2018 Formula D season
# 2018 Formula D season

The 2018 Formula D season (officially titled Formula DRIFT Black Magic Pro Championship) was the fifteenth season of the Formula D series. The season began on April 7 at Long Beach and concluded on October 13 at Toyota Speedway at Irwindale after eight events. The series celebrated its 100th championship round at Wall Speedway.

## Entries

| Team | No. | Car | Tires | Driver | Round(s) |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Asphalt Anarchy | 82 | BMW F22 | Achilles Radial | Taylor Hull | 2–3, 5–8 |
| Bakchis Motorsports, LLC | 723 | Nissan Silvia S14 | Falken | Aurimas Bakchis | All |
| Bridges Racing | 43 | Dodge Viper ZB II Nissan Silvia S15 | Achilles Radial | Dean Kearney | 2–8 |
| Cameron Moore Drift | 333 | Toyota GT86 | Nexen | Cameron Moore | 1, 3, 5 |
| Chris Forsberg Racing | 64 | Nissan 370Z | Nexen | Chris Forsberg | All |
| Coffman Racing | 959 | Nissan 240SX S13 | Achilles Radial | Matt Coffman | All |
| Committed Service Brand | 316 | Nissan Silvia S14 | Achilles Radial | Austin Meeks | All |
| Drift Cave Motorsports | 777 | Chevrolet Corvette C6 | Falken | Matt Field | All |
| Essa Autosport | 101 | BMW M3 E46 | Achilles Radial | Michael Essa | All |
| FFF Drifting Department | 117 | Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano | Nitto | Federico Sceriffo | All |
| FK53 | 53 | BMW M3 E92 | Nexen | Faruk Kugay | 1–5, 7–8 |
| Get Nuts Lab | 808 | Nissan Silvia S15 | Achilles Radial | Forrest Wang | All |
| GReddy Toyota Racing | 21 | Toyota GT86 | Falken | Ken Gushi | All |
| HGK Racing Team | 80 | BMW M3 E92 | Achilles Radial | Kristaps Blušs | 1–7 |
| Hohnadell-Huddy Racing | 118 | Nissan 240SX S14 | Nexen | Alec Hohnadell | All |
| Inca Madness Racing | 17 | BMW M3 E46 | Nitto | Alex Heilbrunn | 1–6 |
| Jeff Jones Racing | 818 | Nissan 370Z | Falken | Jeff Jones | All |
| Jerry Yang Racing | 123 | Nissan GT-R | Achilles Radial | Kazuya Taguchi R | All |
| Jhonnattan Castro Racing | 717 | Toyota GT86 | Nexen | Jhonnattan Castro | All |
| KORUWORKS | 909 | Nissan 350Z | Nexen | Ryan Litteral | 3–4, 6–8 |
| Kyle Mohan Racing | 99 | Mazda MX-5 | Nexen | Kyle Mohan | All |
| MVK Racing | 18 | Nissan 240SX S14 | Achilles Radial | Matt Vankirk R | All |
| Papadakis Racing | 151 | Toyota Corolla (E210) | Nexen | Fredric Aasbø | All |
| Pawlak Racing | 13 | Ford Mustang | Falken | Justin Pawlak | All |
| RAD Industries | 34 | Toyota Supra A80 | Nexen | Dan Burkett | All |
| RTR Motorsports | 25 | Ford Mustang RTR | Nitto | Vaughn Gittin, Jr. | All |
| RTR Motorsports | 88 | Ford Mustang RTR | Nitto | Chelsea DeNofa | All |
| Ryan Tuerck Racing | 411 | Toyota GT86 | Nexen | Ryan Tuerck | All |
| Stratton Racing | 33 | Chevrolet Corvette C6 | Achilles Radial | Dirk Stratton R | All |
| Team DAI. | 9 | Subaru BRZ | Falken | Daijiro Yoshihara | All |
| Team Enjuku | 352 | Nissan Skyline R32 Nissan 240SX S14.3 | Nexen | Kevin Lawrence | All |
| Worthouse Drift Team | 130 | Nissan Silvia S15 | Falken | James Deane | All |
| Worthouse Drift Team | 215 | Nissan Silvia S15 | Falken | Piotr Więcek | All |

