Formula D Diaries - Las Vegas, NV

Tanner Foust
Although a favorite to take the Formula D crown for a third time, Tanner and his tC came to Vegas with something to prove. Round Three in New Jersey wasn't his finest hour. Never mind not qualifying no lower than Fourth, he failed to qualify at all. These are strange times, indeed.

I wasn't sure what to think about Round 4 as we cruised by The Strip on our way to Thursday's test session. Round 3 was an absolute disaster for the team. I knew the guys had done all they could during the interim five weeks to solve any issues we might find, and dilute the fact that I spun in both qualifying laps. This time, the mood in our pit was a bit different. The jokes were more personal and the competition pressure was pushed squarely on me.

The test session didn't answer many questions. I wasn't willing, with all the concrete around, to repeat the same scenario that had caused the car to spin in New Jersey. I approached the limit slowly-too slowly-and looked conservative. Sure, we made suspension and gearing changes to hone the car into this new, diverse track, but I wasn't taking the same committed lines that JP or Ueo demonstrated. I knew a little too much angle could cause the front tires to rub the frame, locking them up and spinning the car straight into the wall at over 80 mph.

I strapped in for qualifying and threw the car hard into the first left-hand corner at 84 mph. It over-rotated and my worst fear came true, as the car began to back into the wall. I was at full lock and half-expecting a spin as I looked behind the passenger-side B-pillar at the impact point. Something was different, though, and the car began to come back to straight, sliding sideways now at only 60 mph. I let out the clutch and added throttle . . . only to stall the engine! Red warning lights in my face and the wall approaching fast, I shifted to Second and popped the clutch while the car was still at a decent drift angle. The NASCAR TRD V-8 fired and I finished the run without losing drift or line. It wasn't pretty, but it was enough to get into the show.

What happened there was exactly what I needed. I found the car's new limit and could proceed with a bit more confidence. After qualifying, team manager Stephan told me not to worry about bending the car. "Just push hard and leave your vagina at the hotel," he said. His pep talk hit the spot and I threw that Scion into the course as hard as I could for the rest of the event.

Every run felt better and better. I could get on the throttle earlier and earlier, smoking the place out. Our Rockstar Scion tC sounded awesome, the Hankooks took the most ridiculous punishment imaginable in stride and the win was as sweet as I've ever experienced. Thanks go out to Formula D for a great event, Las Vegas Motor Speedway, the hard-core Vegas fans and the guys on the Rockstar Drift Team (Stephan, Sean, Carlos, Rob) for a job well done.

Formula D Snapshots
Rd 4. Results
Wall, NJ Podium
1. Tanner Foust
2. Ryuji Miki
3. Chris Forsberg

Overall Standings
1. Forsberg
2. Tuerck
3. Hubinette
4. Gittin
5. McNamara
6. Nishida
7. Foust
8. Pawlak
9. Aono
10. Mordaunt

By Carter Jung

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