If the recent throwing-in of towels by HIN and D1GP USA has you re-considering the state of the import/sport compact events scene, know this: Now in its Ninth year, Import Face-Off is still going strong. Baytown (Houston-area), TX, hosted the organization's '10 season opener, and also their 100th event to date. Over 200 drag racers and nearly 300 show cars were in attendance, not counting models, performers, and vendors. Even a drift demo made its IFO debut, courtesy of Joshua Steele and his murdered-out Nevrslo Motorsports 350Z. Drag racing started off strong when Pro FWD class boiled down to a light cut and Aldo Morales' Civic got the jump on Aaron Lopez' Civic, with a 9.633@162.84 to his 9.617@157.52. Forced Induction Pro class saw a tense moment when number-three qualifier Hector Hernandez totaled his first-gen RX-7 into the Houston Raceway wall early on, and then again when lead horse Darren Thomas' 9.75-second Eclipse broke, making competition anyone's game. Behind it all, the show field was filled with clean imports, many race-prepped or slammed and VIP'd to the max. More on those in coming issues.
Florida's Gainsville Raceway hosted IFO's second show of the '10 season, and again, drag racing did not disappoint. A street-driven, sleeper tC nearly upset Jhojan Matos' 10.2-second Talon in Forced Induction Pro, while All Motor Pro saw Marc Podkowiak's mid 10-second Civic crank out his fifth overall win with a 10.938@123.09 in the finals, prompting IFO officials to offer a cash bounty at the next event to anyone who can take him out. Forced Induction Sport was a battle of street-driven street machines, with Roger Young's Civic knocking out Jose Molina's WRX with an 11.664@129.53 to his 11.84@119.54.
Drift, drag, and show, Import Face-Off already has 25 events across the U.S. penned for '10, with classes for everyone. Show the world what's up: www.importfaceoff.net