Category: FD News

Strong Start to 2012 Formula Drift Season for Driver Aurimas Bakchis

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For immediate release – The 2012 Formula Drift pro championship kicked off at Round 1 in Long Beach, California on April 6 and April 7 and proved to be a success for driver Aurimas Bakchis (Odi) and the Team M7 Japan Nexen Tire Nissan S14.  Bakchis placed 15th in Round 1, further demonstrating that his 2011 “Rookie of the Year” title was well deserved.

Entering the season as the driver for Team M7 Japan, Bakchis debuted a new motor for his Nissan 240SX S14 chassis, upgraded suspension, and a new look.  With a field of 60 drivers qualification scores were tight; Bakchis ranked 30th after Friday’s qualifying round and was paired with Vaughn Gittin Jr. for the Top 32 tandem competition.

Gittin straightened during the first run of the Top 32 tandem round and Bakchis then led a strong, aggressive run that moved Bakchis on to the Top 16 main event.  Bakchis was paired with Ken Gushi for the Top 16 tandem competition.  Gushi led the first run and then failed to follow Bakchis on the second run in what was determined to be a false start by Bakchis.  After an exciting lead run by Bakchis, Gushi moved on to the next round and Bakchis finished the event tied for 15th place with Toshiki Yoshioka.

Round 1 was both exciting and successful for Bakchis, providing a strong start to the 2012 season.  The season promises to be exciting for Bakchis and his team as they prepare to head to the east coast for the next three rounds of Formula Drift.  Bakchis will be completing the season with the help of sponsors including M7 Japan, Nexen Tires, Feal Suspension, 702 Graphics, Clutch Masters, Torco, Drive M7 Energy Drink, Dstroyr, Battle Version, Swift Springs, EBC Brakes, Top Line, XXR Wheels, Sikky Manufacturing, and CBM Motorsports.

Formula DRIFT Round 1: Streets of Long Beach Results

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Justin Pawlak Wins the Season Opener for the Second Consecutive Season

Long Beach, Calif. – April 7, 2012 – Justin Pawlak in the Falken Tire Ford Mustang earns the victory at the first event of the 2012 Formula DRIFT season. Daijiro Yoshihara in the Discount Tire / Falken Nissan 240SX takes second place while Formula DRIFT rookie Daigo Saito, in the Achilles Tires / Bridges Racing Lexus SC430 rounds out the podium.

Round 1: Streets of Long Beach kicked off the 2012 season to a sold out audience. The largest driver pool participated in the two-day event with the largest rookie field of any season with 19 rookies.

“Starting the season to a sold out crowd is a great feeling,” says Jim Liaw, president and co-founder of Formula DRIFT. “The drivers stepped up and provided a highly competitive event that sets the tone for the rest of the year. We’re looking forward to how the season will unfold.””

Justin Pawlak found the top of the podium for the second consecutive season in Long Beach taking the lead to start the 2012 Pro Championship season. Pawlak battled the 2011 Formula DRIFT champion, Daijiro Yoshihara, in a hard fought battle to win the event. Yoshihara defeated Formula DRIFT Asia champion and rookie Daigo Saito in the Top 4 to move on to Finals eventually taking second place. Saito defeated Matt Powers, who finished in third place in 2011, in the consolation round to find the podium in his very first Formula DRIFT Pro Championship event. Saito is now leads the new X-Mini Rookie Challenge.

“Its just amazing to come back to Long Beach and put down another win 2 years in a row,” said Justin Pawlak, winner of Round 1: Streets of Long Beach. “This is a great way to start the season and go for the championship.”

The 2012 Pro Championship season continues for Round 2: Road to the Championship at Road Atlanta on May 11-12. Tickets are available to purchase online now.

