Top Speed recently had the opportunity to test the Hyundai Genesis Coupe V6, the car that World Drift Champion Rhys Millen is currently campaigning in the Formula DRIFT series. Check out the video of the Kiwi dialing in his new ride.
Bad news everybody, this current economic situation has already taken a toll on the American automobile industry, dreams of a comeback for the GTO are gone, now there will never be another Firebird, but now you can chalk up a loss for Mopar fans as well, because the most powerful drift machine that was supposed to compete in Formula DRIFT never will.
We all know that the automobile industry isn’t doing too well due to the current economic climate. In an attempt to save whatever money they can, some manufacturers have shifted production away from sports cars while others have dropped their high performance divisions all together. The latest victim of these cutbacks is the sport of drifting. Due to their current fiscal situation, Mopar, Chrysler’s high performance division, has been forced to terminate their sponsorship and support of the “Crazy Swede” Samuel Hubinette and Shaun Carlson’s NuFormz Racing, the California based tuner responsible for the Mopar Drift Viper that was competing in the Formula D series here in the U.S.
It is a shame that Mopar would decide to cancel their drift program right as the season was getting started; especially because the team was running 4th in the points. Sam finished second at the opener in Long Beach and only made it to the round of 16 at Road Atlanta, but for the two-time Formula D Champion with 16 career wins, bouncing back to the top would not have been difficult.
Our friends at the GT Channel had the chance to talk with the Rockstar/AEM Scion tC drift team at the Formula D opener at The Streets of Long Beach. Everyone from team owner and acclaimed drag racer Steph Papadakis to the Scion tC’s pilot Tanner Foust had a chance to get a word in and show off their all new 700 HP V8 powered drift machine.
The second round of D1GP USA action was supposed to take place at Dolphin Stadium in Miami. Well the venue has been changed, but not to worry, the new location is only about 7 miles to the east, 15 minutes closer to the beach, to the Gulfstream Raceway Park. The racetrack typically reserved for horses is located at 901 S Federal Hwy in Hallandale Beach. So if you up where the Dolphins do their thing on May 30th you’ll probably be all alone, so don’t forget: D1GP USA round 2 Miami at the Gulfstream Park Race Track.
Controversy broke out a few weeks ago when it became known that Rhys Millen’s Hyundai Genesis Coupe drift car didn’t have the manufacturer’s 3.8 Liter Lambda V6 under the hood. Instead the RMR Genesis Coupe competed in the first round of Formula D competition with a Nissan sourced VQ series V6. Now the majority of the Formula D cars in the paddock have all sorts of Frankenstein engine/chassis combinations, but because Rhys is running a factory backed program, this was a no-no.
It is easy to understand that the former World Drifting and Formula D Champion knows a thing or two about the sport, and understands the necessity for a bulletproof power train under the harsh conditions of the sport. Due to the fact that the partnership was not official until right before the season opener in Long Beach, we can forgive Rhys for trying to pull a fast one.
The guys and gals at Live Sockets Entertainment got a hold of Formula D drifter Dai Yoshihara for a behind the scenes look at round 1 competition at the Streets of Long Beach. In the video Dai talks a little bit about his new ride for ’09 the Discount Tires Lexus IS 350, powered by a V8. Check out the video after the jump as we ride along with Dai during a practice run. Notice has calm and collected he is sliding the car sideways at 80 MPH. Round 2 of the Formula Drift series will take place at the Proving Ground on May 8 and 9 at the Road Atlanta Raceway.
Well round 1 of the D1GP USA tour has come and gone, and to no surprise left two of the six competing Japanese drivers atop the podium. Last year’s champion Daigo Saito came in first place with Nobushige Kumakubo coming is second. But the real news comes from the American drifter Forrest Wang showing the rest of the field how it’s done drifting his way to a third place finish in Anaheim.
The next round of D1GP USA action will take place at Dolphin Stadium in Miami, Florida at the end of the month on May 30. Don’t miss out.
With the first round of the 2009 D1GP USA series less than a week away the officials at D1 have confirmed the Japanese professionals that will be loading their machines onto freighters and packing their racing suits for the first round of stateside competition in Anaheim on May 2nd.
The drivers confirmed for the 2009 D1GP series are former professional drift champions Daigo Saito (2008) and Nobushige Kumakubo (2006). Saito will be competing in his 800 HP four door Toyota Chaser, and unfortunately for diamond star fans Kumakubo will leave his JUN powered rear wheel drive EVO X in Japan and instead compete in the Team Orange Subaru WRX. D1 veteran and Vertex owner Takahiro Ueno will compete in his beloved twin turbo Toyota Soarer, better known as a Lexus SC300 here in the U.S. Toshiki Yoshioka will not be driving his latest generation Lexus SC430 and instead has found a ride in the Driftspeed S15 Nissan Silvia. Providing comic relief in the pits will be the “Monkey Man” Ken Nomura piloting his longtime favorite four-door R34 Nissan Skyline. New to competition but not to the sport, Daijiro Inada the founder of the D1GP will suit up to compete in Anaheim.
Takahioro Ueno is another one of the senior drifters competing in the D1GP professional drifting championship. Ueno has taken his love for the Toyota Soarer (Lexus SC300 in America) very seriously. In 1996 he founded the tuning shop Car Make T&E, owners of Vertex Aero parts. Using his Soarer as a test bed for the company’s body kits he uses the D1 competition to showcase the simplistic and elegant designs they create. He has entered the same model Toyota in every round of D1 competition since he began drifting professionally in 2001. Ueno had great success in his debut year, winning round 4 at Ebisu and finishing 3rd in the overall point’s championship. Unfortunately he has not been able to recapture his original success but devoted to the JZZ 30 chassis he is back competing in the same red Toyota Soarer for the 2009 D1GP Championship.
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