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Formula DRIFT Premieres on NBC Sports this Sunday, September 2

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For Immediate Release

August 31, 2012

Formula DRIFT Premieres on NBC Sports this Sunday, September 2; Season Preview to Air at 5:00 PM (EST) / 2:00 PM (PST) 

Long Beach, Calif. – August 31, 2012 – The Formula DRIFT television program to air this Sunday, September 2, 2012 on NBC Sports at 5:00 PM (EST) / 2:00 PM (PST). The premiere episode will feature a season preview.

The “Formula DRIFT,” television program will air for the first time on NBC Sports, formerly the VERSUS network. The twelve half-hour long episodes will run for fourteen consecutive weeks on Sundays at 5:00 PM (EST) beginning on September 2 with re-airs showing on Tuesdays at 5:30 PM (EST) beginning on September 4.

“To be part of the NBC Sports family of programming is very exciting and shows the progression of our Sport and Series,” said Ryan Sage vice-president and co-founder of Formula DRIFT. “NBC Sports is currently in over 80 million households combined with an additional 300 million household distribution internationally. To be able to share the action and excitement of Formula DRIFT to this large of an audience is amazing.”

The episodes will highlight the seven Pro Championship rounds of competition from the ninth season and will be hosted by Formula DRIFT co-founder, Ryan Sage, Courtney Day and Formula DRIFT announcer, Jarod DeAnda.

Rhys Millen is Victorious at Formula DRIFT Round 6: After Dark

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Rhys Millen is Victorious at Formula DRIFT Round 6: After Dark;
Championship Will Come Down to Final Event of the Season

Long Beach, Calif. – August 26, 2012 – Formula DRIFT returned to the Las Vegas Motor Speedway for Round 6: After Dark. Rhys Millen in the RMR / Hankook Hyundai Genesis Coupe takes the victory and moves up to third place in the overall points standings leading into the final event of the season.

Round 6: After Dark brought drifting back to Sin City and treated fans to a night spectacle that included the Vegas ProAm championship, Slammed Society car show, Targa Trophy display of vehicles and more. The Driftstream saw an estimated 150,000 viewers in a 24-hour period.

“The Las Vegas round of competition is always one of the most action-packed, but with a completely new course it challenged the drivers and excited the fans,“ said Jim Liaw, president and co-founder of Formula DRIFT. “Each year we have seen an increase in attendance and have accommodated with the addition of extra grand stands. This was a very exciting event to lead into the championship round in October. This was another tight championship chase with three former champions in the top five.”

A new track configuration was added to the event at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway giving an extra challenge for the drivers to adjust to the new course along with the weather conditions of the desert. Robbie Nishida in the Bridges Racing / Achilles Tires Lexus SC300 faced points leader Vaughn Gittin, Jr. in the Monster Energy / Falken Ford Mustang in a battle for third place. Gittin took the win and secures his point lead in the chase for the championship. The final battle pitted second place qualifier, Rhys Millen, fresh off his record setting victory at Pikes Peak in the same Hyundai Genesis Coupe that he competed in at this event, against the number one qualifier, Frederic Aasbo in the Need for Speed / Hankook Scion tC. On his lead run, Aasbo met the wall to give the advantage to Millen. On the second run Millen kept a consistent line to take the victory moving him to third place overall and within striking distance of the point leaders.

“It was an incredible victory for our entire crew at RMR, for Hyundai, Pulse and Hankook. To come here from Pikes Peak in the exact same car in a different configuration and in a different driving style and to do it back to back,” said Rhys Millen, winner of Round 6: After Dark. “This is a true drivers course and suits the car well and we were flawless all day long. Unfortunately, some of our competitors gifted us a couple wins, but at the end of the day we put the pressure on them to run deep and fast.”

The chase for the championship is as tight as it has ever been and will be decided at the final event of the season. The Formula DRIFT Pro Championship Round 7: Title Fight on October 12-13 at Irwindale Speedway. Tickets are on-sale now and can be purchased on the Formula DRIFT website.

Formula DRIFT Round 7: Title Fight Tickets On-Sale

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Formula DRIFT Round 7: Title Fight Tickets On-Sale;
Final Event of the 2012 Season at Irwindale Speedway on October 12-13

Long Beach, Calif. – August 15, 2012 – Tickets for the finale event of the 2012 Formula DRIFT season are on-sale now. Round 7: Title Fight on October 12-13, 2012 will be held at Irwindale Speedway.

Formula DRIFT will be the first major event to return to Irwindale Speedway since the new management group has taken over the day-to-day operations of the venue. The event has sold out for the past two seasons and to accommodate the growth in attendance expanded seating will be made available. Tickets are on-sale now and available on www.formulad.com. Tickets are expected to sell-out again and early purchase is highly recommended.

“Irwindale Speedway is hallow ground for drifting, something that we made it to be. So it’s significant not only to our Series but to the world drifting community,” said Jim Liaw, president and co-founder of Formula DRIFT. “We are both proud and excited to be able to continue to hold the finale of our ninth season at Irwindale and look forward to closing our tenth season there as well.”