## Schedule

| Round | Title | Circuit | Location | Date | Winner | Car |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | O'Reilly Auto Parts Streets of Long Beach Presented by Permatex | Streets of Long Beach | Long Beach, California | April 7 | Fredric Aasbø | Toyota Corolla (E210) |
| 2 | Advance Auto Parts Scorched Presented by Fast Orange | Orlando Speedworld | Orlando, Florida | April 28 | Chris Forsberg | Nissan 370Z |
| 3 | NAPA Auto Parts Road to the Championship Presented by Rain-X | Road Atlanta | Braselton, Georgia | May 12 | Kristaps Blušs | BMW M3 E92 |
| 4 | Advance Auto Parts The Gauntlet Presented by Black Magic | Wall Speedway | Wall Township, New Jersey | June 2 | James Deane | Nissan Silvia S15 |
| 5 | AutoZone Throwdown Presented by Rain-X | Evergreen Speedway | Monroe, Washington | July 21 | James Deane | Nissan Silvia S15 |
| 6 | Advance Auto Parts Crossroads Presented by Rain-X | Gateway Motorsports Park | Madison, Illinois | August 11 | Fredric Aasbø | Toyota Corolla (E210) |
| 7 | AutoZone Showdown Presented by Rain-X | Texas Motor Speedway | Fort Worth, Texas | September 15 | Piotr Więcek | Nissan Silvia S15 |
| 8 | O'Reilly Auto Parts Title Fight Presented by Rain-X | Irwindale Speedway | Irwindale, California | October 13 | Vaughn Gittin, Jr. | Ford Mustang RTR |
| Sources: |||||||

## Championship standings

### Scoring system

Points were awarded for qualifying and for the main event. During qualifying, drivers performed solo runs which were judged on parameters such as line, angle, fluidity and commitment and assigned a numerical score up to 100. These scores were then ranked to determine the qualifying classification and hence populate the brackets for the competition phase. Up to 7 points were then awarded for the top 32 qualifiers.

The qualifiers proceed through a series of competition heats, with those eliminated in the first round (Top 32) receiving 16 points, the second round (Sweet 16) receiving 32 points, the third round (Great 8) receiving 48 points, and the fourth round (Final Four) receiving 64 points and classifying 3rd and 4th. Of the two drivers eliminated in the Final Four, the driver who qualified highest is awarded third place and the final step on the podium. In the Final, the runner-up receives 80 points and the winner 100 points. Final classification within each round is then determined by highest qualifying position; for example, of the two drivers eliminated in the Final Four, the driver who qualified higher is awarded 3rd position and the final place on the podium.

**Qualifying stage**

| Position | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th–8th | 9th–16th | 17th–32nd |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Points | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 |

**Competition stage**

| Position | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th–8th | 9th–16th | 17th–32nd |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Points | 100 | 80 | 64 | 64 | 48 | 32 | 16 |

