At the Formula Drift competition in St. Louis on July 15, two GT Radial drivers celebrated victory on the podium, making it the third time this season they achieved this.
Aurimas “Odi” Bakchis became a first-time winner in 2023 in his Feal Suspension/GT Radial Nissan S15. He won against Fredric Aasbo, but only after he repeated his Final 4 heat against GT Radial driver Chris Forsberg following a successful team protest. FD St Louis is the first win for Bakchis since 2021 when he claimed three victories during the season. The result takes him from sixth to third in the Championship.
GT Radial driver Simen Olsen, who also drives for Bakhis’ Feal Suspension team, came in third place to cap a GT Radial-dominated podium and vault GT Radial back atop the tire points standings.
The three-car Team Feal run by Bakchis also claimed first place with driver Ben Hobson in the Prospec Formula Drift series which runs exclusively on GT Radial Champiro SX2 RS tires.
“The Champiro SX2 RS continues to prove itself as an outstanding Formula DRIFT tire that is manufactured in America at our South Carolina plant,” GT Radial Motorsports Manager Mike Meeiem said. “We want to congratulate Team Feal for an overall excellent showing in St. Louis and look forward to more tremendous competition in the second half of the Formula DRIFT season.”
The success in St. Louis marked five podium finishes for GT Radial in five Formula Drift events in 2023.
