GReddy USA Open House Event and Meet, July 30th

Thank you all who stopped by, especially our special guests, Ken Gushi, Sung Kang, Coco Zurita, Dai Yoshihara...

more photos to come... until then here is the Super Street Magazine event coverage.
 

photo by 7kgraphix

Boost Brigade coming to WEKFEST, San Jose, CA

UPDATE 7/25:
Thank you Wekfest attendees for stopping by our #BoostBrigade booth Sunday. 

And thank you Wekfest for the unexpected vehicle awards.
 -   FuguZ, 1st - Datsun
 -   LexusTuned Pandem RC, 3rd - Lexus
 -   RoyalOrigin GReddy Racing E36, 2nd - BMW


Come find us at this weekend's WEKFEST at the San Jose Convention Center
Sunday, July 24th.

We will be releasing new BOOST BRIGADE items as well a host of fantastic Pandem/Rocket Bunny kitted vehicles, including the FUGU Z, LexusTuned RC.

Accompanying us, straight from Japan, will be no other then, Kei Miura of TRA Kyoto (Rocket Bunny / Pandem designs)

Follow us at the show via social media:

 @BOOST_BRIGADE          @GReddyRacing@Rocket.Bunny.Pandem

NASCAR Demo and Formula Drfit Canada Coverage

NASCAR Demo and Formula Drift Rd.5 Canada.

 

Also see the NASCAR on Fox Sports Segment

 and this Fan side video

Following the team's 4th place finish in Formula Drift Rd.4 FDNJ, the 870whp GReddy Racing Nexen Tires SR by Toyota 86 was rushed across the country to Sonoma Raceway, for a special NASCAR demo arranged by Toyota.  Wrapped in a special TRD Livery, the pro-drift 86 and Ken Gushi gave NASCAR's Michael Waltrip a special full course ride.  The demo was a featured segment on the June 26th episode of NASCAR on Fox Sports 1. 

Shortly after this, the 86 was returned to it's 2016 Formula D livery and shipped back east across the border into Montreal, Canada for the very first international pro championship round.

Round 5 at the Autodrome Saint Eustache was a totally new circuit for both Ken Gushi and the GReddy Racing Team.  With little data to work with and rain on our first practice session, the team was learning the track with every run.   Although the course layout looks similar to that of Irwindale Speedway, it's main turn 1 outer wall is not in fact a perfect oval or banked.

 

By Friday's qualifying day, the weather was looking good and team was making good progress on tuning for the new track.  In Qualifying run one, Ken laid down another smooth run, landing him a score of 80.  In his qualifying run two, Ken seemed to have an overall better run with a better line, but still scored an80, placing him mid-pack.

But, with the aid of Ben our team spotter, Ken and the rest of the team fine tuned the 86 in the Top32 practice session to be a very competitive car for tandem battles.  This was shown in Gushi's first bracket battle against Kyle Mohn's 3rotor ND Miata.  Ken was able to keep close proximity on his chase run and a build a gap on his lead run, for the win.  (top 32 video clip)

The main 16 bracket was set up as on of the most anticipated rematches of the event.  Ken Gushi has had some excitingly close battles all season against SR by Toyota teammate, Ryan Tuerck in his version of 2JZ 86.  Ken keep Tuerck close from the start, but unfortunately a drive-line failure cause him to have to stop towards the end of the run.  This ended our competition at FD Canada, but it was a great learning experience for the team.    (16 bracket video clip)

The GReddy Racing Nexen Tire SR by Toyota 86 is now undergoing more updates and upgrades, to have an even stronger vehicle for Ken Gushi to close out the last 3 events of the season.  Ken still holds the 4th position in the Formula Drift Pro Championships as we move onto Rd.6 Evergreen Speedway, WA

Product Release - GReddy Racing Lug Nuts

GReddy Racing Lug Nuts are lightweight, high grade, hard-anodized, precision CNC 7075 aluminum alloy, wheel lug nuts. These metric fasteners are available in the most popular M12xP1.25 or M12xP1.5 threads, to fit most Asian imports.  They are designed with a 60 degree tapered cone seat required by aftermarket wheel brands.

