Category: FD News

Formula D Announces Schedule Change for 2009 Season

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For Immediate Release

June 25, 2009

Formula DRIFT Announces Schedule Change for 2009 Season;
Round 6: Locked and Loaded to be Added to the Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma on August 21-22, 2009

Long Beach, Calif. – June 25, 2009 – Formula DRIFT has announced a schedule change for the 2009 season. Round 6: Locked and Loaded at Infineon Raceway will be re-scheduled from September 12 to August 21-22. Formula DRIFT has been added to the Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma race weekend.

“Formula DRIFT continues to bring drifting to the big leagues with the addition of our event to the Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma,” said Jim Liaw, president and co-founder of Formula DRIFT. “Motorsports fans will be able to experience the 110+ mph average speeds of open wheel racing and all the sideways action of Formula DRIFT in one weekend.”

Formula DRIFT drivers will be amongst the biggest stars in IndyCar racing, including Helio Castroneves, Danica Patrick, Dario Franchitti, Marco Andretti, Graham Rahal, and more. Fans will be treated to both drifting and IndyCar Series racing during the Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma weekend. Tickets may be purchased on the Formula DRIFT website, 2-day Friday/Saturday pass will run $35. Special ticket discounts will be available through various Formula DRIFT media and promotional partners.

The Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma will be held on the weekend of Aug. 21-22 at Infineon Raceway. The Formula DRIFT Pro Championship Round 6: Locked and Loaded is scheduled for August 21 and 22. The change in the schedule will open up a longer break heading into the Finals in Irwindale on October 16-17 leaving time for teams to prepare and for Formula DRIFT to organize promotional activities leading into the Finals.

The remaining 2009 Formula DRIFT Pro Championship Schedule (as of June 25, 2009)

Round 4: All In – Las Vegas Motor Speedway – July 10-11
Round 5: Breaking Point – Evergreen Speedway – August 7-8
Round 6: Locked and Loaded – Infineon Raceway – August 21-22
Round 7: Judgment Day – Toyota Speedway at Irwindale – October 16-17

FD Vehicles Announced for Spo-Com This Weekend

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FORMULA DRIFT TEAMS THAT WILL BE DISPLAYING AT THE 2009 SPO COM SHOW

VEHICLE ON DISPLAY – DRIVER – BOOTH

ARK Performance/Swing Shift Motorsports Nissan S14 – Casper Canul – Eibach Booth
Rockstar Energy/Hankook Tire Scion tC – Tanner Foust – AEM Booth
Signal Auto/Maziora / Drift Emporium Nissan Skyline R34 – Kazu Hayashida – Tanabe Booth
Kyle Mohan Racing Mazda RX8 – Kyle Mohan – Mazda Booth
Mazda/Nitto Tire/Bergenholtz Racing Mazda RX8 – Justin Pawlak – Mazda Booth
Battle Version Lexus SC – Alex Pfeiffer – Rotora Booth
Drift Pro Toyota AE86 – Taka Aono – FORMULA D Booth
Tech Trix Motorsports/DTC Performance Mazda RX7 (FC) – Michael Essa – FORMULA D Booth
RS-R/Toyo/Scion Scion tC – Ken Gushi – FORMULA D Booth
Team KAAZ Toyota AE8 – Yasu Kondo – FORMULA D Booth
A’pexi / Hankook Tire Mazda RX-7 – Ryuji Miki – FORMULA D Booth
Rockstar Energy Drink/Hankook Tire Subaru WRX – Eric O’Suliivan – FORMULA D Booth
Garage Boso/Falken/A’pex Nissan Silvia S15 – Ross Petty – FORMULA D Booth
Bridges Racing/Toyo Tires Nissan S13 – Michihiro Takatori – FORMULA D Booth

Formula DRIFT Round 3: The Gauntlet Results

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Formula DRIFT Round 3: The Gauntlet Results;
Darren McNamara Takes the Victory and Rises to the Top of the Standings

Long Beach, Calif. – June 6, 2009 – Formula DRIFT returned to Wall Speedway in New Jersey after a 1 year absence for Round 3: The Gauntlet. Darren McNamara in the Falken Tires / Sears Auto Center Saturn Sky took the victory and the lead for the Formula DRIFT Championship point standings. Team Falken Tires finished the event strong filling the top 3 podium positions.

Despite the initial rain on Friday, the skies cleared for the main competition at Wall Speedway setting the stage for a great event. The fans were treated to temperatures in the mid 70’s and partly cloudy skies. Thousands of fans packed the grandstands of Wall Speedway and witnessed another spectacular drifting competition of the season.

“It was a trying event for our staff and for the teams given the rain on Friday forcing us to pack all the action into one day,” said Ryan Sage, vice president of marketing and co-founder of Formula DRIFT. “Yet at the end it was a huge payoff for everyone. Team Falken put together an incredible showing and swept the podium.”

