Formula Drift Malaysia 2013 to be held on 1 Sept
The Achilles Formula Drift Malaysia 2013 will be taking place at Speed City Kuala Lumpur on 1 September, it was announced today. Organized by Fox International Channels Asia and broadcast on Star Sports, the event is the second leg of the Achilles Formula Drift Asia Series 2013, and it marks the fifth ever edition of Formula Drift Malaysia, which was first held in 2009.
The latest registry of entries list 37 participating drivers, although only 32 will ultimately qualify to compete in the Top 16 tandem battles. There will be a diverse pool of drivers from Hong Kong, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, New Zealand, Australia, Norway, USA, and Japan taking part, and Malaysians will have no less than 12 homegrown drivers to cheer for.
Leading the Malaysian charge is Formula Drift Asia 2010 Champion and 2012 1st Runner-Up, Tengku Djan Ley, who will be joined by local aces such as Ser Ming Hui (Ah Fai), Mervyn Nakamura, Tan Tat Wei, and Hanizam Hamzah (Loyai).
The 2013 drift season opened with its first round in 27-28 April at Melbourne, Australia, where defending champion Daigo Saito set the pace with a strong victory. Saito will look to continue his good form in Malaysia, though he can expect stiff competition from our local boys and other international drivers such as Robert Whyte, Tom Monkhouse and Josh Boettcher of Australia, Daynom Templeman of New Zealand, The Norwegian Hammer Fredric Aasbo, Japanese countryman Robbie Nishida as well as the return of Formula Drift USA superstar Ken Gushi. Top Indonesian and Thai drifters such as Saranon, Oat and Rio will also be gracing the scene.
For added action, this year’s event sees the introduction of an all new, night Team Drift category which will see drivers breaking team boundaries to pair up with partners of their choice in a special synchronized tandem drift challenge. For the first time in Formula Drift Asia history, fans will get to watch the top drifters in action at twilight and this will serve as the closing finale of Achilles Formula Drift Malaysia.
Sherman Tan, Senior Director of Sales from Fox Sports Event Management shares “Motorsports races never fail to fire up the imagination and adrenaline in fans across the world. With every leg of the Achilles Formula Drift Asia Series, there is always something new that will keep fans excited and coming back for more. For Malaysia this year, I am certain that the night Team Drift competition will add another fascinating dimension to the existing event format which Formula Drift fans can get behind their favourite drivers.”
“We are very honored to be celebrating our third appearance here in Malaysia. Since our inaugural season in 2011, Formula Drift Malaysia has continued to grow with a strong global presence with a stellar line-up of world-class drifters from all across Asia and around the world, making Achilles Formula Drift Asia the largest professional drift event in the region,” said Mr Pieter Tanuri, President Director of PT. Multistrada Arah Sarana Tbk, the title sponsor for this event
“Fans can look forward to experience non-stop drifting action in the second leg as competition heats up with drivers all vying for vital championship points in the lead-up to the series finale which will be held later this year in Jakarta, Indonesia,” he added.
Achilles Formula Drift Malaysia 2013 will be broadcasted live on STAR Sports on Sunday, 1 September from 3.30pm to 5.30pm (local time), and ticketing details will be announced very soon.
