WALL, NJ (June 6, 2010, PAPADAKIS RACING) – Two-time Formula DRIFT champion Tanner Foust scored his second podium of the season this weekend in the Rockstar Energy Drink SCION tC at Wall Speedway in New Jersey.
The result moves Foust into third-place in the series standings, with four rounds remaining in the season.
Fans packed the stands in the clear, 90-degree-plus weather to watch the action on the challenging banked-oval track, while Formula DRIFT’s live webcast saw hundreds of thousands of hits over the course of the two-day contest. The enthusiastic crowd was treated to plenty of action, multiple crashes and tough competition.
“Consistency is obviously the key with such a short season and, with drifting, the only thing you can count on is chaos,” said Foust. “I was surprised at how much carnage there was this weekend; in one round, I almost had a car flip over right in front of me.”
The team saw one of the closest calls of the contest when a competitor lost a wheel and launched over it just inches from Foust’s front bumper during the Top 16 round. A quick reaction on Foust’s part allowed him to avert disaster and he moved ahead to the next round.
The Rockstar Energy Drink SCION tC, prepared by Papadakis Racing, proved sturdy when Foust had a brush with a notoriously treacherous trackside barrier later in the contest. The incident knocked off some bodywork, but did no further damage.
The podium finish was a redemption of sorts for the driver, who found himself knocked out in the Top 32 round at this contest in 2009.
“Last year, two podiums in three starts would have put me in the lead in the championship,” said Foust. “Everybody still has work to do but we’re feeling good about our chances.”
The team is looking forward to the next rounds where, team owner Stephan Papadakis said, the higher-speed tracks will favor the NASCAR V-8 power in the Rockstar Energy SCION tC.
“The car is handling well, and we’ve got the power to excel at the next rounds,” said Papadakis. “We’re happy with where the development is going during our second season with the car.”
The two-time Formula DRIFT champion is campaigning the series for a second year in the V8-powered Rockstar Energy Drink SCION tC. Foust is looking to become the first driver to earn three championship titles in the series.
The Rockstar Energy team put in a strong performance at the opening two rounds of the series, with Foust securing third-place points in front of a sell-out crowd at the season opener in Long Beach. Round 2 saw Foust knocked out during the Top 16 in a surprising upset.
Drifting is a high-skill, high-powered motorsport with an emphasis on car control skill. Drivers compete in knock-out heats on a closed course, sliding sideways at high speed in trials judged on speed and style. With origins in Japan, it is the fastest growing form of motorsport in the world.
Foust and the Rockstar Energy Drink SCION tC return to Formula DRIFT competition July 9-10 when the action continues at Round 4: Throwdown at Evergreen Speedway in Monroe, Washington.
ABOUT TANNER FOUST —
Versatile Tanner Foust is a two-time Formula Drift Formula DRIFT champion (2007, 2008). He has been invited to every X Games Rally competition, with the Rockstar Energy Drink driver scoring gold in 2007, silver in 2008 and bronze in 2009. He has twice represented Team USA in the annual Race of Champions, teaming with NASCAR star Carl Edwards in 2008 and Travis Pastrana in 2009.
His race experience also includes multiple seasons of open wheel competition, the Pikes Peak Hill Climb, five Ice Racing championships, a Production Rally Championship title and the SCORE Baja. He also holds class lap records at numerous US road courses in Time Attack.
Also a stunt driver, Foust was a lead driver in the Fast and Furious: Tokyo Drift, Bourne Ultimatum, Dukes of Hazzard, Red Dawn and Iron Man 2 movies, and can also be seen driving in numerous popular TV shows and commercials.
He is currently an on-air host for Supercars Exposed, and was also picked as co-presenter for the US version of the seminal BBC auto show, Top Gear.
ABOUT PAPADAKIS RACING —
Team owner Stephan Papadakis is a legend of sport-compact racing who began building his reputation in the 1990s with the first front-wheel-drive, tube-chassis drag car in the U.S.
The team earned multiple records and championships in the discipline, turning in elapsed times and trap speeds previously thought unattainable in front-drive drag cars. Papadakis’ successes in front-wheel drive were matched by his efforts in rear-wheel drive when he campaigned a Civic that became only the fifth car to join the NHRA’s Sport Compact 200 MPH club.
The team began drifting in 2005, and invited Tanner Foust to join them a year later. Papadakis Racing has shown impressive results in five years of Formula DRIFT competition, earning two championship titles (2007, 2008). The Rockstar Energy Drink SCION tC is the team’s latest competition build.
PAPADAKIS RACING IS PARTNERED WITH:
Rockstar Energy Drink, Scion, Hankook Tire, AEM, Tokico Performance Shocks, Memphis Car Audio, ACT Clutch, Eneos Oil, Motegi Wheels, SPC Performance, Magnaflow Exhaust
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