The Short (L 40mm) close-ended style fastener features a knurled texture. This detail is ideal for starting the threads by hand and reducing the chances of stripped threads.  The GReddy Racing Lug Nuts fit 19mm sockets and have an overall width diameter of 25mm.  The durable, hard anodized black finish is accented by a laser-etched GReddy logo with thread size on the side and finished off with the GReddy Racing GR logo on the cap.  Packaged in sets of 4, makes it easy to order 4 packs for 4-lug bolt patterns and 5 packs for 5-lug bolt patterns.

     - The first batch arriving in mid-July.  We are accepting pre-orders on ShopGReddy.com now...

14401320      GReddy Racing Lug Nuts (4) Short/Closed M12xP1.25       MSRP $25.
(M12xP1.25 - most Nissan & late-model Subaru & FR-S/86)

14401350      GReddy Racing Lug Nuts (4) Short/Closed M12xP1.5         MSRP $25.
(M12xP1.5 - most Honda, Toyota, Mazda & Mitsubishi)

GReddy event coverage from Formula Drift FDNJ 2016

At the season halfway point, Ken Gushi and the GReddy Racing - Nexen Tires - SR by Toyota 86 moves back into 4th position of the 2016 Formula Drift Pro Championship with a 4th place finish at Wall Speedway, New Jersey.

The race week started off with a course change back to the 2013 style layout.  This move seemed to really tighten up the field during Friday's Qualifying sessions.  Ken laid down two smooth qualifying passes for a score of 81 and 82pts., netting him the number 11spot moving into Saturday's elimination brackets.







Ken's 1st opponent was number 22 qualifier, Juha Rintanen from Finland with his new 2JZ powered S15.  Ken lead with another smooth lead run and a close follow run for a Top 32 win...
 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqbmvykXRE0&feature=youtu.be&t=16m56s)





After the Formula Drift half-time break, Ken faced off with his SR by Toyota teammate, Ryan Teurck in a similarly built 2JZ-powered Toyota 86.  The two were so equally matched in the 16 bracket battle, it took a OMT (one more time battle) for the judges to award Ken the win.  Many fans commented that the battles between Gushi and Teurck were the best of the event...
 (https://youtu.be/QkICyzi3OSs?t=9m12s)

In the Great 8 round, Ken faced off against Matt Field in his V8 Supercharged S14.  Again Gushi runs a smooth and clean lead run, but Field pulls off an amazing close chase run.  The pressure was on Ken to keep close proximity.  Under the pressure, Field spins on the infield, handing the win to GReddy Racing - Nexen Tire - SR by Toyota Team...
 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QkICyzi3OSs&feature=youtu.be&t=15m11s)

The Final 4 finds Gitten vs Heilbrunn and Gushi vs. Forsberg.  This Semi-Finals match up against Chris Forsberg and his Nutritious injected V8 370Z, is a rematch from the previous round in Orlando.  Ken pushes extra hard for an aggressive chase run, but ends up running out of space off the bank in the transition, ending the night in 4th place.
 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-1LkTEkcdA&feature=youtu.be&t=14m1s)


The GReddy Racing - Nexen Tire - SR by Toyota 86 Team is happy to report, Ken Gushi still in the hunt for the 2016 Formula Drift Championship, with 4 rounds to go... in Montreal, Seattle, Fort Worth and Irwindale.

Going into the July 15-16. round 5, at Autodrome St. Eustache, Montreal, Canada, our SR by Toyota Team leads the Formula Drift Manufacture's Championship and our Nexen Tires Team leads the Formula Drift Tire Manufacture's Championship.

Technical partners: SR by Toyota, Nexen Tires, Rays Engineering/Gram Lights, KW Suspension, Wisefab, Wilwood, Rocket Bunny/Pandem, Turbo by Garrett, WPC, Supertech, OS Giken, APR Performance, Wilwood,  Ignition Projects, NGK Spark Plugs, Redline Oil, BC Brian Crower, Takata Bluemoon Performance,  Tuned by N8, Boost Brigade.

