AEM's David Waterworth In 1st Place After 2 Rounds of 2013 British Drift Championship
- Jun 15, 2013
It wouldn't be overstating matters to refer to Waterworth as drifting's equivalent of "The Natural." Here's a guy that simply enjoyed stomping the throttle and then blissfully indulging himself with controlling the ensuing chaos. "It just so happened that there was a drift license/competition day at Silverstone," Waterworth continues. "I took part and actually acquired a professional license before 12.00pm, so we went for the bigger license (Super Pro), and I acquired this also in the same day, which I was later told was unheard of before."
Last season was Waterworth's first year of competition in the British Drift Championship, driving a brand new kind of car which hadn't been tested. In the first round of six, Waterworth and his team missed qualifying by two points. "And in our sixth and final round we acquired damage from a spinning lead car, that put us out of the race, but even with this we actually finished the season in twelfth position out of thirty two Super-pro drivers, and in a chassis and conversion," Waterworth explains. One of the most talked about drivers in the BDC also drives the most ogled and most highly photographed engine compartments. The AEM sponsored driver combined his two favorite cars to create the ultimate drifter conversion, and added credence to the cliché that there's no replacement for displacement.
"Our car is the Nissan Silvia s15 platform, 1999 chassis, JDM Import. The Viper engine (8L V10) is from the dream car I hopefully one day, will actually own. I've loved the Dodge Viper car since before I could drive. It's the shear presence of the car and the fact it has a lorry engine to power it. Also, I guess the fact that it's regarded as one of the most dangerous cars to drive, which to me, makes it all the more appealing for the challenge. But unfortunately the Dodge Vipers costs are way beyond what I can afford, so the next option was this engine that was available here in the U.K. at a good price. And without any knowledge available of any swap like this being done, I threw caution to the wind, and with only one dream, I went ahead and started building what is now know as the Viper s15. Which still is the only competition drift car conversion on the track to this day." Europe's most competitive drift championship the 2013 British Drift Championship started their season in England at Lydden Hill with Waterworth earning his first Super Pro Class podium. "Starting out on the podium is an awesome achievement for me and the team, as we worked so hard last year to make something unique in its design and engine that hadn't been done with a drift car before. For round 2, and the first time in BDC history, the series visited the Pembrey circuit, located in South Wales just outside the village of Pembrey. "The fan turnout was really good, there were spectators lined up all around the judged sections of the track. Our practice runs were a struggle, as it was a new track for me and most drivers, but I changed onto a different brand of tires for qualifying and this helped to improve grip and control of the car through the course, giving me a 2nd place qualification result." "Then we went straight into the top 32 twin battles, where I progressed through many very exciting and technical battles to take me to the top 4. Unfortunately because of a few adjustment errors, I remained in 4th place and narrowly missed getting another podium finish. I do hope we can continue the success, but if I can get on podium again, I have found that consistency is the key to drifting championships. We will have to see how things turn out as there are some truly excellent teams and drivers in this championship." Demonstrating that consistency is indeed the key to clinching titles, with his 3rd place at Lydden Hill, and fourth at Pembrey, Waterworth currently holds 1st place in the overall Super Pro standings. "Round 3 will take place at Teesside Autodrome in Middlesborough on July 6th and 7th," Waterworth adds. "I have been to this track before, and with the changes that we plan to make to the car, we hope this will give us the advantage to be back on the podium. Use the AEM Product Search to find AEM performance products for your vehicle. To find an AEM dealer near you, use Search for AEM Dealer or simply visit AEMintakes.com. |
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