up. Plus, BILSTEIN’s U.S. motorsports division is headquartered locally so it is easy for us to collaborate with their team.”

GSR Autosport will debut its new BMW E46 M3 at the first round of the 2013 Formula Drift season in Long Beach, California, over the weekend of April 11-12, 2013.

About GSR Autosport
GSR Autosport is a full-service German automotive specialist located in Lake Forest, CA. We have a dedicated staff and a passion for the marques we support – BMW, Porsche, Audi and Mercedes. From general factory service to full race car builds and everything in between – we are your trusted, all German, Orange County automotive center. Our years of running professional racing programs have given our team a technical understanding of the vehicles we support, far greater than most other shops or dealers. This translates into swift and accurate diagnosis and a practical approach to keep your vehicle running at its best. For more information, visit www.gsrautosport.com.

Media contract:
Mike Harley
[email protected]

About BILSTEIN
Founded in 1954, BILSTEIN is the world’s leading manufacturer of monotube gas pressure shock absorbers. With their main headquarters located in Germany, BILSTEIN is an original equipment supplier to BMW, Ferrari, Jaguar, Mercedes-Benz, and Porsche. Today, BILSTEIN of America has grown to nearly 75 employees located in two locations around the United States and distributes over 3,000 part numbers into the US aftermarket. Since 2005, BILSTEIN has been a wholly owned subsidiary of ThyssenKrupp Technologies AG. For more information, please visit www.bilsteinUS.com.

Media contact:
Camee Edelbrock, Schiefer Media
949.336.1700, ext. 205, [email protected]

CraveOnline Host Nash Herrington Goes Drifting With Fredric Aasbo

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Nash Herrington, host of CraveOnline’s show ‘Clocked Out,’ headed out to Round 7: Title Fight to get a first-hand experience in the passenger seat of Fredric Aasbo‘s Team Need for Speed Scion tC.

Coverage can be seen from 25:40-28:08.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xchPT6ZgEv4&feature=plcp[/youtube]