Rhys Millen Wins Formula Drift Title in his GTO!

[Ming]

Drifting Championship Win for Rhys Millen's Formula Drift GTO
August 28, 2005
Steven Herbert, From Times Staff and Wire Reports
Shav Glick - Motor Sports
LATimes.com



Millen Loses final bout but Gets Drift Title

Formula Drift, the Japanese motor sport showcases two cars sliding through corners at high speed, tires squealing and smoking, as close together as their drivers' talents — and nerve — allow.

Rhys Millen, a New Zealand native who lives in San Juan Capistrano and runs a performance-parts manufacturing plant in Huntington Beach, held an 11-point lead after events in New Jersey, Atlanta, Houston, Sears Point, Calif., and Chicago — all sellouts.

Prior to the event - "We want to rock the boat and make General Motors the first domestic manufacturer to win in an import-oriented series with a V-8-powered car," said Millen, 32, who drives a Pontiac GTO, "slightly modified for drifting."

Millen, better known as a rally driver before he discovered drifting, comes from a family of racers. His father Rod holds the unlimited speed record for the Pikes Peak hill climb, and his uncle Steve won numerous endurance sports car races. Rhys (pronounced Reece) also was a Pikes Peak class champion several times.

"It was rallying, really, which turned me toward drifting," the younger Millen said. "I found it to be an extension of rallying. The sports carry similar driving skills, disciplines and demands for consistency while in a controlled environment."

Rhys Millen was having a great night until the final of Saturday night's Formula Drift competition at Irwindale Speedway.

Millen won his first three tandems and appeared headed toward victory in the final when his Pontiac GTO clipped a pylon. In a sport in which the winner is based on judges who evaluate drivers' execution and style, the final against Chris Forsberg was ruled too close to call and a runoff was ordered.

In the runoff, the steering on Millen's car locked going into a corner on the first run, causing it to go into quite a dramatic angle, he said.

After the same thing happened on the next corner, Millen said that rather than risk the possibility of losing control of the car and crashing into a wall, he decided to back off on the second run, giving Forsberg, who lives in Burbank, his first victory.

"We've been struggling with overheating temperatures on our power steering," said Millen, whose season-long championship was his first in 13 years of racing, mainly in rallies. "We run a lot of trick little bits to make the car perform the way we see it do."

Millen was the top qualifier and earned the championship of the circuit, in which drivers maneuver their cars into controlled sideways slides at high speeds through a marked course, when Samuel Hubinette was eliminated in the quarterfinals. Hubinette was second in the standings before Saturday.

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Photo from Round 5:

[johnd89]

great!
tough life for those rear tires-hehe-

[el es juan]

Beautiful!!

A Japanese sport was dominated by an American V8 vehicle.

Thats exactly what the enthusiants DID NOT want.

I remember watching the first round at Irwindale last year, and everyone, and I mean everyone, was booing when Millen was introduced.

Im glad to see the haters eat their words.

[atomicshark]

Awesome. Hopefully this will give Pontiac and the GTO even more performance credibility.

[Boost]

Originally Posted by el es juan

Beautiful!!

A Japanese sport was dominated by an American V8 vehicle.

Thats exactly what the enthusiants DID NOT want.

I remember watching the first round at Irwindale last year, and everyone, and I mean everyone, was booing when Millen was introduced.

Im glad to see the haters eat their words.

You mean ricers......i can't wait for US D1

Oride Supra Millen GTO on the same track...........i hope i don't cry.......sniff.......

[Butz]

this is a slap on the face of all the import sack riders

[Snafu_SS]

seein that picture just makes me want a GTO even more....it really deserves soo much more credit than it gets...it doesnt look THAT boring and it shouldnt matter so much...the first goat looked like a sleeper as well but really moved when you pushed that peddle down!!

im very happy to see GM not getting left behind in the times and really trying to get into new fields with import cars. GM has such a great racing history and this just continues it on!

[ced8]

I'm so happy that Rhys won.. he lost a close one to Ken Gushi's Mustang here in Houston and lost in LA I think on a silly decision by the judges. (his one tire went over the edge but the judges claimed both tires went off and he was DQ).

Most people won't consider drifting anything significant but it is visually appealing and takes some amount of skill..

[gacSTclass]

It adds glow to Pontiac's motorsports halo and gives them credibility with the Import guys. Great job Rhys!

[jwrebholz]

A little turnabout is fair play, as far as I'm concerned. The Japanese have been taking other people's stuff and beating them with it for years (electronics, steel, cars, take your pick really)--it's about time someone beat them at their own game.

[Sparta]

Rhys is awesome at the sport. If you ever saw how his GTO handles in drifts, it's insane

[HEVguy]

Millen rocks!

[Ming]

"We want to rock the boat and make General Motors the first domestic manufacturer to win in an import-oriented series with a V-8-powered car,"

All I can say is that I hope GM gets this as much as Millen and his race team does.

[Diognes56]

I love that car . They should make a production special edition of that car (without the paint scheme though), lowered with larger rims and a supercharged version of the LS2 and that nose, heck call it the Rhys Millen Edition. That would be so sweet.

David

[gmsickofan]

That would rock. I would be seriously tempted.