Round 4 of the 2009 Formula Drift Series would be center stage for a weekend jammed pack with aggressive high speed entries, billowing tire smoke, and the excitement of a night  event at this hot Las Vegas desert venue. Special thanks go out to the crew at Dynamic Autosports, S&A Design, Drive Apparel, Downforce, Hiro’s Auto Repair, MotorMavens.com, and APEX Co. Ltd. Japan.  Ryuji Miki and the A’PEXi / Hankook Tire RX-7 team had been finishing consistently in the Top 16 rounds prior to this event, and had their sights set on higher finishing results. The driver, the machine, and team went through early practice without a hitch, dialing in the settings for the upcoming main event. However, during the tail end of the open practice right before qualifying, the car would come to a halt, mid-track, and was towed back to the pits. Crew chief, Charles Griffice and team mechanic, Darren Masumori worked diligently to change out what was a broken differential, and made the proper repairs in time to send the car out during the 2nd qualifying round. Miki’s experience was a key element in attempting a qualification with 1 run, and was able to qualify in the 22nd position.

Miki’s road to the podium would be a tough one, as he would run 2 One More Times versus hometown crowd favorite Tommy Suell in the Top 32 round. In the Top 16 round, Miki and the 13B-rotary powered RX-7 would face off against the V-10 powered Dodge Viper of Samuel Hubinette, and would come out with the win, shadowing the speed, angle, and movement of Hubinette. The Great 8 round would be a battle of the rotary engines, up against the 20B 3-rotor powered RX-8 of Bergenholtz Racing, driven by Justin Pawlak. Ryuji Miki’s aggressive driving from entry to finish and staying on the rear bumper of Pawlak would prove to be enough to move onto the semi-finals. In the Best 4 round, Miki would face another V-8 machine, driven by current points leader, Chris Forsberg. He continued to push forward with the aggressive style that he had been known for during his championship season in D1GP series.

As a result, Ryuji Miki and the A’PEXi / Hankook Tire RX-7 would face off with Hankook Tire teammate, Tanner Foust and the V-8 powered Scion tC in the Finals! Miki would follow Foust right up on the rear bumper of the Scion tC, but, took a line that would cover him up in the smoke cloud produced from the Hankook tires, forcing a correction, and a final result in 2nd place. The Hankook Ventus R-S3 Tires with Ryuji Miki’s driving in-sync with the machine, and the efforts from the entire staff of the team proved to be a successful combination, resulting in a podium finish and moving up in the points standings from 25th to 17th position for the 2009 season. The A’PEXi / Hankook Drift Team looks forward to Round 5 at Evergreen Speedway in Monroe, Washington to repeat the performance in Las Vegas, if not better it by striving for the top of the podium.