This past weekend was one of lasts. Not only was it the last round of the 2017 Formula Drift championship but the last time that the Irwindale Event Center will host the event. For years rumors of the closure of Irwindale have been passed around but in the end the track was always saved by the bell. Now, however, it hasn’t been able to avoid the development guillotine and will be closing for good in January of 2018.
For those who are unaware, Irwindale is a banked, half-mile oval track and eight mile dragstrip about 30 minutes from downtown L.A. in the city of Irwindale (without traffic). The track opened in 1999 and became home to the K&N NASCAR Pro Series West and Wheelen All-American Series. Then in 2003 the grassroots drifting scene in Southern California was born and Irwindale became the hub for enthusiasts to see what this sideways, smoky driving was all about. The track soon became known as The House of Drift.
With the magic formula of front engine, rear wheel drive being the base for a drift car, the domestic market was a shoe-in with late model muscle cars. GTOs, Camaros, Mustangs, Vipers, and Challengers have all graced the sport over the years and are still present today. Even if a team is using a foreign chassis, you can bet a good amount of them have been LS swapped for reliability, strength and easy power.
Irwindale like drifting, was a very young track and it’s sad to see it go so soon. Although the drifting was born in Japan, it found a home at Irwindale and it played a huge part in the formation of the rapidly growing motorsport of drifting. It was a local home track to a lot of racers and we are looking forward to seeing where SoCal enthusiasts will go as well as to what the Formula Drift organization will announce at SEMA as the alternate for the 2018 season.
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