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Aasbø Wins The Battle In Seattle words The Speedhunters images Larry Chen

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Mechanical meltdowns, carnage, and a track surface that switched from grippy to grip-less in the blink of an eye – the fifth round of the 2015 Formula Drift Pro championship held in Seattle, Washington, had it all.

But at the end of five tough rounds of battle competition, it was our very own Fredric Aasbø who stood atop the podium at Evergreen Speedway. The win, following on from a third place qualifying performance from ‘The Norwegian Hammer’, catapults Aasbø to the top of the points with just two rounds in the Stateside Pro series left to play out.

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Friday’s qualifying session saw Norway’s Kenny Moen take control with an 89 scorecard, followed by Ryan Tuerck in second and Aasbø in third – both scoring 87. It was a promising start for Tuerck who came into the round leading the championship, but it just as quickly turned sour when the Retaks Scion FR-S driver blew a diff in his Airforce Top 32 battle against Geoff Stoneback.

Continue reading Aasbø Wins The Battle In Seattle words The Speedhunters images Larry Chen

Formula DRIFT Round 5: Throwdown Results

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Formula DRIFT Round 5: Throwdown Results;
Fredric Aasbo Takes the Victory and the Lead in the Standings

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Long Beach, Calif. – July 25, 2015 – Formula DRIFT presented by GoPro returned to Evergreen Speedway for Round 5: Throwdown. Fredric Aasbo in the Rockstar Energy Drink / Hankook Scion tC takes the victory and lead in both the Pro Championship and World Championship standings.

Round 5: Throwdown provided plenty of on-track action and excitement for the capacity crowd at Evergreen Speedway. With shifting weather conditions, the drivers had to make constant adjustments throughout the weekend making for a technical competition. Over 330,000 fans tuned into the Driftstream over the weekend to see the action unfold.

“This was quite an event as we witnessed the consistency of Aasbo to take the victory and see the talents of a young driver in Alec Hohnadell to reach his first podium,” said Jim Liaw, President of Formula DRIFT. “This event saw a shakeup in the Pro Championship standings, which will be interesting to see how the rest of the season plays out.”

The semi-finals saw Alec Hohnadell in the 11 Racing Nissan S14 go against veteran Justin Pawlak in the Roush Performance / Car Crafters Ford Mustang. Hohnadell advanced to the Finals with both drivers receiving a double zero on the second run of their battle and having the advantage on the first run. Pat Goodin in the Enjuku Racing / Falken Tire Nissan S13 lost out to the consistent driving of Fredric Aasbo. Pawlak finished in third place with the higher qualifying position than Goodin. The rain began to pour into the Finals and Aasbo proved that he can handle the wet conditions taking his second consecutive victory and his third victory of the season. Aasbo moves into the top position in both the Pro Championship and World Championship standings. Hohnadell earned second place for his first career Pro Championship podium.

“What a wild rollercoaster of an event,” said Fredric Aasbo, winner of Round 5: Throwdown. “It was wet, it was dry, it was intermediate and I think growing up on the snowy, frozen lakes of Norway was a huge advantage. We kept it cool and ended up with the win and are exactly where we want to be leading the points championship.”

The 2015 Formula DRIFT season will continue to Round 6: Showdown on August 21-22 at Texas Motor Speedway. For more information visit: www.formuladrift.com and find Formula DRIFT on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter. Tune into Formula DRIFT on CBS Sports and check your local listings for airtimes.

 

Round 5: Throwdown Event Results

 