Round 4: The Gauntlet Event Results
  1. Gittin, Vaughn Monster Energy / Nitto Tire Ford Mustang RTR Winner
  2. Forsberg, Chris NOS Energy Drink / Hankook Tire Nissan 370Z 2nd Place
  3. Heilbrunn, Alex RTS Monster BMW M3 3rd Place
  4. Gushi, Ken GReddy Racing / Nexen Tire SR by Toyota 86 4th Place
  5. Moen, Kenny Team Boost Lock BMW E46 5th Place
  6. Aasbo, Fredric Rockstar Energy Drink / Nexen Tire SR by Toyota tC 6th Place
  7. Field, Matt Falken Tire / Driftcave Motorsports Nissan 240 7th Place
  8. Essa, Michael Loudmouth Exhaust / Achilles Tire BMW M3 8th Place
  9. Kearney, Dean Oracle Lighting Dodge Viper 9th Place
10. Yoshihara, Dai Falken Tire / Turn 14 Subaru BRZ 10th Place
11. Bakchis, Aurimas Ark Performance / Feal Suspension / Falken Hyundai Genesis 11th Place
12. Tuerck, Ryan Gumout / Nameless Performance / Hankook Tire SR by Toyota FR-S 12th Place
13. Nishida, Robbie Achilles Radial Infiniti G35 13th Place
14. Pawlak, Justin Roush Performance Ford Mustang 14th Place
15. Bluss, Kristaps HGK / Mast / Motul / Achilles BME E46 15th Place
16. Wang, Forrest Get Nuts Lab / Hankook Tire Nissan 240 16th Place

2016 Formula DRIFT Championship Presented by BlackVue Standings After 3 Events
  1. Gittin, Vaughn Monster Energy / Nitto Tire Ford Mustang RTR 298.00 Points
  2. Aasbo, Fredric Rockstar Energy Drink / Nexen Tire SR by Toyota tC 258.00 Points 
  3. Forsberg, Chris NOS Energy Drink / Hankook Tire Nissan 370Z 252.00 Points 
  4. Gushi, Ken GReddy Racing / Nexen Tire SR by Toyota 86  200.00 Points

 2016 Manufacturer Championship Standings After 4 Events 
  1. SR by Toyota 459.00 Points 
  2. Ford 404.00 Points 
  3. Nissan 339.00 Points 
  4. BMW 297.00 Points 
  5. Mazda 171.00 Points 
  6. Chevrolet 169.00 Points 
  7. Dodge 119.00 Points 
  8. Infiniti 102.00 Points
  9. Lexus  70.00 Points 

2016 Tire Championship Standings After 4 Events 
  1. Nexen 536.00 Points 
  2. Falken 456.00 Points 
  3. Nitto 450.00 Points 
  4. Hankook 425.00 Points 
  5. Achilles 383.00 Points 
  7. GT Radial 229.00 Points

GReddy event coverage from Formula Drift FDFL 2016

Ken Gushi and the GReddy Racing - Nexen Tires - SR by Toyota 86 Team fought the Orlando heat on their way to a Formula Drift 6th place finish in round 3 of the Formula Drift Pro Championships (and moving back to 6th in the championship with 5rounds to go...)

Looking to repeat, his Top Qualifying result from 2015, Ken laid down a solid first Qualifying pass, netting 89pts, but as trying to better the second run, he ended up making contact with the high speed banked wall.  

After an evening of repairs, the team got the SR by Toyota 86 back to 100% for the 32 bracket of eliminations.  In the first battle on Saturday, Ken drove a smooth and clean lead run which made for  an exciting battle with "Mad Mike's" twin turbo 4rotor MX5 chasing.  In the end, a tire de-beading incident ended the day for the Miata, resulting in a solo 2nd run and easy win for the GReddy Racing Team.

Network A video

During the Formula Drift halftime break, Ken signed autographs and displayed the new Boost Brigade line to the Orlando fans.  Two lucky fans even won the damaged Gram Lights 57Transcend wheels off the 86, in the Friday qualifying run crash.  

The 16 bracket eliminations matched up Gushi vs Bakchis's LS-power Genesis.  After a split decision, Ken upped his smooth performance in the OMT battles with a more aggressive line on the bank and added better proximity to take the win.

The 3rd round in the Formula Drift Great8 brought another tough match-up.  2014 series champion, Forsberg and his V8 NOS powered 370Z.  Again the battles were very close, but a small mistake taking out the 2nd clip on the chase run was enough to open up a gap on the infield. 

