# 2021 Formula D season

The 2021 Formula D season (officially titled Formula Drift Pro Championship) was the eighteenth season of the Formula D series. The season began on May 8 at Road Atlanta and concluded on October 23 at Toyota Speedway at Irwindale after eight events.
Toward the end of the season, three of Formula Drift's longest-serving members announced a departure from the series, all of whom had been part of Formula Drift since is inaugural season in 2004. Co-founder and series President Jim Liaw left to take up a new position at Performance Racing Industry, but retained a role in the series; his place was taken by Vice President and fellow co-founder Ryan Sage. 2011 champion Daijiro Yoshihara announced his retirement from the series ahead of the finale. 2010 and 2020 champion Vaughn Gittin, Jr. announced that he would step back from the series to give attention to other interests, including his participation in the ULTRA4 Racing Series, but he intended to participate again in the future. His seat at RTR Motorsports was filled by Adam LZ in 2022.

## Entries

| Team | No. | Car | Tires | Driver | Round(s) |
| Alec Robbins Racing | 35 | Nissan 350Z | Federal Tires | Alec Robbins | All |
| Asphalt Anarchy | 82 | Cadillac ATS-V | Nexen | Taylor Hull | All |
| Bakchis Motorsports | 723 | Nissan Silvia S15 | Falken | Aurimas Bakchis | All |
| Beechum Racing | 999 | Ford Mustang | Nexen | Trenton Beechum R | 1–3, 5–8 |
| BUY NOW JAPAN | 530 | Nissan Silvia S15 | Nexen | Wataru Masuyama | 1–4, 6–8 |
| Cash Racing | 16 | Infiniti G37 | Nexen | Jonathan Hurst R | All |
| Drift Cave Motorsports | 777 | Chevrolet Corvette C6 | Falken | Matt Field | All |
| Drift Force | 33 | BMW F22 | Nexen | Joshua Correa Reynolds R | 1–6 |
| Drift Force | 91 | BMW F22 | Nexen | Yves Meyer | 1–7 |
| Dylan Hughes Racing | 129 | BMW M3 E46 | GT Radial | Dylan Hughes | All |
| Essa Autosport | 101 | BMW M3 E46 | GT Radial | Michael Essa | All |
| FFF Drifting Department | 117 | Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano | Nexen | Federico Sceriffo | 1–3, 5–8 |
| Forsberg Racing | 64 | Nissan 370Z | GT Radial | Chris Forsberg | All |
| Garagistic | 171 | BMW M3 E36 | Federal Tires | Rome Charpentier | All |
| Gas Factory | 9 | Subaru BRZ | Falken | Daijiro Yoshihara | All |
| Jeff Jones Racing | 818 | Nissan 370Z | GT Radial | Jeff Jones | All |
| Jhonnattan Castro | 17 | Toyota GT86 | Federal Tires Nexen | Jhonnattan Castro | 1–7 |
| Jonathan Nerren Racing | 23 | Nissan Silvia S14 | Federal Tires | Jonathan Nerren | 1–7 |
| KGMS Greddy Toyota Gazoo Racing | 21 | Toyota GR Supra | Nexen | Ken Gushi | 1–5, 7–8 |
| Kyle Mohan Racing | 99 | Mazda RX-8 | Federal Tires | Kyle Mohan | All |
| LZMFG | 5 | Nissan Silvia S15 | Nitto | Adam LZ | All |
| Papadakis Racing | 151 | Toyota GR Supra | Nitto | Fredric Aasbø | All |
| Papadakis Racing | 411 | Toyota Corolla (E210) | Nitto | Ryan Tuerck | All |
| Pawlak Racing | 13 | Ford Mustang | Falken | Justin Pawlak | 1–3, 5–8 |
| RAD Industries | 34 | Toyota Supra A80 | GT Radial | Dan Burkett | All |
| RTR Motorsports | 25 | Ford Mustang RTR Spec 5-D | Nitto | Vaughn Gittin, Jr. | All |
| RTR Motorsports | 88 | Ford Mustang RTR Spec 5-D | Nitto | Chelsea DeNofa | All |
| Ryan Litteral Racing | 909 | Nissan Silvia S15 | GT Radial | Ryan Litteral | 1, 3, 5–8 |
| Simen Olsen Drifting | 707 | Toyota GR Supra | Federal Tires | Simen Olsen R | All |
| Sorensen Motorsports | 513 | BMW M4 F82 | Nexen | Branden Sorensen R | All |
| Team Karnage | 43 | Dodge Viper ZB II | Nexen | Dean Kearney | All |
| Travis Reeder Motorsports | 77 | BMW M3 E46 | GT Radial | Travis Reeder | All |
| Upgarage ISR Performance GT Radial Jerry Yang Racing | 123 | Nissan Silvia S15 | GT Radial | Kazuya Taguchi | All |

