September 2020 • By Nestor Cabrera • Photos Larry Chen courtesy Formula Drift

Nine months into 2020 and we only just got to see our favorite stars of the Formula Drift (FD) PRO Championship in action. As the new year rang in, we anxiously awaited the start of the FD season at the Streets of Long Beach, and all we could think of was who would dethrone defending 3X FD Champion James Dean? But 2020 has not turned out the way we anticipated.

Because of Covid-19 the entire world was paused and FD was forced to postpone the season start, not once, but multiple times due to pandemic restrictions. However, FD has learned over the years to adapt. At this point last year we would already be on the final leg of the season, waiting to see if James Dean would be leading or if drivers like Fredric Aasbo and Ken Gushi in new GR Supras would be giving him strong competition, or if veteran and former Champion Chris Forsberg in his tried and true 370Z would be back on top.

Well, the wait is finally over. If you were unable to catch the livestream action at www.formulad.com/live, TorqTalk has you covered. Unlike past events which would span several months, this year’s FD season will still consist of 8 rounds contested over one weekend at four different venues. The full schedule and tickets can be had at www.formulad.com/schedule.

Round 1: Saturday, Sept. 5

Winner: Fredric Aasbo, Rockstar Energy, Nitto Tire, B58 Toyota GR Supra

There were a few teams missing from the line up and 29 drivers made up the Top 32 field. Unlike past years, there was no qualifying due to the double-header format. The seating was determined based on the previous year’s final results. Since James Dean would not be participating Fredric Aasbo drew a number from 1-16, he drew number 12, then the field was inverted so number one qualifier ended up being Kazuya Taguchi who finished 15 last year.

Like most FD series, the Top 32 did not disappoint and was filled with action, controversy and many firsts. Taylor Hull, driver of the Comp Cam, Achilles Radial, Yellow Speed Racing Cadillac ATS-V was very emotional after winning his first ever Pro heat win in Top 32 but was eliminated. The Top 16 consisted of a strong line up of veteran drivers along with rookie Alec Robbins, who faced off against Dan Burkett in his mark 4 Gear Wrench, Nexen Tire, Rad Industries, Toyota Supra. Unfortunately, Robbins could not take his Fasetto Nissan 350Z further than the round of 16. The final 4 drivers were Chris Forsberg who faced off against Fredric Aasbo, pitting two former champions against each other, and after a grueling match Aasbo took his 2020 Toyota Supra to the final battle. On the other side of the ladder, Aasbo’s teammate Ryan Tuerck, who you might know from his Ferrari-powered Toyota GT that TorqTalk has featured, driving a Papadakis Racing prepped Toyota Corolla faced off against Aurimas “Odi” Bakchis in his Feal Suspension, Falken Tire, Nissan S15 Sylvia. Ryan would come out victorious even though his car had suffered power steering loss in his top 16 battle, making the match even more challenging. Unfortunately, the loss of steering in his Gumout, Nitto Tire, Toyota Corolla made it extremely difficult for him to overcome former champion Aasbo in his new Rockstar Energy, Nitto Tire, Papadakis Racing B58 Toyota GR Supra. Fredric Aasbo would add another podium to his belt and take the lead in points for another championship run.

Round 2: Sunday, Sept. 6

Winner: Chelsea DeNofa, BC Racing, Nitto Tire, Ford RTR Mustang

In past years there would be a gap of several weeks that teams used to unwind, look at race data and repair their cars before competing again. This isn’t most years and teams had less than a night to unwind and prep their cars for R2. Once again, there would be no qualifying and starting order would again fall on the draw of Fredric Aasbo who drew number 8 position. Dan Burcket, seated 8th in the 2020 Championship, would get the pole via inversion. The first round would go off without any major drama but once the Top 16 got started, it was pandemonium.

In the battle between Matt Field in his Falken Tire, Borla Exhaust, C6 Corvette and Fredric Aasbo in his Rockstar Energy, Nitto Tire, B58 Toyota GR Supra, Field would tap the wall in the first match and would need to call a competition time out. The next match would pit former champion Michael Essa in his FCP Euro, Liqui Moly, Achilles Radial, BMW M3 and Kazuya Taguchi in his Up Garage, GT Radial, Nissan S15 Sylvia. Essa, down in horsepower due to mechanical problems, made a valiant effort keep up with Taguchi but the latter would put down a good run and seemed to walk away with an easy win but before the second battle Taguchi would also call a competition time out. Once again Field and Aasbo would battle it out but the match would end suddenly as it appeared Field ran into Aasbo and made contact. After deliberation the judges awarded Field the win due to a technicality that put the blame on Aasbo for not giving Fields enough room to initiate his drift. Ken Gushi, also driving a new Toyota GR Supra, would put on a show. Fighting a slipped disc in his back he would forgo any type of pain suppressors and although needing assistance to get in and out of the vehicle would make it to the Great 8 but loose to Matt Field.

The Final Four would be Chelsea DeNofa in his BC Racing, Nitto Tire, Ford RTR Mustang, Round 1, 3rd place finisher Aurimas “Odi” Bakchis in his Falken Tire, Feal Suspension, Nissan S15 Sylvia, Ryan Tuerck driving the Gumout, Nitto Tire, Papadakis Racing Toyota Corolla and Matt Field in the Falken Tire, Borla Exhaust Chevrolet C6 Corvette. Once again, Tuerck and Bakchis would go at it but this time the roles were reversed and Bakchis ended up moving to the final round. On the other ladder DeNofa faced off against Field and the classic rivalry of Ford vs Chevy would play out with the Ford winning. This is DeNofa’s best start in his FD carrier.

If this weekend was any indication of what the 2020 season is going to be like, we are in for a rollercoaster of a ride. Make sure to clear your calendar for Round 3 & 4 at Monroe WA, it’s going to be another action packed event.

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