For more photos from FDFL and Ken's personal recap, see:
https://www.facebook.com/kengushi/posts/10154901576698222


The next event is just around the corner,
Formula Drift Wall Speedway, #FDNJ - June 17-18

Next event: Formula Drift Rd.3

Ken Gushi and the GReddy Racing - Nexen Tire - SR by Toyota 86 will be back in action June, 3rd and 4th for Formula Drift Rd.3 - Orlando Speedworld.

http://www.formulad.com/live

TENTATIVE SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

Friday, June 3, 2016

8:00am - 7:00pm - WILL CALL: Open for credential pick up - Will Call Tent
9:00am - 10:00am - SETUP: Sponsors/teams/vendors - Venue
9:30am - 10:15am - PRO: Mandatory Drivers Meeting - FD HQ
10:00am - 7:30pm - BOX OFFICE - Box Office
10:15am - 10:45am - MEDIA: Mandatory Meeting for ALL 'Hot Area' Access Credential Holders - FD HQ
10:30am - 12:30pm - PRO: Open Practice - Track
11:00am - 9:00pm - GATES OPEN TO PUBLIC - Venue
12:45pm - 3:45pm - PRO: Qualifying: All Drivers - Track
3:45pm - 4:30pm - PRO: Autograph Signing Session - TBA
5:00pm - 6:00pm - PRO 2: Practice - Track
6:15pm - 6:30pm - PRO 2: National Anthem / Opening Ceremonies - Track
6:45pm - 8:30pm - PRO 2: Top 16 Competition - Track
8:30pm - 9:00pm - PRO 2: Trophy Ceremony & Closing
10:00pm - 8:00am - CLEAR VENUE

Saturday, June 4, 2016 - Main Event

9:00am - 5:00pm - WILL CALL: Open for credential pick up - Will Call Tent
10:00am - VENUE OPEN: Credential Holders Only - Venue
10:00am - 6:00pm - BOX OFFICE HOURS - Box Office
11:00am - 11:30am - PRO: Mandatory Drivers Meeting - FD HQ
11:00am - 9:00pm - GATES OPEN TO PUBLIC - Venue
11:30am - 12:00pm - MEDIA: Mandatory Meeting for ALL 'Hot Area' Access Credential Holders - FD HQ
12:00pm - 1:30pm - PRO: Open Practice - Top 32 - Track
1:40pm - 3:30pm - PRO: Main Competition - Round of 32 - Track
3:30pm - 5:00pm - HALF TIME BREAK
4:00pm - 5:00pm - VIP EXPERIENCE: Track Walk - TBA
5:00pm - 5:30pm - NATIONAL ANTHEM / OPENING CEREMONIES - Track
5:30pm - 7:00pm - PRO: Main Competition - Round of 16 to Finals - Track
7:00pm - 7:30pm - TROPHY CEREMONY & CLOSING 

Take a look back at 2015 in Orlando:

Sung Kang eplains the Fugu Z Build

Automotive enthusiasts and "Fast and Furious" franchise star, Sung Kang explains to SEMA Chairman, Wade Kawasaki, the story behind his GReddy-built Fugu Z project in the 2015 SEMA Show main lobby.  The FuguZ was awarded the 2015 Gran Turismo Award "Best of Show"

WADE_SUNG_v1_h264 from Lucid on Vimeo.
 

GReddy event coverage from Formula Drift FDATL 2016

Ken Gushi and the GReddy Racing - SR by Toyota Team has definitely had our share of highs and lows over the years at Road Atlanta.

Last year the Formula Drift event in Atlanta was one of our all time highs, with our first Team Podium with Ken.   It really showed the strength of the driver, team and car, having to fight multiple one more time (OMT) battles with tough competitors, on the way to a 2nd place finish.  It began a string of top qualifiers and podium finishes over the rest of the 2015 Season and Rd.1 this season.  (Watch Last Years SR by Toyota Driven 2 Drift recap of FDATL 2015.) 

Unfortunately, Round 2 in Atlanta this year, did not go as well.  Read below and hear first hand from Ken, how the race week unfolded...


Luckily with one extra round this season, and a big shake up between Rd1 and Rd2 finishers, the championship race is still a wide open. (Formula Drift Post Show Video)


FDATL - Top32 Video Clip - Gushi Lead Run with Essa.
http://formuladrift.networka.com/amazing-chase-at-michaelessa-win-vs-at-kengushi-top-32-number-fdatl-2nd-run-formulad-dot-com/live

Look for Gushi and the GReddy Racing - Nexen Tire - SR by Toyota 86 Team to regroup and comeback harder then ever for Rd.3, Orlando Speedworld, FL - June 3-4

