The founders of this racing series are Ryan Sage and Jim Liav. In 2003, the first race in this series took place. "Formula Drift" (or Formula D) can rightly be called the most mixture of auto racing in the category of drifting. It has been highly acclaimed for its digital adoption in the motorsport world and among “millennial generations” (young people who use digital technologies).
THE HISTORY OF THE FORMULA DRIFT SERIES
Drifting gained popularity in the United States in the early 90s, when underground races were regularly organized by enthusiasts. Drivers began to practice on special tracks, after the drift association was created in the early 00s. After that, the race acquired a new name - motorsport.
The Drift Association, to promote the series as a safe race, held a number of exhibition events throughout the country. Their peculiarities were that motorsport fans could get the skills of a unique car driving technique under the guidance of the best drifters in Japan and the USA. Among them were Alex Pfeiffer, Calvin Vann, Andy Yen, Kenji Sakai and Hiro Sumida. And attracted investors who organized various exhibition races contributed to the high popularity. Until 2003, the main problem was that they were held only with sponsors and were rather chaotic.
The emergence of Slipstream Global Marketing (SGM) was a turning point in the history of the series. They invited Japanese drifting stars to an exhibition race in Irvine. The show shown by Japanese masters was a dizzying success.
SGM management decided to organize 7 more such shows during 2003. Such events were called "Formula DRIFT", and fans of motorsports call this car series "Formula D".
FORMULA DRIFT OUTSIDE THE USA
For a long time, Formula Drift was considered an American racing series because of its field, but thanks to its incredible spectacle, it managed to break out of the US redistribution. The most popular “outside the USA” races are Formula D Asia (established in 2008, races in this series are held in Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia) and Australia. Formula Drift Asia became the first pan-Asian drifting championship due to its popularity. And the first champion of this series was Tengku Jan.
But the Australian version of Formula Drift, unfortunately, did not arouse interest among motor racing fans. In 2005, the last and first Formula Drift Australia champ was held. The circuits in Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney were used for the Australian Championship races.
TECHNICAL REGULATIONS AND RULES OF FORMULA DRIFT
Racers must be at least 16 years of age. Cars with any engine size are accepted for participation, the main condition is the drive to the rear axle.
JUDGING AND SCORING SYSTEM
The points system in the Formula DRIFT series is designed to take into account single and double qualifying races. The penalties imposed on riders are also taken into account. 32 best drifters after each stage add points to the overall standings. Experienced judges evaluate participants according to the following criteria:
- entertainment
- speed
- corner
- trajectory
BROADCASTS
In 2006, the first full-fledged show of "Formula Drift" took place. Broadcasts of this series have a number of features. One of them is that the commentators communicate with the participants directly at the scene, this has not happened before in any auto competition. This technique of broadcasting not only became an innovation in the world of motorsport, but also received the love of fans. Subsequently, such live communication with the riders began to be used in other series.
The second feature was the creation of a television magazine. The 30-minute program consisted of pilot interviews and presentations of their profiles. The video magazine lasted only 2 years, and disappeared at the end of 2006. However, in 2011 it returned.
ONLINE FORMULA DRIFT
The first online show took place on Justin.Tv in 2010. All 7 stages held in 2010 were shown on the air. The broadcast was watched by more than a million viewers. Nowadays the broadcast of this series can be viewed on the services "Motor Trend on Demand" and "Formula Drift Live".