1. Aasbo, Fredric Rockstar Energy Drink / Hankook Scion tC Winner
2. Hohnadell, Alec 11 Racing Nissan S14 2nd Place
3. Pawlak, Justin Roush Performance / Car Crafters Ford Mustang 3rd Place
4. Goodin, Pat Enjuku Racing / Falken Tire Nissan S13 4th Place
5. Field, Matt CX Racing / Yokohama Nissan S14 5th Place
6. Saito, Daigo Achilles Radial Nissan GT-R 6th Place
7. McQuarrie, Tyler Mobile 1 / GoPro Chevrolet Camaro 7th Place
8. Gittin, Vaughn Monster Energy / Nitto Tire Ford Mustang RTR 8th Place
9. Moen, Kenny Bridges Racing / Achilles / Gatebil Nissan S14 9th Place
10. Gushi, Ken GReddy Racing / Hankook Tire Scion Racing FR-S 10th Place
11. Forsberg, Chris NOS Energy Drink / Hankook Tire Nissan 370Z 11th Place
12. Denofa, Chelsea BC Racing / Chelsea DeNofa Motorsports / GT Radial BMW 12th Place
13. Essa, Michael SLP Performance / Yokohama Tire Chevy Camaro 13th Place
14. Whiddett, Mike RedBull / Mobil 1 Mazda “Radbul” 14th Place
15. Coffman, Matt Coffman Racing Nissan S13 15th Place
16. Stoneback, Geoff Achilles Radial / Parts Shop Max / Enkei Nissan S14 16th Place
 

2015 Formula DRIFT Championship Presented by GoPro Top 3 Standings After Five Rounds

 

1. Aasbo, Fredric Rockstar Energy Drink / Hankook Scion tC 373.00 Points
2. Tuerck, Ryan Ryan Tuerck Racing / Retaks / Maxxis Scion FR-S 297.00 Points
3. Aurimas “Odi” Bakchis Feal Suspension / ARK Performance / Nitto Nissan 240SX 293.00 Points
 

Manufacturers Championship Standings After Five Rounds

 

1. Scion 785.00 Points
2. Nissan 417.00 Points
3. Ford 407.00 Points
4. Chevrolet 300.00 Points
5. Mazda 225.00 Points
6. Dodge 170.00 Points
7. Infiniti 159.00 Points
8. BMW 139.00 Points
9. Toyota 105.00 Points
 

Tire Championship Standings After Five Rounds

 

1. Hankook 751.00 Points
2. Nitto 516.00 Points
3. Achilles 510.00 Points
4. Falken 485.00 Points
5. Yokohama 447.00 Points
6. Maxxis 401.00 Points
7. GT Radial 266.00 Points

FD Japan: The Right Formula by Larry Chen

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It may surprise you guys, but up until very recently I had never shot a professional drifting event in Japan. Sure, I’ve visited the Land of the Rising Sun dozens of times for the Tokyo Auto Salon and sportscar racing, but never a D1 Grand Prix event. Ironically though, my first taste of pro drift in this country was not at a D1GP round, but Formula Drift Japan held at Fuji Speedway a couple of weekends ago.

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A few years ago I would never have imagined that a Formula Drift event would – or could – be held in Japan.

Continue reading FD Japan: The Right Formula by Larry Chen

Formula D New Jersey 2015 Photo Gallery By SuperStreet Magazine

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More rain equals more carnage but Fredric Aasbo hangs on at Wall Stadium in the Rockstar Energy Hankook Scion tC to emerge on top

 

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Don’t get us wrong – we can appreciate driving in the rain, especially when that operation involves flinging a car sideways at speed around cones and along barriers. It’s a gnarly proposition to say the least. But rain also takes out some of the visual impact of drifting, negating smoke and forcing drivers to tiptoe through the course (rather than outright attack) – which is what fans got for a second straight round in Formula D New Jersey at Wall Stadium.

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Formula Drift Round 4 – New Jersey – June 26-27, 2015 By AMDrift

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Round 4 of the 2015 Formula Drift Championship, appropriately dubbed “The Gauntlet”, rolled into Wall Stadium Speedway located in Wall Township, New Jersey on June 26-27, marking the halfway point of the season. With unpredictable weather in the forecast and wet conditions promised sometime in the weekend, the chase for the championship would certainly see some mixing up at Wall.

 

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Wall Stadium Speedway; a high-banked, short oval tucked in the quiet Wall Township in New Jersey. Most of it’s time is spent as a track for weekly racing on the big oval for Late Models, Hobby Stocks, and many other staples in the grassroots American paved oval racing that many small towns have.

 

Continue reading Formula Drift Round 4 – New Jersey – June 26-27, 2015 By AMDrift