For more information visit: www.formuladrift.com

Formula DRIFT Professional Championship 2012 Point Standings After 1 Event

1. Pawlak, Justin Falken Tire Ford Mustang 106 Points
2. Yoshihara, Daijiro Discount Tire / Falken Tire Nissan S13 92 Points
3. Saito, Daigo Achilles Tire / Bridges Racing Lexus SC430 78.50 Points
4. Powers, Matt Need for Speed / Nitto Nissan S14 69.50 Points
5. Tuerck, Ryan Team Retaks Nissan 240SX 66 Points
6. McQuarrie, Tyler Mobil 1 Camaro 64 Points
6. Millen, Rhys Hankook / Rhys Millen Racing Hyundai Genesis Coupe 64 Points
8. Forsberg, Chris NOS Energy Drink / Hankook Nissan 370Z 63 Points
9. Gushi, Ken Scion Racing Scion FR-S 62 Points
10. Moen, Kenneth Lutz Performance Nissan 350Z 61.50 Points
11. Grunewald, Conrad Hankook Tire Chevy Camaro 57 Points
12. Aasbo, Fredric Need for Speed / Papadakis Racing Scion TC 57 Points
12. Kado, Ryan Ryan Kado Racing Nissan 350Z 56 Points
14. Mohan, Kyle Nexen Tire / Mazdatrix Mazda RX-8 55 Points
15. Bakchis, Aurimas “Odi” Bakchis Motorsports Nissan 240SX S14 54.25 Points
15. Yoshioka, Toshiki RS*R Nissan Silvia S15 54.25 Points

Round 1: Streets of Long Beach Event Results

1. Pawlak, Justin Falken Tire Ford Mustang Winner
2. Yoshihara, Daijiro America’s Tire / Falken Tire Nissan S13 Second Place
3. Saito, Daigo Achilles Tire / Bridges Racing Lexus SC430 Third Place

Round 1: Streets of Long Beach Ticket Update

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Formula DRIFT Long Beach Seating Sold Out!

For the first time in Formula DRIFT history, Formula DRIFT has sold out all of the seated tickets in the venue located in downtown Long Beach. Due to this incredible occurrence, Formula DRIFT has consulted track and city officials and will offer a very limited general admission/stand room only ticket for tomorrow’s main event. The ticket will include admission to the event and access to the Long Beach Grand Prix viewing area on the Shoreline side of the track near grandstands 24, 25 and 26. These tickets will be sold on a first come, first serve basis and sold at a rate of $27 at the Long Beach Convention Center box office.

If you have any further questions you may call the Long Beach Convention Center box office or send an email to [email protected]

Formula DRIFT Announces Live Stream Expansion for the 2012 Season

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Long Beach, Calif. – April 10, 2012 – Formula DRIFT has announced today that they will continue to air all domestic Formula DRIFT rounds through the Driftstream program that will expand for the 2012 Pro Championship Season.

All on track action will be shown via the Driftstream, located on formulad.com/live, including the first practice through to the last tandem competition on both Friday and Saturday event days. With an average viewership of over 150,000 unique IP’s in 2011 Formula, Formula DRIFT has signed a number of agreements that will expand the distribution of the already popular live stream. In 2012, Formula DRIFT will be distributed live through Justin.tv, Metacafe Live, Dailymotion Live and Youtube Live.

“Formula DRIFT worked diligently in the off-season to reach out to our existing partners and develop new relationships that will help make our live broadcasts more attractive. We feel that we are leading the charge of what is a progressive and new way to reach and develop a fan base.,” said Ryan Sage, vice president and co-founder of Formula DRIFT. “Additionally, with partner Ubiquity Broadcasting Corporation, we are excited to be expanding our coverage of the events as well, making the live experience better to watch from home or work. We will start with a few shots of the competition on Friday and expand to a full broadcast by main day. We will also be adding a live half-time show and new graphics.””

Additionally, Formula DRIFT has signed a deal with Flingo, as a new “on-demand” option providing content to all Web-enabled televisions that carry the Flingo application. There are currently 10,000,000 of these devices in the U.S. and 40,000,000 world-wide and include Insignia, LG, Samsung, Vizio, Sanyo, Western Digital, as well as Netgear devices – covering more than 8.5 million screens in 118 countries worldwide. The combined viewership of all the 2012 Driftstream partners is over 200,000,000.

“The FormulaD app offers a window into the exciting world of drifting, one of the fastest growing categories of extreme motorsports. FormulaD pioneered drifting in the United States, and it’s not surprising to see them become a pioneer in the Smart TV arena,” said Ashwin Navin, CEO and co-founder of Flingo. “Our partnership enables FormulaD to reach millions of people in their living rooms with the convenience of a TV remote control at any hour of the day with a more dynamic, engaging viewing experience than traditional broadcast.”

The Formula DRIFT Driftstream begins broadcasting tomorrow at Round 1: Streets of Long Beach on April 6-7 starting at 10:00 AM (PST).