Vaughn Gittin Jr. awarded “Ace Driver of the Decade” for most tandem wins in Formula Drift history, finishes the 2013 Formula Drift season as the highest qualifier and 5th place overall

BALTIMORE, Md. (October 17, 2013) – The 2013 Formula Drift season has come to an end with Vaughn Gittin Jr. and the RTR Drift Team finishing as the highest qualifier overall and 5th place in the Championship. This is the second consecutive year that Vaughn has finished the season as the highest qualifying driver. Vaughn was also awarded the “Ace Driver of the Decade”, a huge accomplishment for the 2010 Champion, as this award means he has won more tandem battles than any other driver in Formula Drift history.

“I am extremely proud to have been named the ‘winningest driver in Formula Drift history’ through receiving the ‘Ace Driver of the Decade’ award,” says Vaughn Gittin Jr. “For me that accomplishment is something I never aimed for and the fact it has come organically through all of our hard work and commitment over the last 10 years just feels awesome!”

Vaughn began the Formula Drift 2013 off in a great way; as a first time team-owner and with a new relationship with Nitto Tire, he debuted the 2014 Monster Energy Nitto Tire Ford Mustang RTR that was built and supported all season by ASD Motorsports.

Continuing the successful start to the season, Vaughn and the team achieved a podium finish at both Round 1 in Long Beach and Round 2 in Atlanta. At Round 3 in Palm Beach, Vaughn finished just one spot outside the podium after a night of tough competition. Vaughn continued to gain crucial points in the Championship at Round 4 in New Jersey and Round 5 in Seattle.

At a new venue added to the Formula D tour, Texas Motor Speedway for Round 6, Vaughn qualified in 1st place and drove awesome all night, but unfortunately was forced into a mistake during his top 8 chase run and was unable to move on to the semi-finals.

Vaughn was still in contention for the Championship moving into the final Round of Formula Drift, and by qualifying 2nd place overall, hopes were high for a successful weekend. Unfortunately due to an error in the round of top 8, Vaughn’s night would end early. He would finish the season in 5th place overall, a huge achievement for his first year as a team-owner.

“The 2013 Formula Drift season proved to be a very interesting one for us,” says Vaughn. “Overall I feel that it has been a successful year and I could not be happier with ASD Motorsports’, the RTR Drift Team’s, and my performance throughout the season.  I am very grateful for all of my incredible partners and fans that offer us unconditional support year after year.  We are already looking forward to 2014 and have some pretty exciting things planned, all of which should result in increased success on and off the track!”

The Formula Drift season may be finished for Vaughn and the RTR Drift team, but their year is far from over. Vaughn still has a number of drifting exhibitions left in the calendar, as well as the last round of the World Drift Series in China, in which he is currently first in points. For more information, please visit VaughnGittin.com or Facebook.com/OfficialVaughnGittinJr.

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Highest qualifer two years in a row
2nd place at Round 1 in Long Beach
Awarded "Driver of the Decade"
First year as a team-owner huge success New venue Texas Motor Speedway Car on car contact in 2013
3rd Place at Round 2 Atlanta Top spot to buy merch at RTR pit A media favorite driver
Controversial battles in 2013 First year with Nitto Tire was a success ASD Motorsports supported
Aggressive runs in 2013 Monster models at every event One of the most photoed cars of 2013

ABOUT VAUGHN GITTIN JR.

Vaughn Gittin Jr. has become one of drifting's most iconic figures and is known best by his aggressive, foot to the floor, big smoke driving style. Being such a fierce competitor, Vaughn is known as the only American to win a D1 Grand Prix event, not once - but twice. In 2005 Vaughn stunned the world when he won the D1GP USA vs. Japan. In 2007, he brought America the gold once more by winning the D1GP World Championship.

In 2010, Vaughn earned his first Formula Drift Championship, becoming the second-ever Champion with a strictly-drifting background. In 2011, Vaughn competed in China's premier drift series, WDS, and took home the Championship. In 2012, Vaughn was shy just one spot of the Championship, taking second place overall. He has achieved five wins and multiple podiums throughout his Formula Drift career.

ABOUT MUSTANG RTR

Mustang RTR is the vision of World Champion drifter and Mustang mad man, Vaughn Gittin Jr. When creating RTR, his dream was to introduce something new to the Mustang world that appeals not only to younger generations, but also to any traditional muscle car enthusiasts and overall automotive enthusiasts as a whole. The Mustang RTR takes the best of multiple automotive cultures and tastefully meshes them together into a final product that anyone can immediately appreciate and see themselves behind the wheel of – whether they are "slaying" a set of tires, blasting a straight, carving some turns, linking a section on the drift circuit, or simply just cruising along with their better half. Vaughn has successfully made his dream a reality with the Mustang RTR. This new generation brand of Mustang that comes in the form of a dealer-installed package is currently available in select Ford dealerships around the world.