Ken Gushi s personal event recap: "Formula Drift Atlanta was a tough break for our team. We started the weekend on Thursday with open practice and for some reason, I could not get the car to rotate properly from In-Clip 1 to OuterZone 1. I began addressing the issue by making rebump adjustments on the KW coilovers. A few clicks out and it began to show improvements. But then I felt like now it was rotating a bit too slow. So I made a couple changes on the compression side. It was better.... I think. Thursday's open practice ended with a lack of confidence going into Friday's qualifying.
My strategy for Qualifying was to mirror the same line and angle as last year but in lap one, I threw the car in too aggressive into outer zone 2 and ended up running short towards the latter half the zone. 76. Second lap, I decided to tone down a little at outer zone 2 and ended up running a bit timid but with a cleaner conservative line. 79. We were slotted 19th in the top 32 battle, matched up with Mike Essa. I haven't scored so low in a qualifying round since the first round of 2015. This is not a very good feeling nor was it any form of a confidence boost.
Saturday morning, I decided to have the rear springs swapped to a softer rate with hopes of increasing rear grip. I don't know if that was a smart move, but I will get into that later.
During practice that morning, the car felt great up front, but when chasing, I couldn't get the car to hook up accelerating into outer zone 1. No matter who I chased, I would get gapped at outer zone 1 going up-hill. At this point, I was lost with the rear suspension set-up. I didn't know which way to go and we were running out of time. My top 32 battle against Mike was a disaster since my worst fears became a reality. Mike was split-second faster to get back on throttle after initiation, and I had a hard time finding grip going uphill towards outer zone 2. To make things worse, the steering wheel locked at full-lock braking into outer zone 2. It would have been okay if I was to get back on throttle, but was in no shape or form to do that at that moment. We both drove past the finish line with about a 4 car gap. Advantage Mike.
On my lead lap, I drove my absolute best to throw as much angle and smoke as I could but I was not able to shake him off. My transition from outer zone 1 to outer zone 2 was the best chance I had to throw him off. Instead of braking into outer zone 2, I decided to throw it in backwards and use angle and throttle to decel, but no luck. The was my absolute best run of the weekend and it came a little too late.
We were knocked out and as a result, we sit 11th in the championship ranking with 6 rounds left. Do we still have room to make up points and take the fight to the top? Absolutely. We will come back in Orlando standing on the podium."

Formula Drift Rd.2 Atlanta - May 6-7

Ken Gushi and the GReddy Racing - Nexen Tire - SR by Toyota 86 Team will begin our east coast leg of the 2016 Formula Drift Pro Championships this weekend, May 6th and 7th at Road Atlanta, GA. and we are bring along our full Boost Brigade line!

Be sure to watch it live, Friday & Saturday
http://www.formulad.com/live

 
Formula Drift video teaser:

 
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS 

Friday, May 6, 2016 
7:00am – VENUE OPEN: Credential Holders Only – Venue 
7:00am – 9:45pm – BOX OFFICE HOURS – Box Office 
10:00am – 9:00pm – WILL CALL: Open for credential pick up – Will Call Tent 
1:30pm – 3:30pm – PRO: Open Practice – Track 
3:45pm – 6:45pm – PRO: Qualifying: All Drivers – Track 
6:45pm – 7:30pm – PRO: Autograph Signing Session – TBA 
7:00pm – 8:00pm – PRO 2: Practice – Track 
8:15pm – 8:30pm – PRO 2: National Anthem / Opening Ceremonies – Track 
8:45pm – 10:30pm – PRO 2: Top 16 Competition – Track 
10:30pm – 11:00pm – PRO 2: Trophy Ceremony & Closing 


Saturday, May 7, 2016 - Main Event 
7:00am – 9:00pm – BOX OFFICE HOURS – Box Office  
7:00am – VENUE OPEN: Credential Holders Only – Venue 
10:00am – 8:00pm – WILL CALL: Open for credential pick up – Will Call Tent 
2:30pm – 4:00pm – PRO: Open Practice – Top 32 – Track 
4:10pm – 6:00pm – PRO: Main Competition - Round of 32 – Track 
6:00pm – 7:30pm – HALF TIME BREAK 
6:30pm – 7:30pm – VIP EXPERIENCE: Track Walk – TBA 
7:30pm – 8:00pm – NATIONAL ANTHEM / OPENING CEREMONIES – Track  
8:00pm – 10:00pm – PRO: Main Competition - Round of 16 to Finals – Track 
10:00pm – 10:30pm – TROPHY CEREMONY & CLOSING