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American Star Drifter Lights up UK Soil

One of the world’s best drifters, Ryan Tuerck, was in the UK in August, showing off his skills at the 4th round of the Maxxis British Drift Championship (BDC) at Lydden Hill in Kent. The flamboyant American was jetted in by Maxxis to link up with current British Drift Championship title holders Team Japspeed, with the aim of boosting the global appeal of a motorsport that is already rapidly growing in popularity.

Ryan started drifting back in 2002, at a time when the UK and USA were first being introduced to this new type of motorsport. He came across it by accident, but quickly picked up the necessary skills by sliding around in a Mustang with his brother. Not long after that he bought a Nissan 200SX, competed in his first competition in 2003, and has since become one of the top drifters in the US.

Before competing in the 4th round of the BDC, Ryan had the chance to try out Team Japspeed’s Lexus and get to grips with right-hand drive at Bovingdon Airfield. Ryan’s weekend was definitely one to remember, as he confirms:  “I was extremely excited to come to the UK and drift on a new track with some new competition. The weekend has its ups and downs for me. The track was extremely fun and seeing it was the first time I had competed in a right-hand drive car, I got used to it fairly quickly and made it into the top 16, qualifying 11th. Unfortunately, during my first tandem round, I mis-shifted the transmission and my opponent was able to stretch a big gap on me throughout the lap, forcing me out of the competition.”

“Drifting cars are all so different, you never know what’s going to happen. Team Japspeed’s Lexus has a good foundation to be a good competitive car, but needs a few changes to get it into a strong competitive level. The Toyota Scion FRS that I compete in, in the Formula Drift is five years ahead of where the IS 200 is currently set up.

“I have competed in many different events all over the world, and have recently come back from Gatebil in Norway – which is the best drifting festival of all time. It was an event like no other. Rudskogen was the coolest track I have drifted on, with amazing turns and elevation changes. The whole thing really blew me away.

“The BDC seems to be doing very well, they have a healthy amount of talented drivers that are dedicated to the series and some very dedicated people behind the scenes, growing the sport in the right direction. Lydden Hill was a good track to compete on and proved to display all of the driver’s skills very well, both in qualifying and in tandem. Whilst in the UK, I really enjoyed competing at the BDC, Team Japspeed were a pleasure to work with and I hope to be able to come over again in the near future.”

With drifting gaining notoriety around the world and the Maxxis sponsored British Drift Championship in full swing, the visit was a memorable one, as Ryan confirms: “My visit to the UK was amazing. This is my first time here and thanks to Amy at Maxxis Tyres I was able to do all of the tourist stuff in London as well as have a proper night out with friends. My highlight of the trip was being able to compete in a new car with new competitors in a new series. Thanks again to Japspeed and Maxxis Tyres for the opportunity. I hope to come back again in the future.”