## Schedule

| Round | Title | Circuit | Location | Date | Winner | Car |
| 1 | Royal Purple Road to the Championship Presented by O'Reilly Auto Parts | Road Atlanta | Braselton, Georgia | May 8 | Aurimas Bakchis | Nissan Silvia S15 |
| 2 | Scorched | Orlando Speed World | Orlando, Florida | May 22 | Chelsea DeNofa | Ford Mustang RTR Spec 5-D |
| 3 | The AutoZone Gauntlet Presented by TYPE S | Englishtown Raceway Park | Englishtown, New Jersey | June 19 | Matt Field | Chevrolet Corvette C6 |
| 4 | Borderlands | Lake Erie Speedway | Erie, Pennsylvania | July 10 | Chelsea DeNofa | Ford Mustang RTR Spec 5-D |
| 5 | Throwdown | Evergreen Speedway | Monroe, Washington | July 31 | Chelsea DeNofa | Ford Mustang RTR Spec 5-D |
| 6 | Crossroads | World Wide Technology Raceway | Madison, Illinois | August 28 | Fredric Aasbø | Toyota Supra |
| 7 | AutoZone Streets of Long Beach Presented by TYPE S | Streets of Long Beach | Long Beach, California | September 18 | Aurimas Bakchis | Nissan Silvia S15 |
| 8 | TYPE S Title Fight | Irwindale Speedway | Irwindale, California | October 23 | Aurimas Bakchis | Nissan Silvia S15 |
| Sources: |||||||

## Championship standings
### Scoring system

The championship points system was altered for 2021, with points no longer awarded for qualifying positions. Points are awarded to the top 32 qualifiers for each event. The qualifiers proceed through a series of competition heats, with those eliminated in the first round (Top 32) receiving 35 points and classifying 17th through 32nd, the second round (Sweet 16) receiving 52 points and classifying 9th through 16th, the third round (Great 8) receiving 67 points and classifying 5th through 8th, and the fourth round (Final Four) receiving 80 points and classifying 3rd and 4th. In the Final, the runner-up receives 91 points and the winner 100 points. Final classification within each round is then determined by highest qualifying position; for example, of the two drivers eliminated in the Final Four, the driver who qualified higher is awarded 3rd position and the final place on the podium.
If 22 or fewer drivers are present, an alternative qualifying format is used in which a Last Chance Bracket (LCB) is populated by the drivers who qualify from 15th down. The top two LCB qualifiers enter the competition heats as normal, while the remaining LCB qualifiers (3rd down to a maximum of 8th if 22 drivers are present) receive 35 points, equivalent to the 17th–32nd positions at a regular event.
In the event of a tie on points at the end of the season, the driver who classified higher in the most recent round will be awarded the higher position.
| Position | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th–8th | 9th–16th | 17th–32nd | LCB 3rd–8th |
| Points | 100 | 91 | 80 | 80 | 67 | 52 | 35 | 35 |

