Rookie Of The Year (Who is YOUR pick?)

[F.Oksnevad]

I love Mad Mike, but Fredric Aasbo is a tru hero in my eyes!

[en6381]

Charles ng have absent for two round of Formula Drift so he lost the "Rookie of the year" is certainly.

[Bebop]

I wouldn't call it absent, he failed to qualify both rounds. But Aasbo's car and body didn't make it to two rounds.

Word was Ng made major changes to his setup going into sonoma.... personally that's a gamble I wouldn't have taken.

Either way, the title of rookie is still something justifiably debatable... I wish formula d would reward both drivers. Domestic Rookie, and Foreign Rookie.

Congrats to both drivers for a hard fought season.

[Slapshotnerd]

Past rookies:
07 - Dmac (ProDrift champ), beating out Ryan Tuerck and Tommy Suell (who came up thru pro-am ranks) as well as Ryuji Miki (d1 champ)
08 - Takatori (D1 competitor), beating out Justin Pawlak (pro am) and Yoshioka (d1 champ)
09 - Eric O'sullivan (ProDrift champ), beating out Mike Essa, Matt Powers, and Matt Waldin.

The rules for rookie of the year have been the same for the past 4 years. It just so happens that an international competitor with previous pro experience has won it for the past 4 years. However, many people may realize that in the Sophomore campaign, one of the pro-am "runner ups" has had a substantially better year (08 = Tuerck, 09 = Pawlak, '10 = Essa and kinda Powers). So not winning the trophy doesn't mean that the 2nd year won't be successful.

[MonkeySlide]

Technically Ng isn't "Domestic" he just came here earlier to run Pro-Am.

Just because Aasbo didn't pay his dues here doesn't mean he didn't pay his dues. It takes a lot to win a championship in a POS Toyota Supra then fly to a Foregin land and take down the reigning champ in one of your first times out (Aasbo vs Forsberg @ Long Beach).

I would have given the dude rookie of the year just on that feat alone. Then the dude manages to keep himself in the rookie points running the whole season despite being unable to run two rounds..but still manages to get a "W" against one of the top contenders of 2010 (Vaughn Gittin).

If he could hold his own against Vaughn Gittin Jr in the Supra that time forgot then this guy could rock Formula D if he gets some more support.

Hopefully winning rookie of the year will do that for him.

[en6381]

OK.. See them next season...

[Bebop]

Ng has never won and had probably never competed in a drift event outside the US before 2010. And he has attended multiple domestic grassroots events that didn't have pro am implications. He did compete in some road racing abroad.... but crap so have I lol. He even got his education in America, sounds pretty darn domestic to me.

[ontrack]

It's all semantics and opinion folks.
I happen to be friends with Fredric and feel that he and Steffan and the FSR crew worked very hard and definitely deserve the recognition they received. He IS a rookie to FD, just not a rookie PRO.
That is why I stick to my earlier statement that my vote was for Charles, being that he is not only a rookie to FD but a ROOKIE PRO.
It's the same thing I've said in the past. My opinion.

[GSXRJJordan]

I voted for Aasbo, but that's because he's the only rookie that's actually shaken things up for the pros (and the fact that he finished ahead in points after not attending a couple rounds is amazing), but there is something to be said about "true" rookies and champs from foreign series' coming in.

I think Charles is an amazing driver, a very cool dude, and has surprised everyone with his success.

Word was Ng made major changes to his setup going into sonoma....

He didn't change his setup mid-season lol - he came to Luke (Blu808) and I in Sonoma with his crew chief with the worst news an LSx owner can hear - low compression in cylinder 7. The ring land in 7 is famously the weakest point on the stock bottom end, and his was toast - we both called it. He ran the event anyway, was way low on power, and ended up not performing as well as in Vegas.

Later he took the motor apart and found a huge chunk of his piston missing around the ring land. He had Mike Essa rebuild his LS6 before Irwindale and now it's back to running sweet.

It's all semantics and opinion folks.
I happen to be friends with Fredric and feel that he and Steffan and the FSR crew worked very hard and definitely deserve the recognition they received. He IS a rookie to FD, just not a rookie PRO.
That is why I stick to my earlier statement that my vote was for Charles, being that he is not only a rookie to FD but a ROOKIE PRO.
It's the same thing I've said in the past. My opinion.

Hey Tom!

[ontrack]

Hey Jordan! It was good seeing you out there. Bring the FD to "Grip Day" on Thanksgiving weekend, Streets of Willow. Put the beast through it's paces. Hope to see ya soon.