### Pro Championship standings

| Pos | Driver | LBH | ORL | ATL | WNJ | EVS | GAT | TEX | IRW | Points |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | James Deane | $4^2$ | $2^2$ | $6^4$ | $1^3$ | $1^4$ | $6^5$ | $2^1$ | $9^1$ | 595 |
| 2 | Fredric Aasbø | $1^5$ | $3^1$ | $2^3$ | $9^4$ | $9^5$ | $1^1$ | $3^4$ | $2^4$ | 591 |
| 3 | Piotr Więcek | $3^1$ | $6^4$ | $4^8$ | $13^{14}$ | $3^1$ | $4^{13}$ | $1^3$ | $10^2$ | 507 |
| 4 | Chris Forsberg | $6^6$ | $1^{12}$ | $3^7$ | $5^9$ | $17^{11}$ | $8^9$ | $14^{13}$ | $17^7$ | 399 |
| 5 | Justin Pawlak | $5^4$ | $5^3$ | $9^1$ | $3^1$ | $4^3$ | $7^7$ | $11^7$ | $18^{13}$ | 391 |
| 6 | Ryan Tuerck | $7^8$ | $4^6$ | $16^{20}$ | $12^{12}$ | $2^7$ | $18^{12}$ | $5^5$ | $11^5$ | 380 |
| 7 | Matt Field | $9^7$ | $10^{10}$ | $14^{15}$ | $2^5$ | $7^{12}$ | $2^2$ | $16^{19}$ | $19^{17}$ | 379 |
| 8 | Chelsea DeNofa | $11^{11}$ | $19^{18}$ | $7^6$ | $26^{25}$ | $11^8$ | $3^6$ | $4^{10}$ | $3^{11}$ | 361 |
| 9 | Aurimas Bakchis | $13^{13}$ | $7^7$ | $10^9$ | $4^2$ | $10^6$ | $9^4$ | $12^8$ | $8^{15}$ | 351 |
| 10 | Daijiro Yoshihara | $10^9$ | $9^9$ | $5^2$ | $6^{10}$ | $12^{10}$ | $11^{10}$ | $6^9$ | $5^3$ | 349 |
| 11 | Ken Gushi | $18^{17}$ | $8^8$ | $8^{17}$ | $7^{11}$ | $13^{13}$ | $5^3$ | $15^{17}$ | $6^8$ | 345 |
| 12 | Forrest Wang | $2^3$ | $14^{15}$ | $13^{12}$ | $8^{13}$ | DNQ | $13^{15}$ | $10^6$ | $4^{16}$ | 344 |
| 13 | Vaughn Gittin, Jr. | $16^{19}$ | $22^{21}$ | $17^{13}$ | $10^7$ | $16^{19}$ | $15^{21}$ | $7^{11}$ | $1^{10}$ | 329 |
| 14 | Kristaps Blušs | $12^{12}$ | $11^{11}$ | $1^5$ | $16^{27}$ | $5^2$ | $12^{14}$ | $24^{24}$ | | 315 |
| 15 | Alec Hohnadell | $8^{10}$ | $17^5$ | $12^{11}$ | $15^{16}$ | $18^{14}$ | $17^{11}$ | $9^2$ | $13^9$ | 252 |
| 16 | Michael Essa | $14^{15}$ | $18^{17}$ | $11^{10}$ | $17^6$ | $19^{16}$ | $10^8$ | $20^{20}$ | $12^6$ | 217 |