Ticketing options include the following:

Main Grandstands
– $28 for Saturday Only when purchased online
– $33 for 2-day pass when purchased online
– Includes assigned / reserved seat

Start Line VIP
– $45 for a 2-day pass when purchased online
– Includes exclusive restroom and concession access for start line grand stand ticket holders and a FD gift

Trackside VIP
– $65 for 2-day pass when purchased online
– Includes exclusive restroom and concession access for trackside grand stand ticket holders and a FD gift bag

Skybox VIP
– First time access for Formula DRIFT fans available
– $5,000
Includes:
– 30 passes to the event and access to the skybox
– 10 parking passes
– FD gifts
– Non-alcoholic beverages (NOS, SmartWater, and Vitamin Water)

With less than 63 points separating the top 5 drivers leading into Round 6: After Dark at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, the chase for the Championship is as close as it has ever been. Round 7: Title Fight will also feature the revealing of the 10 year anniversary logo, announcement of the Tires.com Triple Crown winner, the Slammed Society car show, the Formula Drift ProAm All Star competition along with much more.

Targa Trophy Event # 3 at Formula DRIFT Round 6 – Las Vegas

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RALLY EVENT DETAILS

Vehicles – Targa Trophy is open to all makes of exotic and specialty sports cars including Ferrari, Lamborghini, Porsche, Spyker, Mercedes AMG, BMW M, Aston Martin, Bentley, Rolls Royce, Audi,Lotus, Viper, Corvette, select European & Japanese imports, classic exotics, muscle cars and unique one-off sports cars.

Featured Marque
Euro vs. JDM – SHOWCASING THE BEST FROM ALL EUROPEAN & JAPANESE MARKS

Exclusive Partnership

Formula Drift – Round 6 – Las Vegas

Checkpoint Stops
Undisclosed stops between Los Angeles & Las Vegas

Host Hotel
PALMS PLACE & PALMS LAS VEGAS – DISCOUNT RATES FOR SAT & SUN AVAILABLE TO ALL TEAMS AT PALMS PLACE & PALMS

Rally Event Entry Fee – $300 + $15 svc fee

RALLY EVENT FEE INCLUDES
Entry fee covers 2 people (driver and navigator)
2 Targa Trophy Special Edition Event T-Shirts
Targa Trophy Experience Event Sticker Kit
Targa Trophy Drive Sessions Vol. 2 CD
Targa Trophy Experience Event Gift Bags (1 per person)
2 tickets to Formula Drift Round 6 Las Vegas event
Exclusive parking inside Formula Drift LV arena for Targa Trophy car show/display
Exclusive access into Targa Trophy VIP Lounge inside Formula Drift LV arena
VIP comp access to Targa Trophy Experience After Party exclusively at venue TBA
New Experience Event format gives everyone a chance to win BIG prizes & awards will be given to honor the best cars and most interesting personalities at the event

+ much much more TBA

Click here for more information

Vaughn Gittin Wins His Second Consecutive Event at Round 5: Throwdown

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Vaughn Gittin Wins His Second Consecutive Event at Round 5: Throwdown;
Takes The Lead in the Pro Championship Points Standings

Long Beach, Calif. – July 21, 2012 – Formula DRIFT returned to the Pacific Northwest at Evergreen Speedway for Round 5: Throwdown. Vaughn Gittin, Jr. in the Monster Energy / Falken Tire Ford Mustang takes his second consecutive victory and the lead in the Pro Championship Points Standings.

Round 5: Throwdown continued the success of the season to a capacity crowd at Evergreen Speedway. The Driftstream saw an estimated 175,000 viewers in a 24-hour period.

“This has been one of the most exciting events of the season,” said Jim Liaw, president and co-founder of Formula DRIFT. “The chase for the championship heats up as we head into the final two events of the season and it is still anyone’s to take with only 62 points separating the top 5 drivers.”

The action on the track showcased the true competition of the Series with many close battles and upsets throughout the event. Ken Gushi in the Greddy Performance Scion FR-S faced Hankook teammate Rhys Millen in the RMR Hyundai Genesis Coupe in a very close battle. Millen took the victory for third place and his first podium appearance of the season. The Finals pitted Ryan Tuerck in the Retaks Nissan 240SX against Vaughn Gittin, Jr. After a tightly fought battle Gittin took the win and the lead in both the Pro Championship points standings and in the Tires.com Triple Crown, while Tuerck moves up to fifth place overall.

“I am just so pumped right now. We have been working so hard and have overcome the minor issues we had earlier this year and I owe this to my team and all my partners,” said Vaughn Gittin, Jr., winner of Round 5: Throwdown. “It just feels so good to re-focus and drive my heart out and stand on top of the podium!”

The competition is as close as it has ever been with only two remaining events remaining and the championship still up for grabs. The Formula DRIFT Pro Championship Round 6: After Dark on August 24 – 25 at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway.