Fredric: Well, thank you! This has actually been in the works for a long time. I met the RS-R executives in Abu Dhabi in 2011. We won the Formula Drift Invitational over there in our very basic Japan Auto Toyota Supra, and they complemented our performance out there. Since then, we've been talking and trying to work something out together.

GSS: A NASCAR V8 motor is one of the crazier engine conversions we have heard of, have you had much time behind the wheel? what are your thoughts on its performance for drifting?

Fredric: I got to test the car at Suzuka Twin Circuit in Japan in February and it's such a different animal to what I'm used to. The response and throttle linearity is second to none, and RS-R really did their homework by putting in a milder cam which makes it better suited for drifting. Some of RS-R's changes over a typical NASCAR Nationwide motor setup has actually trickled down from my american team Papadakis Racing's V8 program in Formula Drift back in '09 and '10, so this is really a family get together sort of project.

GSS: We understand you’ll be sharing the car with Max Orido for this season of FD Asia, are you worried about returning the car with any scratches after its debut here on the slopes of the Calderpark Thunder Dome or will we get to see you driving as hard as you can in some amazing battles?

Fredric: Well, scratching is one thing but finishing the event is another - scratches are fine as long as they help you move forward and don't take you out. As of right now I know very little about the course and how it's set up, and RS-R has also carried out several changes since I drove the car in February. I am not worried about going hard, but I need to be able to work into it and I can't wait to give it my all trying to tame this animal!

GSS: You have gone from stride to stride, driving alongside some of the world’s best and picked up some incredible sponsors along the way. Can you tell us about the first time you realised you made the ‘big’ league?

Fredric: It's hard to pick one single event, because it's been such a step by step progress. Taking out past champions in our first Formula Drift rookie events was huge for us, and earning the Rookie of the Year title after competing at only 5 out of 7 events was also an incredible dream come true. But, it's the small things that matter the most, and the times where struggle hard and then are able to somehow pull out of it make for the best memories.

GSS: Being only 27 years old you still have many years ahead of you and your career, what’s next? Any big plans ahead?

Fredric: The big goal is obviously to win championships, and I have a lot left to learn. But along the way, I do my best to work closely with partners and sponsors and generate new opportunities for all of us. It's been extremely cool to see how different cultures work and what's really going on behind the scenes...

GSS: So when you’re not behind the wheel at one of the many drift comps of the year, where would we find you? How do you unwind?

Fredric: I hit the lakes with my buddies, or fire up the BBQ. I spend my offseason in Norway and it's very important for me to spend some quality time with my old buddies, and winter time, we usually go up in the mountain passes or on the frozen lakes and drift, board, ski and whatever else is fun. I feel like I get to see a lot of contrasts and that makes me feel very lucky.

GSS: With some inspiration from the “no expense spared” RS-R GT86 what would your ultimate drift or street car build be? what’s your idea of the ‘perfect’ car?

Fredric: Hm, that's tricky. I think the perfect road car for a guy like me would be a new, fifth gen Supra...

GSS: Have you been given any hot tips on any of the local or NZ based drivers competing here in Melbourne? Who’ll be on your radar?

Fredric: I've been following the D1NZ and Drift Australia series back in the days, and I know a lot of the ADGP are extremely competitive and fantastic tandem drivers. My Speedhunters team mate Mad Mike is coming over, which will be a great warm-up for our Speedhunters European Drift Tour. I am sincerely looking forward to coming to Australia for the first time, meeting everyone and mixing up on the track! See ya down under!!

Thanks for your time Fredric and we look forward to no only seeing you but hearing your car this weekend!

To purchase tickets for the event simply follow this link http://www.ticketmaster.com.au/Australian-Drifting-Grand-Prix-tickets/
For more details on the event head to the Australian Drifting GP site – http://trackbattle.com.au/adgp/
For more info on the drivers check out the Formula Drift Asia site – http://www.formuladriftasia.com/

This is the schedule for Sundays action, seriously if you’re only remotely interested in drifting this is the event to see!!
Thanks for reading,
– Gwyn.
Photos courtesy of Cheryl Tay and FD Asia

Now back to the drifting!

Aggy tearing it up.

A well executed tandem entry from Tony.