### Pro Championship standings

| Pos | Driver | ATL | ORL | ENG | LES | EVS | WWT | LBH | IRW | Pts |
| 1 | Fredric Aasbø | 9 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 12 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 648 |
| 2 | Matt Field | 2 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 11 | 4 | 617 |
| 3 | Aurimas Bakchis | 1 | 4 | 9 | 6 | 18 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 614 |
| 4 | Chelsea DeNofa | 14 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 5 | 7 | 605 |
| 5 | Vaughn Gittin, Jr. | 3 | 6 | 25 | 4 | 15 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 554 |
| 6 | Ryan Tuerck | 10 | 9 | 4 | 13 | 2 | 2 | 12 | 8 | 537 |
| 7 | Chris Forsberg | 18 | 10 | 2 | 27 | 6 | 13 | 4 | 6 | 479 |
| 8 | Dylan Hughes | 15 | 22 | 11 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 13 | 12 | 470 |
| 9 | Kazuya Taguchi | 16 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 23 | 14 | 27 | 5 | 442 |
| 10 | Michael Essa | 21 | 20 | 12 | 10 | 5 | 7 | 6 | 9 | 427 |
| 11 | Jeff Jones | 4 | 11 | 18 | 17 | 8 | 19 | 15 | 14 | 408 |
| 12 | Travis Reeder | 13 | 12 | 6 | 16 | 7 | 20 | 18 | 19 | 395 |
| 13 | Dean Kearney | 7 | 8 | 8 | 20 | 16 | 26 | 26 | 23 | 393 |
| 14 | Justin Pawlak | 6 | 3 | 17 | | 11 | 9 | 9 | 11 | 390 |
| 15 | Simen Olsen RY | 31 | 15 | 15 | 25 | 10 | 22 | 25 | 16 | 348 |
| 16 | Alec Robbins | 23 | 14 | 16 | 18 | 27 | 5 | 32 | 29 | 346 |
| 17 | Daijiro Yoshihara | 20 | 26 | 10 | 29 | 29 | 10 | 10 | 17 | 331 |
| 18 | Jonathan Hurst R | 30 | 21 | 24 | 21 | 9 | 21 | 14 | 15 | 331 |
| 19 | Branden Sorensen R | 11 | 17 | 13 | 22 | 17 | 11 | 21 | 25 | 331 |
| 20 | Dan Burkett | 17 | 13 | 26 | 15 | 19 | 16 | 24 | 26 | 331 |
| 21 | Adam LZ | 8 | 24 | 32 | 9 | 21 | 29 | 22 | 24 | 329 |
| 22 | Yves Meyer | 5 | 16 | 28 | 7 | 22 | 25 | 30 | | 326 |
| 23 | Rome Charpentier | 22 | 19 | 22 | 12 | 20 | 23 | 23 | 10 | 314 |
| 24 | Kyle Mohan | 28 | 31 | 30 | 26 | 31 | 30 | 16 | 13 | 314 |
| 25 | Taylor Hull | 24 | 27 | 27 | 11 | 24 | 18 | 17 | 18 | 297 |
| 26 | Wataru Masuyama | 25 | 29 | 21 | 24 | | 15 | 8 | 21 | 294 |
| 27 | Jhonnattan Castro | 12 | 18 | 20 | 23 | 28 | 17 | 7 | | 294 |
| 28 | Ken Gushi | 19 | 23 | 19 | 28 | 13 | | 28 | 20 | 262 |
| 29 | Trenton Beechum R | 27 | 28 | 29 | | 14 | 31 | 31 | 28 | 262 |
| 30 | Jonathan Nerren | 32 | 30 | 23 | 14 | 25 | 24 | 19 | | 262 |
| 31 | Federico Sceriffo | 29 | 25 | 14 | | 30 | DNQ | 29 | 27 | 227 |
| 32 | Joshua Correa Reynolds R | 26 | 32 | 31 | 19 | 26 | 28 | | | 210 |
| 33 | Ryan Litteral | NC | | DNQ | | 32 | 27 | 20 | 22 | 140 |
| Sources: |||||||||||
In-line notation :
| Bold | Top qualifier |
| RY | Rookie of the Year |
| R | Rookie |

