For the last couple of years, Formula Drift has been making a pilgrimage to the South East Asia region to present an opportunity for the regional drifters to showcase their talents on a professional platform and the series has been kind enough to stop on our shores to give the local petrolheads a glimpse of the action. This year’s edition kicks off today (18 and 19 December 2010).
It’s that time of the year again as the Goodyear Formula Drift Malaysia 2010 is set to end the year on a huge bang with drivers from over 10 countries congregating at the heart of Kuala Lumpur for a chance to earn their stripes and qualify for a Formula Drift license, an essential tool if they want to take part in any Formula Drift event from next year onwards.
Being the third and final leg in the series, following the Singapore and Thailand stops, this is the final shot for the drifters to claim the Asian Championship crown as well. The action kicks off with the 40 drifters attempting to qualify for the round of 32 that will then see them paired up in tsuiso tandem battles to forward to the next round.
While the event was held on the vast tarmac of MAEPS last year, this time around organisers aimed to push the recognition a step further in an attempt to bring more attention to the event. Hence, the change of venue to the heart of Kuala Lumpur at Dataran Merdeka.
Not only will this provide more exposure and prominence for the event, the multiple surfaces will surely be a challenge even for the most experienced drifters and only goes to add to the excitement of the event.
Although there was some hesitation from some quarters regarding the choice of venue and the layout of the track, all fears have been cleared up by ESPN Star Sports Events Management and Formula Drift that promise the utmost attention to safety and proper preparations for a smooth event.
The track will see the drifters beginning from an asphalt surface and initiating just before a transitions over to a cobblestone surface with some metal breakers in between certain stretches. Right at the end of the stretch, the track makes a U-turn and the drifters then go back the way they came before finishing back on the asphalt surface once again.
Title sponsors Goodyear will once again have a strong line-up of drifters in the field made up of a good combination of local and foreign drifters. The local Goodyear drifters are Ariff Johanis and his wife, Azrina Jane, together with Hanizam ‘Loyai’ Hamzah and Michael Gan. Joining them will be some top regional drifters such as Hong Kong drifter Charles Ng that carries Formula Drift USA experience under his belt, having won the Pro-Am class last season, Ryuji Miki, Daynom Templeman, David Feliciano and Jatuphon.
“As one of the region’s premier sports event management companies, ESPN Star Sports Event Management is proud to bring a unique motorsports experience in the Goodyear Formula Drift event to the Malaysian public for the second consecutive year. The high calibre of drivers coupled with the non-tarmac trackand new course layout is sure to generate a new level of competition from the world call field in this on-of-a-kind event, and we’re looking forward to bring another successful high-octane event to motorsports fans in Malaysia and across the region,” said Harvey Davis, Vice-President of ESPN Star Sports Events Management Group.
“We’re excited and proud to be part of Goodyear Formula Drift Malaysia 2010. Goodyear is committed to promoting motorsports around the world and in this region, drift, one of the fastest growing motorsports today,” said Nasution Abdul Rahman, Managing Director, Goodyear Malaysia.
Head on over to Dataran Merdeka to catch the action with ticket prices starting from just RM22 for the walkabout passes, with the grandstand tickets going for RM95 and RM125 for the covered grandstand seats.
For more info, log onto www.formuladriftasia.com or drop by www.ticketpro.com.my for ticketing info.
