Chris Forsberg wins season-opening Formula DRIFT event in Long Beach

By Apr 6, 2014, 8:26 PM EDT
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Chris Forsberg took home top honors this weekend in the season-opening Formula DRIFT Round 1: Streets of Long Beach event.

Forsberg and his Hankook Tire Nissan 370Z paced the field, earning a stout 104.0 points.

“It feels amazing to be on top of the podium, especially here at the first round of the eleventh season of Formula DRIFT,” Forsberg said. “We will try to keep the momentum with our new changes and take the championship home.”

Norway’s Kenneth Moen was second in his Bridges Racing Nissan 240SX.

Top qualifier and 2013 series champion Michael Essa was third in his Essa Autosport/Yokohama BMW M3.

The event, held Friday and Saturday, kicked off the seven-round series, which is now in its 11th season. Race organizers said a sellout crowd of more than 20,000 attended.

Formula DRIFT will once again have all of its races televised on the NBC Sports Network. Airing time for this weekend’s event will be July 27 (2:30 pm ET), July 29 (4:30 pm), August 3 (1 pm) and August 5 (4:30). For the full NBCSN telecast of Formula DRIFT events, click here.

Round 2: Road to the Championship takes place in Braselton, Ga., on May 9 and 10.

Follow me @JerryBonkowski

 

Round 1: Streets of Long Beach Event Results

1. Chris Forsberg, Hankook Tire Nissan 370Z Winner

2. Kenneth Moen, Bridges Racing Nissan 240SX 2nd Place

3. Michael Essa, Essa Autosport / Yokohama BMW M3 3rd Place

 

Formula DRIFT Professional Championship Presented by GoPro 2014 Standings After One Round

1. Chris Forsberg, Hankook Tire Nissan 370Z 104.50 Points

2. Kenneth Moen, Bridges Racing Nissan 240SX 84.50 Points

3. Michael Essa, Essa Autosport/Yokohama BMW M3 74.00 Points

4. Justin Pawlak, Falken Tire Ford Mustang 68.50 Points

5. Fredric Aasbo, Hankook Tire Scion Racing tC 52.50 Points

6. Forrest Wang, Get Nuts Lab / Hankook Tire / STR Racing Nissan S14 51.00 Points

7. Aurimas Bakchis, Feal Suspension / Nitto Tire Nissan 240SX 51.00 Points

8. Darren McNamara, Falken Tire Nissan S14 51.00 Points

9. Vaughn Gittin Jr., Monster Energy / Nitto Tire Ford Mustang RTR 39.50 Points

10. Tyler McQuarrie, GoPro Mobil 1Chevrolet Camaro 38.00 Points

11. Pat Goodin, Enjuku Racing Nissan 240SX 35.00 Points

12. Ryan Tuerck, Retaks Maxxis Tires Air Force PSI Scion FR-S 35.00 Points

12. Conrad Grunewald, Megan Racing / Top 1 Oil / BRE Chevrolet Camaro 35.00 Points

13. Kyle Mohan, GT Radial Energy-X Mazdatrix RX-8 35.00 Points

15. Mats Baribeau, Gold in the Net Toyota Mark II 33.50 Points

16. Dennis Mertzanis, Hyundai Genesis Legato AR1 33.50 Points

 

Manufacturers Championship Standings After One Round

1. Nissan      122.00 Points

2. Ford      108.00 Points

3. BMW      94.50 Points

4. Scion      87.50 Points

5. Chevrolet      73.00 Points

6. Lexus      35.00 Points

6. Mazda      35.00 Points

8. Toyota      33.50 Points

9. Hyundai      19.00 Points

10. Dodge      17.50 Points

 

Tire Championship Standings After One Round

1. Hankook      157.00 Points

2. Falken      119.50 Points

3. Achilles      102.00 Points

4. Nitto      90.50 Points

5. Yokohama      74.00 Points

6. Kenda      52.50 Points

7. GT Radial      35.00 Points

7. Maxxis      35.00 Points

Ford unveils a new Mustang for 2024 Le Mans in motorsports ‘lifestyle brand’ retooling

Associated PressJun 9, 2023, 7:00 PM EDT
Ford Mustang Le Mans
Ford Performance
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LE MANS, France — Ford has planned a return to the 24 Hours of Le Mans with its iconic Mustang muscle car next year under a massive rebranding of Ford Performance aimed at bringing the automotive manufacturer “into the racing business.”