| 17 | Matt Coffman | $15^{16}$ | $21^{20}$ | $19^{16}$ | $22^{21}$ | $8^{22}$ | $19^{16}$ | $23^{23}$ | $16^{26}$ | 211 |
| 18 | Jhonnattan Castro | $19^{18}$ | $16^{28}$ | $18^{14}$ | $19^{18}$ | $20^{18}$ | $14^{17}$ | $17^{14}$ | $15^{20}$ | 194 |
| 19 | Jeff Jones | $26^{26}$ | $24^{23}$ | $21^{21}$ | $28^{28}$ | $15^{17}$ | $16^{22}$ | $13^{12}$ | $21^{19}$ | 193 |
| 20 | Dirk Stratton RY | $17^{14}$ | $12^{13}$ | $20^{18}$ | $24^{23}$ | $24^{24}$ | $27^{27}$ | $18^{16}$ | $14^{14}$ | 180 |
| 21 | Matt Vankirk R | $28^{28}$ | $15^{16}$ | $24^{24}$ | $14^{15}$ | $27^{27}$ | $24^{24}$ | $22^{22}$ | $24^{23}$ | 178 |
| 22 | Dan Burkett | $20^{20}$ | $25^{24}$ | $15^{19}$ | $25^{24}$ | $21^{20}$ | $25^{25}$ | $21^{21}$ | $20^{18}$ | 160 |
| 23 | Dean Kearney | | $13^{14}$ | $23^{23}$ | $21^{20}$ | $22^{21}$ | $22^{20}$ | DNQ | $7^{12}$ | 158 |
| 24 | Kazuya Taguchi R | $30^{30}$ | $23^{22}$ | $27^{27}$ | $30^{30}$ | $25^{25}$ | $21^{19}$ | $19^{18}$ | $22^{21}$ | 144 |
| 25 | Federico Sceriffo | $22^{22}$ | $30^{30}$ | DNQ | $23^{22}$ | $28^{28}$ | $23^{23}$ | $26^{26}$ | $25^{24}$ | 126 |
| 26 | Kyle Mohan | $24^{24}$ | $26^{25}$ | $25^{25}$ | $18^{17}$ | $29^{29}$ | $26^{26}$ | $29^{29}$ | DNQ | 126 |
| 27 | Kevin Lawrence | $27^{27}$ | $27^{26}$ | $28^{28}$ | $27^{26}$ | $23^{23}$ | $20^{18}$ | $30^{30}$ | DNQ | 126 |
| 28 | Alex Heilbrunn | $21^{21}$ | $20^{19}$ | DNQ | $11^8$ | $6^9$ | DNQ | | | 123 |
| 29 | Faruk Kugay | $23^{23}$ | $28^{27}$ | DNQ | $29^{29}$ | $26^{26}$ | | $27^{27}$ | $27^{27}$ | 108 |
| 30 | Austin Meeks | $25^{25}$ | $29^{29}$ | $22^{22}$ | DNQ | DNQ | $28^{28}$ | $28^{28}$ | $26^{25}$ | 108 |
| 31 | Taylor Hull | | DNQ | $26^{26}$ | | $30^{30}$ | $29^{29}$ | $25^{25}$ | $23^{22}$ | 90 |
| 32 | Ryan Litteral | | | DNQ | $20^{19}$ | | DNQ | $8^{15}$ | DNQ | 69 |
| 33 | Cameron Moore | $29^{29}$ | | DNQ | | $14^{15}$ | | | | 53 |
| Sources: |||||||||||

