FF Battle 3 - The Competition - Event

With a little better pre-planning than our first two FF Battles, we thought we’d for certain see a few familiar faces but we didn’t expect being bombarded with requests for people wanting to get into this year’s game. From as far east (and slightly north) as Canada to several local entries, we doubled our group to an overwhelming 23 at the start, dropping down to 19 by the event’s end. So, without further ado, meet FF Battle 3’s fierce group of competitors; we had a blast getting to know our new friends and had a lot of fun shooting the bull with our old ones. Will you be joining us next year?

Rhett Baruch
’01 Acura Integra Type R
Hometown: Phoenix, AZ
Engine: K24A1, Eagle rods, ARP bolts, 11.5:1 CP pistons, RSX cylinder head with 3-angle valve job; Blueprint Racing Stage 3 cams and valvetrain components; Skunk2 Pro Series intake manifold and 74mm throttle body; DTR/SSR 4-2-1 header with custom 3" V-band collector; Hondata K-Pro
Power: 238.73hp at 170.25lb-ft

Ryan “Rywire” Basseri
’88 Honda CR-X
Hometown: Garden Grove, CA
Engine: B18C ITR, Autoworks short ram intake, AEM EMS with K-series coil conversion, OEM LSD
Power: 173.64hp at 124.21lb-ft

Chris Billedo
’08 Honda Civic Si
Hometown: Fontana, CA
Engine: K20Z3, AEM intake, Strup header, custom exhaust, COBB AccessPort, Exedy Stage 2 clutch, ACT Prolite flywheel
Power: 190.17hp at 140.56lb-ft

Nick Caster
’89 Honda CR-X HF
Hometown: Sacramento, CA
Engine: B18C GS-R, Skunk2 cams and intake manifold; ported throttle body, JG header, ITR valvetrain, AEM intake, Chrome ECU, Rywire harness, USDM GS-R transmission with ITR LSD and 4.7 final drive
Power: 178.81hp at 128.23lb-ft

Gilbert Corona
’88 Honda Civic
Hometown: Spring Valley, CA
Engine: B20/VTEC, RS Machine 84.5mm pistons, ARP rod bolts, GS-R cylinder head porting by BluePrint Racing, Skunk2 valvetrain, custom cam grind, HyTech header, BLOX intake manifold, BDL 70mm throttle body, RC 370cc injectors, custom tuned P28 ECU, B16 S1 transmission, 1.5-way KAAZ LSD
Power: 191.66hp at 133.80lb-ft

Ryan Der
’99 Honda Civic DX
Hometown: San Francisco, CA
Engine: B18C ITR, AEM EMS 1040-U and EPM; K20 coil pack conversion, Rywire Mil-spec wiring harness, HyTech race header with anti-reversion chambers and Twin Loop after-cat exhaust; Trust oil cooler, C&R radiator, ATS 16-plate clutch LSD and single-plate metal clutch; Hondata thermal intake manifold gasket, Toda Racing timing belt
Power: 183.18hp at 124.39lb-ft

Morgan Jade
’96 Honda Civic Type R
Hometown: San Marcos, CA
Engine: K20Z1, Skunk2 Stage 2 camshafts, Pro Series valve springs/retainers/intake manifold, 74mm throttle body and Mega Power header and exhaust; Portflow 3-angle valve job, ACL race bearings, CP 12.5:1 pistons, JDM Type R connecting rods, RSX Type-S transmission with 4.78 final drive, KAAZ LSD, Competition Clutch Stage 5 clutch and flywheel; Hondata K-Pro
Power: 234.81hp at 151.41lb-ft

Willy “SALEM” Garcia
’06 Acura TSX
Hometown: Los Angeles, CA
Engine: K24A2, J’s Racing CL7 Euro R stainless header, SUS Circuit Converter (cat delete), titanium exhaust and Tsuchinoko carbon intake; Skunk2 72mm billet throttle body, composite fuel rail and intake manifold, Clutch Masters Stage 3 8-puck Kevlar clutch and lightened flywheel; Wavetrac LSD
Power: 204.71hp at 156.90lb-ft

Tom “TOM-attak” Liang
Honda Civic Si
Hometown: Los Angeles, CA
Engine: K20A, rebuilt by BluePrint Racing; Hasport engine mounts, Hondata K-Pro, Rywire sub-harness, Skunk2 74mm throttle body and intake manifold; K-tuned 4-2-1 header with custom Eastside Muffler 3" exhaust, AEM fuel rail and FPR
Power: 220.04hp at 151.72lb-ft