Shanahan wins Formula DRIFT PRO Round 6 in Seattle

After the adventure of two new tracks at the previous Rounds, the Formula DRIFT PRO Championship returned to Evergreen Speedway for Round 6; a track that’s been on the schedule for 21 of the series’ 23-year history.

A number of minor changes were made to the course, such as shortening the entry into the first turn by 30 feet, and running in the evening under floodlights, but otherwise it was business as usual throughout the highly competitive weekend.

PRO QUALIFYING

The return to a traditional two-run Qualifying format for 2026 has meant fans again experienced the thrill of an intense contest that wasn’t decided until the very last attempt when five-time and reigning Champion James Deane (Ireland) put his O'Reilly / Pennzoil Ford Mustang RTR Spec 5-FD into first place. 

It was Branden Sorensen (USA) who showed the early form, claiming the lead on his first run in the Sorensen Motorsports / Quad Lock BMW. Thanks to his adherence to the correct line through each of the five Zones and the highest Style points of the session, he took the lead with a score of 86.36 points. 

It wasn’t until the dying minutes of Qualifying that Conor Shanahan (Ireland) usurped Sorensen by the narrowest margin. The Irishman’s 86.4-point score put the Red Bull / GT Radial / JYR Toyota GT86 in pole position, although his elation was short-lived as Deane scored 87.8 points minutes later. 

Formula DRIFT PRO Qualifying utilizes UDSM (Universal Drift Scoring Method) technology from Race Data Labs. The telemetry and data system has automated the objective aspects of scoring individual qualifying runs with up to 80% of each PRO driver’s Qualifying score for drift Line and car Angle quantified and scored entirely by UDSM. Driving Style – the remaining 20% of the Qualifying score – continues to be assessed and awarded by the existing panel of three Formula DRIFT judges. It was this judging format that saw Deane achieve a perfect 40-point score for drift Angle and near-perfect for Line. 

With 31 drivers Qualifying for the Top 32 Competition places, Deane’s success meant he earned a Bye Run into the Top 16 heats, giving him a welcome advantage.

Aurimas “Odi” Bakchis (Lithuania), who occupied second in the 2026 title chase coming into Seattle, finished fifth with 81.46 points in the Feal Suspension / GT Radial / Subimods Subaru BRZ. While Jack Shanahan (Ireland) – who occupied third – finished fourth with 83.7 points driving the Pulsar Turbos E82 BMW.

Shinji Minowa (Japan) – a drift legend with more than 20 years of experience – was substituting for his son Hiroya at Round 6, driving his Enjuku Racing / BC Racing / GT Radial / JYR Toyota GT86. Shinji scored 39.83 points and qualified for his first Formula DRIFT round while Hiroya continued to participate in the World Rally Championship Challenge Program. We still hope to see Hiroya compete in FD PRO this season, but it was an honor to welcome his father to Seattle.

The leading Rookie driver was Cole Richards (USA) who qualified seventh in the Richards Racing Toyota GT86, scoring 80.96 points.

PRO COMPETITION

A capacity crowd crammed the grandstands to witness the first Formula DRIFT night event at Evergreen Speedway. As always, it was a night of highs and lows, with early departures from the Top 32 heats including “Odi” Bakchis who was forced to retire with engine problems. Odi’s frustration was compounded by losing his second place in the Championship standings and dropping to fifth.

Veteran driver Chris Forsberg (USA) was knocked out of the Top 32 by Rookie Cole Richards. The surprise result advanced  Richards into the Top 16, where he faced fellow Rookie Cody Buchanan (USA) driving the Life Wide Open / Reboot Energy 350Z. Both drivers put everything on the line and the judges couldn’t separate them, so requested they repeat the heat in a One More Time battle. Ultimately, a broken handbrake prevented Richards from transitioning into Zone 3, ending his aspirations. He’d finish the night in tenth overall, maintaining a 31-point lead over Buchanan in the 2026 Rookie title chase. Buchanan would lose to Conor Shanahan (Ireland) in the Top 8 heats, marking his best ever FD PRO finish in eighth place.

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

Moving into the Top 16 heats, we lost the five-time, reigning and current FD PRO Championship points leader James Deane after a tough battle with Matt Field (USA). The driver of the RTR Mustang transitioned late and missed Zone 3, resulting in Field taking the win. And yet despite the loss, Deane retained the PRO Championship lead but with a fragile five-point margin.

Jack Shanahan was ejected from the Top 8 by Fredric Aasbo (Norway) on his way to the Round 6 Final. It was a mistake in Zone 5 that saw the hard-charging Shanahan over-rotate his BMW as he pressured Aasbo. Shanahan would place fifth on the night, which dropped him from third to fourth overall.

Arriving at the Final 4, Matt Field was ejected by Aasbo. The driver of the Borla Performance / GT Radial / Heat Wave Visual / Logitech / Liqui Moly Corvette put up a valiant defense but the Norwegian appeared to drive a better chase run. However, the result meant Field rose from 12th to eighth in the title race after disappointing results from previous rounds.

Conversely, Branden Sorensen has been having the best season of his young life. He advanced to the Final 4 to meet Conor Shanahan but wasn’t about to submit to the Irishman. In one of the closest contests of the night, the pair ran four times in an epic One More Time confrontation. Both drivers recorded 100% proximity throughout the four runs: a score awarded by the Race Data Labs UDSM vehicle telemetry system. To achieve that figure, both drivers had to remain within 2ft of the opponent’s car for the duration of the run. A single mistake by Sorensen as he transitioned into Zone 3 meant the 22 year-old claimed third place on the night and reclaimed third in the Championship standings.

That left Conor Shanahan and Fredric Aasbo to fight for the top step of the podium in a titanic Final. With both drivers running on the ragged edge, the judges ruled in favor of the Irishman in the JYR Toyota GT86 but it came down to the smallest errors. It had been an incredible performance by Shanahan, who intimidated his opponents all night. The win bumped him from fifth in the title race to second, with only a five-point deficit from the lead.

“What a night!” Shanahan exclaimed after the podium ceremony. “There was an insanely high-level of driving tonight, with some of the best battles I’ve ever seen in FD. That made it a tough night and difficult to keep your composure when you’re running so hard, but I’m really proud of Jerry Yang Racing who delivered an incredible car this weekend. It gave me the second win and third podium of the year. And while James [Deane] will always be a hard man to beat, I come here to win every Round and that mindset will never change. That’s the plan going into Vegas and then to Long Beach. I’m excited to see what we can do and thanks to everybody who makes it happen for me.”

For Aasbo, it was a powerful return to form that reminded everybody the three-time FD PRO Champ can’t be overlooked. After dropping to an uncharacteristic seventh overall, his second place in Seattle nudged him to sixth and undoubtedly inspired him to push hard to the season finale in Long Beach in October.

“Round 6 of the 2026 Formula DRIFT Championship stands next to Round 4 in Connecticut as one of the best events of the year, especially off the back of a really tough, cancelled Round 5 in Indy,” said Ryan Sage, Formula DRIFT President. “The Championship is still wide open and we watched Matt Field take out James Deane in the Top 16. We also have to recognize that Branden Sorensen has gained elite status among the current drivers who push hard for every win. We also saw a resurgent Fredric Aasbo capture a podium. But it was Conor Shanahan’s consistency and awesome driving that deserved the win tonight at Evergreen Speedway in front of a capacity crowd and sets up an exciting run to the Final Round in Long Beach.”

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