In-line notation :

| $^{Superscriptnumber}$ | Qualifying position |
| - | - |
| Bold | Top qualifier |
| RY | Rookie of the Year |
| R | Rookie |

### Auto Cup standings

Auto Cup points are awarded each round to the two drivers with the highest classified finish for each manufacturer. To be eligible, both the chassis and engine must have been constructed by that manufacturer.

| Pos | Manufacturer | LBH | ORL | ATL | WNJ | EVS | GAT | TEX | IRW | Pts |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | Nissan | $2^3$ | $1^{12}$ | $3^7$ | $1^3$ | $1^4$ | $4^{13}$ | $1^3$ | $4^{16}$ | 1229 |
| 1 | Nissan | $3^1$ | $2^2$ | $4^8$ | $5^9$ | $3^1$ | $6^5$ | $2^1$ | $9^1$ | 1229 |
| 2 | Toyota | $1^5$ | $3^1$ | $2^3$ | $7^{11}$ | $2^7$ | $1^1$ | $3^4$ | $2^4$ | 1053 |
| 2 | Toyota | $7^8$ | $4^6$ | $8^{17}$ | $9^4$ | $9^5$ | $5^3$ | $5^5$ | $6^8$ | 1053 |
| 3 | Ford | $5^4$ | $5^3$ | $7^6$ | $3^1$ | $4^3$ | $3^6$ | $4^{10}$ | $1^{10}$ | 869 |
| 3 | Ford | $11^{11}$ | $19^{18}$ | $9^1$ | $10^7$ | $11^8$ | $7^7$ | $7^{11}$ | $3^{11}$ | 869 |
| 4 | BMW | $12^{12}$ | $11^{11}$ | $1^5$ | $11^8$ | $5^2$ | $10^8$ | $20^{20}$ | $12^6$ | 598 |
| 4 | BMW | $14^{15}$ | $18^{17}$ | $11^{10}$ | $16^{27}$ | $6^9$ | $12^{14}$ | $24^{24}$ | $27^{27}$ | 598 |
| 5 | Chevrolet | $9^7$ | $10^{10}$ | $14^{15}$ | $2^5$ | $7^{12}$ | $2^2$ | $16^{19}$ | $14^{14}$ | 559 |
| 5 | Chevrolet | $17^{14}$ | $12^{13}$ | $20^{18}$ | $24^{23}$ | $24^{24}$ | $27^{27}$ | $18^{16}$ | $19^{17}$ | 559 |
| 6 | Dodge | | $13^{14}$ | $23^{23}$ | $21^{20}$ | $22^{21}$ | $22^{20}$ | DNQ | $7^{12}$ | 158 |
| 7 | Mazda | $24^{24}$ | $26^{25}$ | $25^{25}$ | $18^{17}$ | $29^{29}$ | $26^{26}$ | $29^{29}$ | DNQ | 126 |
| 8 | Ferrari | $22^{22}$ | $30^{30}$ | DNQ | $23^{22}$ | $28^{28}$ | $23^{23}$ | $26^{26}$ | $25^{24}$ | 126 |
| 9 | Cadillac | | DNQ | $26^{26}$ | | $30^{30}$ | $29^{29}$ | $25^{25}$ | $23^{22}$ | 90 |

### Tire Cup standings

Tire Cup points are awarded each round to the two drivers with the highest classified finish for each tire manufacturer.

| Pos | Tire | LBH | ORL | ATL | WNJ | EVS | GAT | TEX | IRW | Pts |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | Falken | $3^1$ | $2^2$ | $4^8$ | $1^3$ | $1^4$ | $2^2$ | $1^3$ | $5^3$ | 1215 |
| 1 | Falken | $4^2$ | $5^3$ | $5^2$ | $2^5$ | $3^1$ | $4^{13}$ | $2^1$ | $8^{15}$ | 1215 |
| 2 | Nexen Tire | $1^5$ | $1^{12}$ | $2^3$ | $5^9$ | $2^7$ | $1^1$ | $3^4$ | $2^4$ | 1088 |
| 2 | Nexen Tire | $6^6$ | $3^7$ | $3^1$ | $9^4$ | $9^5$ | $8^9$ | $5^5$ | $11^5$ | 1088 |
| 3 | Achilles Radial | $2^3$ | $8^8$ | $1^5$ | $7^{11}$ | $5^2$ | $5^3$ | $10^6$ | $4^{16}$ | 845 |
| 3 | Achilles Radial | $12^{12}$ | $11^{11}$ | $8^{17}$ | $8^{13}$ | $8^{22}$ | $10^8$ | $15^{17}$ | $6^8$ | 845 |
| 4 | Nitto | $11^{11}$ | $19^{18}$ | $7^6$ | $10^7$ | $6^9$ | $3^6$ | $4^{10}$ | $1^{10}$ | 725 |
| 4 | Nitto | $16^{19}$ | $20^{19}$ | $17^{13}$ | $11^8$ | $11^8$ | $15^{21}$ | $7^{11}$ | $3^{11}$ | 725 |

## Footnotes

* ↑ Kearney suffered a mechanical failure ahead of the New Jersey round, so rented a Nissan Silvia S15 from Forrest Wang.
* ↑ Gushi's car featured prominent Falken Tire sponsorship, but his results counted toward Achilles Radial's tally in the Tire Cup.
* ↑ Lawrence's primary car for 2018 was a Nissan 240SX S14.3 but he suffered two engine failures while tuning on a dynamometer before the season, forcing him to use a Nissan Skyline R32 for the first round in Long Beach.
* ↑ Kearney competed in a Nissan Silvia S15 in New Jersey, but his points were still added to Dodge's tally in the Auto Cup.
