Goodyear International Drift Series

12th & 13th June

After the recent FX Open drift event, I was itching to get another chance to shot some drift action. The Goodyear International Drift Series took place in Putrajaya during the weekend and I wasn't going to miss it. However, when I arrived at the venue, I was dissapointed by the track layout and the spectator viewing arrangement. Unless you're paying for the grandstand tickets, there's really no point of going. There were fences surrounding the track and lot's of the good spots were off limits. If it was bad for a spectator, it was even worse for a photographer.

I went to the Media tent and ask around for a photographer pass. Luckily, the nice folks from Goodyear was willing to accomodate my request and gave me media access. Hooray!!! GO GOODYEAR!!!

The rain had just stopped and the track was still quite damp. The cars were going around for their practice runs.




Hashiguti Anderson from Brazil, smooth driving style..


Michael Gan in his Skyfiro..


Fanga Dan in his RB26 powered Holden from New Zealand was the crowd fav with his superb car control and smoke show...




Due to the slippery track conditions, lot's of drivers were caught out and spun on the 1st corner. The biggest casualty was from Team Touge Motorsport , crashing heavily on his 1st run on track..


The force of the impact was so strong that 2 concrete blocks were knocked down..


New hatchback design..


For the rest of the session, more cars fell victim at that same spot..






Day 2 started at 10am with another practice session..






Turn 1 continued to be a tricky spot as more drivers failed to clear it safely..


"Ooopppsss!!!!"


"I wonder how much this is going to cost..."


Seconds to impact..




Fanga Dan continued his superb form..


while local fav. Tengku Djan lost out early in the competition. Fresh from winning the FX Open, this was indeed a huge upset. Maybe it's his new car..


Another local fav. Ah Fai was also in superb form all weekend but was no match for the Holden in the semi final..




The other semi was between 2 AE86 driven by Tan Tat Wei and Ivan Lau...


Ivan Lau took victory to set up a final clash against Fanga Dan..


Before the final, Ah Fai and Tan Tat Wei went head to head for the 3rd / 4th placing shootout. It ended when Tan crashed his car in to the barrier in dramatic fashion..


The final run turned out to be a rather low key affair. Ivan Lau overtook Fanga Dan and was penalized for it. (Formula Drift rules does not encourage overtaking unlike other drift competition)


For the 2nd run, Fanga Dan kept his cool and completed his run safetly. The win was in the bag..