Conor Shanahan bests Aasbo at Seattle Formula DRIFT

Fredric Aasbo and Conor Shanahan met in a titanic Final after a night of the closest drift action imaginable in the first Formula DRIFT night event at Evergreen Speedway in the 21 years the series has been using the Seattle track.

The judges ruled in favor of the Irishman in the Red Bull / GT Radial / JYR Toyota GT86 on the basis of fewer faults. It was an incredible performance by Shanahan, who intimidated his opponents all night. The win bumped him from fifth in the title race to second.

For Aasbo, it was a powerful return to form that reminded everybody the three-time champ can’t be overlooked. After dropping to an uncharacteristic seventh overall, his second place in Seattle nudged him to sixth.

Early departures from the Top 32 heats included “Odi” Bakchis, who retired his Feal Suspension / GT Radial / Subimods Subaru BRZ with engine problems and would lose his second place in the standings, dropping to fifth.

Veteran driver Chris Forsberg was knocked out of the Top 32 by rookie Cole Richards driving the Richards Racing Toyota GT86. Richards would finish 10th.

Another Top 32 casualty was local driver Dylan Hughes. In the chase position, his Royal Purple Synthetic Oil / GT Radial / 2JZ-powered BMW T-boned the borrowed BMW driven by Daniel Stuke. Both drivers had run wide in Zone 2 and Hughes failed to transition into Zone 3, resulting in the collision.

In the Top 16 the event lost the five-time, reigning and current FD PRO championship points leader James Deane after a tough battle with Matt Field. The driver of the O'Reilly / Pennzoil Ford Mustang RTR Spec 5-FD transitioned late and missed Zone 3, resulting in Field taking the win. Despite the loss, Deane retained the PRO Championship lead with a reduced five-point lead.

In a head-to-head rookie battle, Richards was eliminated from the Top 16 by Cody Buchanan driving the Life Wide Open / Reboot Energy 350Z after a One More Time battle, which saw Richards lose his handbrake, preventing him from transitioning into Zone 3. Richards continues to lead the 2026 Rookie title chase while Buchanan would lose to Conor Shanahan in the Top 8 heats, marking Buchanan's best ever FD PRO finish in eighth place.

Jack Shanahan was ejected from the Top 8 by Aasbo on his way to the Round 6 Final. It was a mistake in Zone 5 that saw Shanahan over-rotate his Pulsar Turbos E82 BMW. He would place fifth on the night and drop from third to fourth overall.

Field was defeated by Aasbo from the Final 4. The driver of the Borla Performance / GT Radial / Heat Wave Visual / Logitech / Liqui Moly Corvette put up a valiant defense and lost in a close call. Field rose from 12th to eighth in the title race.

Branden Sorensen is having the best season of his life in the Sorensen Motorsports / Quad Lock BMW. He was knocked out of the Final 4 by Conor Shanahan after an epic One More Time confrontation. Both drivers recorded 100% proximity throughout their four runs: a figure awarded by the Race Data Labs UDSM system that provides vehicle telemetry. To achieve that number, both drivers had to remain within 2ft of the opponent's car for the duration of the run. Sorensen’s third place means he climbed from fourth to third in the standings.

In the 2026 Formula DRIFT Auto Cup, Ford continues to lead, while GT Radial maintained its lead in the FD Tire Cup.

Round 7 of the Formula DRIFT PRO Championship and the Final Round 4 of the Link ECU PROSPEC Championship will take place at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sept. 24-26.