Super Drift Championship Round 4 (SoCal Region)
Super Drift Championship 2021 Round 4
May 8, 2021
It seems with every round the competition just gets better! This round was no exception. Although it was Mother’s Day weekend and many were out of town, we still had a great turnout.
We had visitors from Las Vegas and Arizona joining us which made it even better. Huge thanks to Bret, the owner of Slidelines for joining us. It’s always an honor when a track owner comes to enter one of our events.
The Layout
For Round 4 we decided to change it up a bit. Instead of our usual single straight to sweeper type of layout, we went with a high-speed straight to sweeper, to high-speed straight with a chicane to shake it up a bit. It did prove to make the runs more challenging, but as expected, everyone rose to the occasion and adapted almost immediately.
The Judging
For as long as I can remember, 4 years +, I have always had my right hand man, Shaine Collins right there judging with me. I don’t know if I can remember a time in our 100+ comps we have judged where he wasn’t there. Well there’s a first for everything and this weekend he had some really important business to handle. Needing a 3rd judge, I thought about who has asked the most questions about our judging and who has actually displayed a firm understanding of the rules. I had the perfect person in mind, and he just so happened to be coming from out of state this weekend. Ted Britt from Arizona and Team Bubble Milk was my first thought. I consulted with Manny and Shaine and we all agreed he would be a great candidate.
As I am constantly explaining, our style of competition doesn’t have much “judging” going on, but rather spotting errors and being able to assign fault and severity to them. The rules are such, where each call should be black and white. With Ted’s firm grasp of the Super Drift Championship rules, we didn’t skip a beat. Ted knows the rules and how to apply them, and with that, we had our 3rd judge and the show went on without a hitch! Thanks to Manny Campalans and Ted Britt for judging alongside of me for Round 4!
Qualifying
Being a new style layout, there were a few being a bit cautious and with good reason. Then you had some of the more seasoned drivers who can adapt to any situation, and these guys really stepped it up! For the Top Qualifier of Round 4, we had a tie between The U.S. Drift King, Mikko Yang (Team ReveD), and Alfredo Chan III (Team Razr / Tech1Drift). These guys are no strangers to TQ or podium finishes, so it was no surprise to see them in a battle for TQ. Both competitors we given one more qualifying run, and the true TQ winner would be determined off those runs. Alfredo was able to put together a near perfect (if not perfect) run, giving him the decisive Top Qualifier win and title for Round 4! Congratulations Alfredo!
Tsuiso Battles
Then it was the time we had all been waiting for, Tsuiso Battles! With the amount of speed that was obtainable, there were some mistakes we aren’t accustomed to seeing. A lot of people we are used to seeing put down clean laps were hitting walls or their opponent. So we knew it was a good thing to change it up and keep everyone on their toes.
Expert Class
The Expert Class came down to The U.S. Drift King - Mikko Yang (Team ReveD), TQ of the event, Alfredo Chan III (Team Razr/Tech1Drift), Aydin Angulo (Team Zenshin), and Alan Benites (Team Zenshin). Every single one of these guys are heavy hitters!
First up was Aydin vs. Alan. The battle was insanely close as were all the battles in the top 4. Aydin was able to secure 3rd with Alan having some contact on his lead and chase. Congratulations to Aydin for a hard fought for Third Place!
Then it was time for the big dogs of the night, Mikko vs. Alfredo for first and second! Both of these guys find themselves in this exact same situation often. These 2 were also the 2 who were tied for TQ, so you know they both had firm command of this layout and they both understood what the judges wanted to see. Alfredo put down a near perfect lead run with Mikko hot on his door! Both the lead and the chase were what we would expect from drivers of this caliber. Then it was Mikko on the lead and Alfredo on the chase. Mikko threw down an awesome lead knowing he had to really turn it up to be in the running. Alfredo answered back with a vicious chase, leaving no room to be outdone. The judges needed to go to the replay to check what looked to be contact in Zone 1, and it was confirmed. Mikko had a slight miscalculation and hit the wall, giving Alfredo a well deserved win, and the top podium spot for the night! Mikko locked down a respectable 2nd!
Congratulations to First Place - Alfredo Chan III (Team Razr / Tech1Drift), Second Place - Mikko Yang (Team ReveD), and Third Place - Aydin Angulo (Team Zenshin)!
Sportsman Class
This round we had a good amount of first-timers, so the Sportsman Class promised to be some good fun! The top 4 boiled down to Danger Dan Sonner (Handsome Drifters), Mitchel Phillips for first and second. Cody Johnson, and Jaron Gosselin battled for third and forth.
First up was Cody vs. Jaron. Both Cody and Jaron had some similar bumps, which brought us to a OMT (One More Time). This time they were able to shake off the nerves a little. This time around Jaron was able to hold it together and locked down a solid Third Place!
Then it was time for the battle for First and Second! Dan vs. Mitchel. The first battle resulted in a OMT with both drivers making contact on their chase runs. Now they were both warmed up. Dan threw down a solid lead with Mitchel right behind. Mitchel came right back at Dan with a solid lead as well. It came down to the chase runs, and Mitchel was able to lock down First Place with better proximity on the chase! Dan took home a well deserved Second Place!
Congratulations to First Place - Mitchel Phillips, Second Place - Dan Sonner, and Third Place - Jaron Gosselin!