The Friday unveil of the new Mustang Dark Horse-based race car follows Ford’s announcement in February (and a ballyhooed test at Sebring in March) that it will return to Formula One in 2026 in partnership with reigning world champion Red Bull.

The Mustang will enter the GT3 category next year with at least two cars in both IMSA and the World Endurance Championship, and is hopeful to earn an invitation to next year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans. The IMSA entries will be a factory Ford Performance program run by Multimatic, and a customer program in WEC with Proton Competition.

Ford CEO Jim Farley, also an amateur sports car racer, told The Associated Press the Mustang will be available to compete in various GT3 series across the globe to customer teams. But more important, Farley said, is the overall rebranding of Ford Performance – done by renowned motorsports designer Troy Lee – that is aimed at making Ford a lifestyle brand with a sporting mindset.

“It’s kind of like the company finding its own, and rediscovering its icons, and doubling down on them,” Farley told the AP. “And then this motorsports activity is getting serious about connecting enthusiast customers with those rediscovered icons. It’s a big switch for the company – this is really about building strong, iconic vehicles with enthusiasts at the center of our marketing.”

Ford last competed in sports car racing in 2019 as part of a three-year program with Chip Ganassi Racing. The team scored the class win at Le Mans in 2016 in a targeted performance aimed to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Ford snapping Ferrari’s six-year winning streak.

Ford on Friday displayed a Mustang with a Lee-designed livery that showcased the cleaner, simplified look that will soon be featured on all its racing vehicles. The traditional blue oval with Ford Performance in white lettering underneath will now be branded simply FP.

The new mark will be used across car liveries, merchandise and apparel, display assets, parts and accessories and in advertising.

Farley cited Porsche as an automaker that has successfully figured out how to sell cars to consumers and race cars in various series around the world while creating a culture of brand enthusiasts. He believes Ford’s new direction will help the company sell street cars, race cars, boost interest in driving schools, and create a merchandise line that convinces consumers that a stalwart of American automakers is a hip, cool brand.

“We’re going to build a global motorsports business off road and on road,” Farley told the AP, adding that the design of the Mustang is “unapologetically American.”

He lauded the work of Lee, who is considered the top helmet designer among race car drivers.

“We’re in the first inning of a nine inning game, and going to Le Mans is really important,” Farley said. “But for customer cars, getting the graphics right, designing race cars that win at all different levels, and then designing a racing brand for Ford Performance that gets rebranded and elevated is super important.”

He said he’s kept a close eye on how Porsche and Aston Martin have built their motorsports businesses and said Ford will be better.

“We’re going in the exact same direction. We just want to be better than them, that’s all,” Farley said. “Second is the first loser.”

Farley, an avid amateur racer himself, did not travel to Le Mans for the announcement. The race that begins Saturday features an entry from NASCAR, and Ford is the reigning Cup Series champion with Joey Logano and Team Penske.

The NASCAR “Garage 56” entry is a collaboration between Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet and Goodyear, and is being widely celebrated throughout the industry. Farley did feel left out of the party in France – a sentiment NASCAR tried to avoid by inviting many of its partners to attend the race so that it wouldn’t seem like a Chevrolet-only celebration.

“They’re going right and I’m going left – that NASCAR thing is a one-year deal, right? It’s Garage 56 and they can have their NASCAR party, but that’s a one-year party,” Farley said. “We won Le Mans outright four times, we won in the GT class, and we’re coming back with Mustang and it’s not a one-year deal.

“So they can get all excited about Garage 56. I almost see that as a marketing exercise for NASCAR, but for me, that’s a science project,” Farley continued. “I don’t live in a world of science projects. I live in the world of building a vital company that everyone is excited about. To do that, we’re not going to do a Garage 56 – I’ve got to beat Porsche and Aston Martin and Ferrari year after year after year.”

Ford’s announcement comes on the heels of General Motors changing its GT3 strategy next season and ending its factory Corvette program. GM, which unlike Ford competes in the IMSA Grand Touring Prototype division (with its Cadillac brand), will shift fully to a customer model for Corvettes in 2024 (with some factory support in the IMSA GTD Pro category).