Både Simen Olsen og Fredric Aasbø er blant fire førere som er med i kampen om totalseieren når årets Formula Drift avgjøres i California i helgen.
Fredric Aasbø er regjerende mester i Formula Drift etter at han tok sin tredje sammenlagtseier i denne serien i fjor. Men nå er han den av de fire i teten som har det dårligste utgangspunktet. Men det betyr ikke at han har gitt opp håpet. Fredric kjører for seier i helgens løp, og han har vunnet to ganger tidligere på Irvindale Speedway. Aasbø har 383 poeng, og er med det fire poeng bak årets overraskelsesmann, Simen Olsen. Simen har imponert i USA i år og har flere pallplasseringer. Senest i forrige runde i Grantsville, Utah,ble det tredjeplass på Simen.
De to nordmennene kjemper mot Chelsea Denofa med 464 poeng og Matt Field som har 411 poeng.
Vi har også en tredje norsk fører i Formula Drift og det er Ola Jæger. Han ligger på en 34.plass med sin Toyota og 80 poeng.
Helgens 8. og avsluttende runde kjøres i Irwindale Speedway, California, 13.-14. oktober.
PRESSEMELDING fra Papadakis Racing
Papadakis Racing Toyotas eyeing repeat 1-2 finish at Irwindale Speedway
Fredric Aasbo in title contention heading into season finale
IRWINDALE, California (October 4, 2023) – Fredric Aasbo and Ryan Tuerck are favored for a top result when Formula Drift returns to the Southern California “House of Drift” for the 2023 season finale October 13-14. The teammates brought home a one-two finish a year ago to round out a successful championship season.
Defending champion Fredric Aasbo is one of only four drivers remaining in the Formula Drift title chase. Some 81 points off the lead, he is an underdog for the championship crown but says he is focusing his energy on driving the Rockstar Energy Drink Toyota GR Supra to another event win. He has won twice before at Irwindale Speedway: last year and also in 2015, when he scored his first of three Formula Drift titles.
“There’s no better feeling than to close out the season with a win at Irwindale Speedway. The grandstands are always packed, and the fans have such warmth toward competitors. It feels like coming home to what made me fall in love with drifting when I was just a kid watching YouTube videos back home in Norway,” said Aasbo. “Even with all the pressure and all the chaos, Irwindale has a way of reminding me how grateful I am to be able to do what we do.”
Tuerck is also excited to be making a return to Irwindale Speedway. He is hoping that if he lines up against his teammate in the finale again like last year, he’ll be the one to take the top step on the podium in his Rain-X / Nitto Tire Toyota GR Corolla.
The drivers are a close match and the Papadakis Racing team encourages its drivers to battle fair and hard. Even with a championship on the line, it is always a toss-up which of the two team drivers might emerge victorious from a head-to-head match. The duo has met twice this year, with Tuerck taking the knockout wins in both Seattle and Utah.
Catch up on all the action for Tuerck, Aasbo, and the whole Papadakis Racing Toyota team by tuning in to Season 2 of the Rockstar Energy YouTube series “Controlled Chaos,” which takes fans behind the scenes. New episodes are available now on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/rockstarenergy.
The 20th anniversary season of Formula Drift is shaping up to be the most competitive in series history, with a trio of three-time champions in the mix and any driver capable of scoring an outright win at every stop.