For the first time Team Falken took each position on the podium with Tyler McQuarrie in the Falken Nissan 350Z taking 3rd place, Vaughn Gittin Jr. in the Falken / Ford Racing Mustang GT taking 2nd place, and Darren McNamara in the Falken / Sears Auto Center Saturn Sky taking the victory and moving into 1st place overall in the Formula DRIFT point standings. Hometown hero, Ryan Tuerck moved into 2nd place overall in the Mobil 1 / Gardella Racing Pontiac Solstice right in front of Round 2 winner, Chris Forsberg in the NOS Energy Drink / Maxxis Nissan 350Z. The victory for McNamara, the 2006 Pro Drift Champion and 2007 Formula DRIFT Rookie of Year, was well earned after putting on a great performance and laying it all out on the line at this event.

“All day I felt completely comfortable and confident behind the Falken / Sears Auto Center Saturn Sky,” said Darren McNamara, winner of Round 3: The Gauntlet. “I couldn’t have done this without the help of the Falken crew, Sears Auto Center, ASD, my girlfriend, and all my friends and family.”

Formula DRIFT returns to Las Vegas Motor Speedway for Round 4: All In on July 10-11. Tickets are on-sale now.

Formula DRIFT Professional Championship 2009 Point Standings

1. McNamara, Darren Falken / Sears Auto Center Saturn Sky 260 Points
2. Tuerck, Ryan Gardella Racing / Mobil 1Pontiac Solstice 232 Points
3. Forsberg, Chris NOS Energy Drink / Maxxis Nissan 350Z 227 Points
4. Hubinette, Samuel NuFormz / Mopar Dodge Viper 213 Points
5. Gittin, Vaughn Falken Tire Ford Racing Mustang GT 211 Points
6. Nishida, Robbie Hankook Tires / Dynamic Autosports Nissan 350Z 197 Points
7. McQuarrie, Tyler Falken Nissan 350Z 195.50 Points
8. Pawlak, Justin Bergenholtz Racing / Nitto Mazda RX-8 178 Points
9. Aono, Taka Technosquare Toyota AE86 Corolla 174.50 Points
10. Maeng, Joon Maxxis / LS Auto Nissan S13.5 173 Points
11. Brakohiapa, Tony Cooper Tire Ford Mustang 170.75 Points
12. Millen, Rhys Red Bull / RMR / Toyo Hyundai Genesis Coupe 166.50 Points
13. Mordaunt, Patrick PM Racing Nissan S13 165.50 Points
14. Verdier, Stephan Cooper Tire / Crawford Performance Subaru STI 163 Points
15. Petty, Ross Garage Boso / Falken Nissan S15 158.50 Points
16. Yoshihara, Daijiro Falken Tire / Discount Tire Lexus IS350 156 Points

Round 3: The Gauntlet Event Results
1. McNamara, Darren Falken / Sears Auto Center Saturn Sky
2. Gittin, Vaughn Falken Tire Ford Racing Mustang GT
3. McQuarrie, Tyler Falken Nissan 350Z

Tires.com Triple Crown Point Standings after 1 of 3 events
1. Forsberg, Chris NOS Energy Drink / Maxxis Nissan 350Z 102 Points
2. McNamara, Darren Falken / Sears Auto Center Saturn Sky 94 Points
3. Tuerck, Ryan Gardella Racing / Mobil 1 Pontiac Solstice 80 Points

Round 3: The Gauntlet Top 32 Qualifying

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Today’s Top 32 Qualifying was very exciting. Both Ken Gushi and Tyler McQuarrie tied with the same top score, but Ken had a higher speed so he earns the top spot. The biggest upset of the day comes with current Formula DRIFT champion Tanner Foust spinning in both his qualifying runs and failing to qualify into the Top 32 competition.

Be sure to stay tuned to the Formula DRIFT Blog and Twitter for live updates throughout the day.

Ken Gushi
Ken Gushi

Tyler McQuarrie
Tyler McQuarrie

Qualifying Drivers – Top 32

Driver: Car #: Score:

1 K. Gushi 5 95.9
2 T. McQuarrie 17 95.9
3 R. Millen 6 94.6
4 D. McNamara 8 93.9
5 S. Hubinette 77 93
6 V. Gittin 25 89.6
7 J. Pawlak 13 89.5
8 D. Yoshihara 9 88
9 P. Mordaunt 90 87.1
10 C. Forsberg 64 86.2
11 R. Tuerck 44 84.7
12 S. Verdier 12 84.4
13 R. Miki 26 84.1
14 R. Nishida 31 82.9
15 K. Yamanaka 7 80
16 R. Petty 808 77.9
17 C. Canul 30 77.7
18 M. Waldin 24 77.6
19 K. Mohan 99 76
20 M. Takatori 23 75.9
21 T. Brakohiapa 18 74.9
22 J. Maeng 51 74.1
23 D. VanDenBrink 19 72.6
24 E. O’Sullivan 35 70.6
25 T. Aono 86 70.4
26 C. Wan 3 66
27 T. Suell 777 63.8
28 J. Wagner 412 55.2
29 J. Jones 29 52.6
30 R. Ewerth 27 49
31 C. Kregorian 14 46
32 G. Lang 68 28