A shocking turn of events came during the match between Hankook and JIC's Tyler McQuarrie (catch this month's Guest Parking on page 46) and the Red Bull Solstice driven by Rhys Millen-a broken tie rod in the first run compromised Rhys' chances of going any further, putting the current Time Attack record holder into the next round. Next, Sam Hubinette lined up against "The Little Corolla That Could," Taka Aono's AE86, which was just a treat to watch as the two also went for a "one more time" decision maker with Sam, advancing just with more controlled driving and not just full-on power. Another undercard, Bill Sherman, who drives for Enjuku Racing, was on fire during practice and qualifying and overtook Falken's Robbie Nishida as he understeered on the second pass off the bank, which resulted in Robbie missing the clipping point. Chris Forsberg rounded off the Top 16 eliminations when he advanced past Darren McNamara.
Top 8
With the weekend's top eight drivers now left standing, it would be quick moving action all the way until the very end. Tanner tapped out after tapping the bank wall, which caused irreparable damage to the left rear end and promptly put Dai into the Final 4. The Hankook/JIC teammates would be a win/win situation for the team either way, but Kenji advanced past Tyler. The familiar scenario of Falken's JR Gittin and Mopar's Sam Hubinette happened yet again and both were equally matched for the first round, which called for a "one more time," but on the second go, Sam scored an automatic zero when he tapped JR after spinning.
Top 4
The most exciting match-up of the day came when the two S15 Silvias lined up against each other. Both JIC's Kenji and Pac Rim's Dai scored an amazing 9-9 tie during first pass, and on the second pass, Kenji overtook Dai on the inside line, causing Dai to straighten out. However, the Formula D judges deemed the inside pass as unsafe and illegal; had Kenji taken the outside line to pass it would've been OK, but passing on the inside was potentially dangerous and could have sent Dai into the wall if something went wrong. Dai advances.
Former Falken teammates, but Drift Alliance partners for life, JR Gittin paired up against Forsberg, who advanced against Bill Sherman in the Top 8. In their tandem, Forsberg slid against the bank wall, causing serious damage to his wheel, and was unable to move on. This automatically gave Third place to Kenji Yamanaka because the consolation round would've been between Kenji and Forsberg. Kenji gives the Seattle fans a smoky show with a solo pass around the Evergreen Raceway.