Amanda Sorensen Went From Being a Figure Skating Princess to Drifting in the Big Leagues

If you've ever looked closely at a racing driver, you might notice something. They act and behave in a certain way when they're not performing, but the look in their eyes changes when they're behind the wheel. Once they focus on the task at hand, they become one with their machine. You might think to yourself "Oh, that girl looks so cute in racing overalls, but I bet she's harmless behind the wheel" But you'd probably be wrong. And there are plenty of names in motorsports to support that affirmation. Just think of Michelle Mouton or Sabine Schmitz.

This is a man's world, but it wouldn't be nothing without a woman or a girl

We've often heard fans in the audience at drift events shouting that "I can do that, it's not that hard!" But initiating a slide at speeds over 100 mph, while driving inches away from the Armco is nowhere near easy. If the driver made it look easy, that's because he or she has got the skills, courage, and determination to perform that maneuver. But anyone who has ever been in a drift car will understand that in heartbeat. With drifting being a relatively new sport, we've seen two kinds of athletes so far.

Some have never been involved in motorsports before, or at least not at a professional level. And some switched over from drag racing, off-road racing, or even skateboarding. Naturally, those with a sporting background tend to have an edge, but that's not always the case. In the past few years, we've seen drivers coming and going in Formula Drift, as the series is nearing its 20th anniversary. Some drivers have chosen to become team managers, and others have focused their attention on other forms of racing.

And it's always exciting to see the fresh influx of talent coming in, as anyone of the rookies could be the next legendary driver in the sport. It makes sense that it's not going to happen overnight, especially when they're going up against drivers with decades of driving experience behind them. A few years ago, a young Branden Sorensen from Las Vegas made a name for himself by winning the US Drift Championship at age 14. Fast forward to today, he's now competing in FD Pro and he's currently 16th overall.

But we aren't going to be talking about him today. Instead, we've reached out to his sister Amanda and asked if she has time for a quick interview over Zoom. She kindly agreed to have a word with us, and we were quite impressed by what she had to say. As soon as she mentioned that her dad raced Trophy Trucks back in the day, the picture started painting itself. By the time she and Branden were six or seven years old, they made their BMX racing debut and it didn't take long for them to advance to go-karting.

We didn't use brakes, there was no mercy towards each other

While some drivers usually stick to one sport, the two siblings seemingly went through them all. With competition becoming their second nature, they felt right at home driving Mod Karts in the Lucas Oil Off-road Racing series. Looking at them drive those things is proof that they enjoyed sliding around from an early age. It didn't take long for her to discover the sport of drifting, as she experienced it for the first time in 2017.

"My brother and I have gone head to head pretty much the whole time, and I think that's kind of what's pushed me to such a high level. Even back in the day, people would come out of their trailers to watch us race go-karts. We didn't use brakes, there was no mercy towards each other. But when we made the transition from racing in the desert to drifting I was devastated" Believe it or not, Amanda was also involved in figure skating at the time, and at first, drifting didn't feel all that appealing to her.

At first, they were both sharing a rather basic 200-hp BMW, but Branden was getting at least three times as much seat time as Amanda was. In 2018, Branden bought Alex Heilbronn's old drift car, which meant she would "inherit" the E46. "We were at Willow Springs one day, and Branden gave me the keys to his LSX-powered BMW. I was not at all ready to drive a pro car. Going from 200-hp to 600-hp was an eye-opener. That thing was crazy, it gave me such an adrenaline rush!"

Over the next three months, the Sorensen family worked towards the common goal of building a pro car for Amanda as well. They started with a bare E46 chassis, and it was ready just in time for LS Fest West 2018. "That was my first event in the car. It caught on fire, there were oil leaks, it was a disaster. And the first event in ProAm was just two weeks away." Of course, no miracles were going to happen for her first event and she quickly understood how important it is to get more seat time.

To profit from good advice requires more widsom than to give it

"My second round - I started to see the progression. And due to competing in many sports my whole life, I learn really fast and I take advice and I apply it right away. So I was able to develop my skills quite fast. Going from off-road to drifting there are a lot of things that you would never think of, that just wouldn't make sense in off-road." At that point, they brought in Michael Essa to help set up the car and dial everything in. It didn't take long before Amanda managed to secure her first-ever podium in drifting, at round 3 of the ProAm series.

In 2019 both of them moved up to Formula Drift Pro2 (now Prospec). Having to travel cross-country for events made them realize that things had changed and that they were facing new challenges ahead. While she was still looking at drifting as more of a hobby instead of a long-term career, a change was about to happen during round 1 of 2021 in Orlando: "I was on the bank, I had just initiated and was going at 95 mph (152 kph). My visor was cracked, I was right up on the wall and I realized that it was simply insane. And I loved every moment of it."

A week later, her newly reconfirmed love for the sport received further encouragement on Social Media. One of the videos she had posted got over 12 million views on Instagram, and she immediately understood how crucial marketing is for a pro driver these days. Using marketing-specific tools and strategies was going to prove insightful for her and Branden as well. "Going into 2022, my parents told us that: If you want to drift next year, you need to find sponsors, we're not going to pay for it anymore. I almost had a heart attack when I heard them."

At that point, she had never dealt with chasing sponsors before, so there was only one smart thing left to do. She went on to buy a few books on the topic, learning the secrets of the trade and successful athletes before her. Fast forward to 2022, both Amanda and Branden are sponsored by the United States Air Force. They're now facing more challenges than ever before, both on and off track. But they've managed to split team management duties in a way in which it can all move forward from here on after.

My goal is to be the first woman to make it into Formula Drift Pro

We've asked Amanda to walk us through the development phases of her drift car. "We built my car at home. We used some of the most high-end parts you could have in the car, and we even had Branden build the angle kits himself. At first, we used an LS3 engine which gave me access to about 460 horsepower." Moving on to Formula Drift meant more power was needed, so the team made the decision of using a supercharger. Initially, they went to Magnusson for the product, but in 2022 Amanda switched to Whipple. With a 3.0-liter unit on top of the new LS7, she can now unleash up to 980-hp anytime she feels like it.

With one more round to go until the end of the 2022 Formula Drift Prospec season, Amanda is currently in 21st place overall out of a total of 35 drivers. While she won't be able to win the championship anymore this year, the gap to the series leader isn't all that big. Speaking of her future ambitions, she mentioned: "There has never been a woman in FD Pro, and my goal is to be the first one to achieve that. But first, I plan on being the first one to secure a podium in the Prospec series. I'm trying to pave the path for other girls that are thinking about coming into drifting."

With a motorsports journey like hers, we wanted to ask her one last question before calling it a day. And that question was: What are some of the most important things that drifting has taught you over the years? After hearing her answer, we wouldn't be surprised if she's going to be invited to a Ted Talk sometime shortly.

"It has taught me how to be a mentally strong person. Not only am I a driver, but I've also learned the business aspect of things: how to manage sponsors, how to deal with logistics, and so on. A lot of life lessons have come out of drifting for me. When it comes to Formula Drift itself, learning how to control your emotions when you're sitting on the start line before going out is something that I think drifting has taught me.

And no other motorsport has been able to do that. In the other motorsports I've driven in, I always had the next lap to make up for a mistake. In drifting, you only have one shot. Also, I wouldn't be where I'm at today if I hadn't stepped outside of my comfort zone and pursued my dreams."

This might just be the longest interview we've done with a Formula Drift driver, and we were definitely impressed with Amanda and Branden's motorsports journey so far. We'll be talking to Branden soon, so that we can hear his perspective as well.

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