### Auto Cup standings

Auto Cup points are awarded each round to the two drivers with the highest classified finish for each manufacturer. To be eligible, both the chassis and engine must have been constructed by that manufacturer.
| Pos | Manufacturer | ATL | ORL | ENG | LES | EVS | WWT | LBH | IRW | Pts |
| 1 | Toyota | 9 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1200 |
| 1 | Toyota | 10 | 9 | 4 | 13 | 12 | 2 | 7 | 5 | 1200 |
| 2 | Ford | 3 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1187 |
| 2 | Ford | 6 | 3 | 17 | 4 | 11 | 9 | 5 | 7 | 1187 |
| 3 | Nissan | 18 | 10 | 2 | 27 | 6 | 13 | 4 | 6 | 619 |
| 3 | Nissan | NC | | | | 32 | 27 | 20 | 22 | 619 |
| 4 | Chevrolet | 2 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 11 | 4 | 617 |
| 5 | BMW | 21 | 20 | 12 | 10 | 5 | 7 | 6 | 9 | 427 |
| 6 | Dodge | 7 | 8 | 8 | 20 | 16 | 26 | 26 | 23 | 393 |
| 7 | Mazda | 28 | 31 | 30 | 26 | 31 | 30 | 16 | 13 | 314 |
| 8 | Cadillac | 24 | 27 | 27 | 11 | 24 | 18 | 17 | 18 | 297 |
| 9 | Ferrari | 29 | 25 | 14 | | 30 | DNQ | 29 | 27 | 227 |
| Source: |||||||||||

### Tire Cup standings

Tire Cup points are awarded each round to the two drivers with the highest classified finish for each tire manufacturer.
| Pos | Tire | ATL | ORL | ENG | LES | EVS | WWT | LBH | IRW | Pts |
| 1 | Nitto | 3 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1413 |
| 1 | Nitto | 8 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 1413 |
| 2 | Falken | 1 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1248 |
| 2 | Falken | 2 | 4 | 9 | 6 | 11 | 8 | 9 | 4 | 1248 |
| 3 | GT Radial | 4 | 7 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 1118 |
| 3 | GT Radial | 13 | 10 | 6 | 8 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 1118 |
| 4 | Nexen | 5 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 9 | 11 | 7 | 15 | 937 |
| 4 | Nexen | 7 | 16 | 13 | 11 | 10 | 15 | 8 | 16 | 937 |
| 5 | Federal Tires | 12 | 14 | 15 | 12 | 10 | 5 | 16 | 10 | 796 |
| 5 | Federal Tires | 22 | 15 | 16 | 14 | ? | 22 | 19 | 13 | 796 |
| Source: |||||||||||

## Footnotes

* ↑ Robbins competed with Federal Tires, but is listed as using GT Radial Tires on the official website.
* ↑ Castro used Federal Tires for the first round at Road Atlanta, but competed with Nexen Tires for the remainder of the season.
* ↑ Olsen competed Federal Tires, but is listed as using Nexen Tires on the official website.
* ↑ Bakchis was initially deemed at fault for a collision with Gittin during their Great 8 battle in Round 4, handing the win to Gittin and relegating Bakchis to an eventual 6th place finish. However, a later review determined Bakchis not at fault, and his score in the round was amended from 67 points to 80 points. Gittin's score was not affected.
* ↑ Although Yoshihara was classified below Furst in the season finale, he is placed ahead in the official championship standings.
* ↑ Federal Tires scored 104 points in the fifth round at Seattle, corresponding to two drivers reaching the Sweet 16. Of the drivers that did, only one was using Federal Tires according to the official website. It is possible that another driver switched to Federal Tires for the event, or at some point throughout the season.