To wrap up, Track Battle put on a fantastic event with world class drifters & drivers combating the elements of the weather over the course of the 3 days. I’d like to extend a big thanks to Amy Boatwright and Yoshi Abey and the rest of the ADGP Crew for allowing Gripshiftslide to get nice and close to the action over the weekend.
Podium finishes and pics will be up soon.
Thanks for looking.
P.S. Western Australia, you’ve got a great few days of drifting coming your way!
-David

The speed down the straight was insane for such a small course, I was quite nervous on the other end of the camera.

Simon Michelmore and Declan Walsh going door to door, top work boys!

The boys from Insane Drifters had the crowd begging for more, a really competitive crew!

Loved this tastefully sticker bombed S13.

Christian Pickering tearing up the straight section near the finish line.

Tark’s R32 looking a little damaged after an intense battle, still drifting all the way through the finish line. Great work!

Aggess from Insane Drifters, great driving all day. Could not fault it once.

Nigel heading out for a run.

The smoke was ruining all the photos in the morning, thankfully the wind picked up later in the day.

One of my favorite cars of the day, such a good looking car both on & off the track.

Luke Fink doing what he does best, as the former 2009 Drift Australia Champion and 2010 JDM ALLSTARS Championship winner.
The crowd had all eyes on Fink.

The heart stopping run between Nigel and Luke. After some incredible racing from both drivers and a few re-runs later, Luke Fink took the win.
Seriously good driving boys, you were both the crowd favorites so it was a shame seeing Nigel out so early.

Nigel looking pretty happy with his car performing so well all day, run after run.

Fink rushed over to thank Nigel and his family after the battle, it was so close!!

Both drivers seemed to be very excited after the run, having a good chat about the battle corner for corner.

This sign was getting a lot of attention all day, some of the drivers were more than happy to oblige.

Matt Hambridge tapping the wing.

Nic Wilson wins the award for getting closer then any one else, unfortunately he’ll need some love from his panel beater to get the car back up to its former glory.

One of my favorite shots from the day, Tom Monkhouse ripping his wing off right in front of the judges.

These boys banded together in the freestyle session, so much win!

I couldn’t believe how close these guys were getting in the corners, they ended up touching through the rest of the corner without spinning!

I really enjoyed taking photos of the tight course by the end of the day, for some of the media it was proving difficult to get the shots they wanted.

Loved the sound of this Skyline.

These boys had so many re-runs. Quality driving from Andrew and Christian had the judges working hard to choose a winner.

Calder Thunderdome looked like the set for a post apocalyptic movie, Mad Max 4 – Return of  Thunderdome anyone?

Aggess new trick, boot release during the corner.

This Cefiro was a solid performer getting nice and close to everyone and everything!

Aggess having some fun mid-drift.

Papa from Insane Drifters making a little bit of smoke.

Nigel using every last bit of his tyres in the expression session.

Sometimes things didn’t go according to plan, lucky the barriers aren’t that solid.

And the award for the loudest car on track goes to…  Matt ‘redneckdrifter’ Hambridge’s R33! It was stupidly loud!!

Soooo close!

Luckily Christian manged to stop as quickly as he did. He managed to drive his Silvia away with no mechanical damage, he now has a pretty long shopping list to get his car looking pretty again though.

This 180SX was sporting a fresh new paint job for the event, thanks to creatd motorsports.

Nigel riding the wall like a boss!

This 200SX was looking so clean in the morning, tough day was tough…

Andrew looking pretty pleased with his new wineglass.

Great effort from the top three, 1st Luke Fink, 2nd Tarquin Van Rooyen and 3rd Andrew Paraskevas.

Luke getting a kiss and a cuddle from his girlfriend, I don’t think he really cared about the trophy anymore.

What a great way to end the day with Andrew standing on his 180SX after a massive burnout to celebrate third place.
Thanks to Amy Boatwright and the rest of the crew from Track Battle for pulling off this awesome event, Yoshi from Vic Drift for keeping things running smoothly all day, all the sponsors and every driver for turning up to one of the best drift competitions this country has seen in a long time.
Mostly thanks to the spectators for coming out and forking out their hard earned cash to get in and support the drifting scene.  The seating arrangements left a little to be desired and left many frustrated. Please remember that this was the first event in the series and it was the first event held in the Calder Park Thunderdome  in quite some time.
Things can only get better from here, with more drivers/sponsors then ever,  the future of the Australian drifting scene is looking great!
Thanks for reading, stay tuned as we post more coverage of this great event including the cars from the paddock.
-Gwyn.