Formula DRIFT or commonly referred to as Formula D, has been the premier United States drifting series. Now 2015, we are seeing the series 12th season go underway. With over 60+ driver currently licensed at the FD level,  Formula Drift is recognized as the North American professional drifting championship series. The 7 part series take drivers all over the United States and rumor has it, the drivers will now be competing over seas in the months to come. The sport brings many traditional racing and extreme sports athletes together and are judged on execution and style, rather than who finishes the course in the fastest time. Proclaimed to be the fastest growing motorsport in the world Formula Drift works closely with a very wide variety of business partners from energy drinks to the military. Most notably Formula Drift works with the largest amount of tire suppliers to a single series. Achilles, Falken, Hankook, Maxxis, Kenda, Nitto, GT Radial, and Yokohama all work together to supply teams to develop and test their products.

As the 2015 season kicked off, at the Streets of Long Beach in Long Beach, California it was apparent that the sport has gained the attention of more than just those who partake in drifting. The first stop of the  season was also home to Offset Kings car show hosted by Fatlace. Cars from all over the west coast and further traveled to partake in one of the nations best after market JDM styled car show. From RWB and Blue Chrome Rocket Bunny NSX’s to VIP Lexus IS’s and Dapper VW’s, no style was exempt.

Now waking up to the sounds of tires being slain and loud V8’s may not be ideal for most, but on this day it doubtably left many with smiles and others with curiosity. Its not every day you see large plumes of smoke raising in to the air in downtown Long Beach and see people casually walking towards the chaos. The smell of rubber filled the breathable air supply, while food trucks and aftermarket parts companies flooded the streets. The village of pop up tents claimed more than just enthusiasts as spectators. As both the car show and drift event sold out, only standing room was avail and all attention was focused on the main event come the Top 16. Great battles took place and the drivers put on a great show pushing the limits run after run. When the first stop of this 7 event series started to come to a close we watched drivers leave everything out on the track, in some cases even parts of their car. Door to door and bumper to wall action put smiles on the faces of many and cheers from the crowd could be heard blocks away. Its safe to say that Formula D Long Beach was a success for all.