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Ryan Tuerck and Chris Forsberg Emerge Victorious From Formula Drift Texas

It has been a tough year for motorsport events all around the globe, and things haven't been any different in the USA either. Still, organisers have been resourceful enough to find a way to keep drivers out of harm's way, even if that meant not being able to allow spectators at events, or at least to drastically reduce the number of available spots in the grandstands.
Ryan Tuerck Drifting Corolla Hatchback 1 photo
Photo: Ryan Tuerck
First launched in 2004, Formula Drift, the premiere drifting series in the U.S., and one of the top ranked ones in the world, and also managed to keep the events rolling for 2020, albeit in a slightly different format, with two races being held during the same weekend. And for the 31st of October and 1st of November, Rounds 5 and 6 were scheduled to be held in Dallas, Texas, at the Texas Motor Speedway.

While there are voices out there that don't agree with the way professional drifting has evolved in the United States, often comparing it to dragracing or NASCAR as opposed to the evolution of  the D1GP series in Japan, the fact remains that every year, the series brings forth some of the fastest, most skilled drifters in the world, and they put on an amazing show, race after race. 

Sure, power figures have soared compared to 15 years ago, and almost everyone in the field is running 1000 horsepower engines under the hoods of their vehicles, and yes, extreme steering lock is also being questioned from time to time, but you need only to watch a live feed from one of their races and chances are you'll be hooked in instant.

Round 5 was held on Saturday, and famous YouTuber Adam LZ was also onsite for the event, competing in his Nissan Silvia S15. He didn't make it past the Top8 battle, though, after losing against Chris Forsberg in the GTR powered Nissan 370Z, which is actually the oldest car in the series , now in its 9th season of active duty.

Forsberg would go on to finish second in the race, losing his battles against Ryan Tuerck in the 1000 horsepower Toyota Corolla Hatchback - which is powered by a turbo 4 cylinder. Vaughn Gittin Jr. would go on to take 3rd overall, after defeating privateer Jeff Jones at the end of the day.

Round 6 would see the return of Chris Forsberg and Vaughn Gittin JR. on the podium, this time in 1st and 2nd, while 3rd place went to Chelsea Denofa, also a veteran driver in the series, and also behind the wheel of an RTR Mustang.

The fight for the title will be going down at Irwindale Speedway on the last but final weekend of November, the 21st and 22nd.


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About the author: Dragos Chitulescu
Dragos Chitulescu profile photo

The things Dragos enjoys the most in life are, in no particular order: cars, motorcycles, diecast cars, and drifting. He's seen (and driven) many vehicles since he started his writing career back in 2009, but his garage currently houses a 1991 Mazda RX-7 FC3S Turbo II and a 1999 Suzuki SV650-S.
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