Each RDS GP 2024 athlete is capable of high results on the «reverse» configuration of Moscow Raceway. For the first time this season, two Russian Flanker F hypercars will take to the start of the Russian Drift Series Grand Prix. Four RDS Europe pilots will compete in the wild card at the stage.
The summer part of the 15th anniversary season of the Russian Drift Series continues – on the weekend of August 10 and 11, the Moscow Raceway track will host the fifth stage of the main national drift championship. For the second time this season, the capital's circuit will become an arena for the battle of the strongest pilots and teams of RDS GP: the tournament traditionally started on the classic configuration in the spring, and the upcoming stage will be hosted by the «reverse» version of the track.
The Russian Drift Series Grand Prix races will use the same scoring section as the first stage of the season, but the athletes will drive it in the opposite direction. Despite its apparent simplicity, the “reverse” version of the track poses a serious challenge to the athletes. The highlight of the scoring section is the profiled second turn with a variable radius, the passage of which in the “classic” direction of the track (counterclockwise) has already been perfected by the pilots. But the changes in terrain and movement in the opposite direction, which changes not only the trajectory, but also the rhythm of the drive, can only be adjusted during training.
This configuration option was first tested in 2022 and was considered successful. In 2023, the «reverse» version of Moscow Raceway became the site of historic victories, so this time we can expect various surprises. Especially from the series debutants, who are just getting used to the unusual track.
Battle for the title: Shabanov vs. Idiyatulin
Artem Shabanov, who is holding his first season in RDS GP and has already finished four out of four stages among the prize winners, is one of the favorites of the upcoming weekend. Yes, the circuit is new to him, but the pilot has already become the obvious leader of the TimeUp team, and has shown his readiness to quickly adapt to new conditions and unfamiliar tracks. Having won his first victory in the paired races at the RDS GP stage at ADM Raceway, the pilot is clearly motivated to strengthen his leadership in the personal standings, especially since all the remaining battles will take place on new circuits for the athlete.
Damir Idiyatulin, who has already won two RDS GP rounds in a row this year (in Nizhny Novgorod and St. Petersburg), is also clearly aiming for victory. If he manages to win a round at the «reverse» version of Moscow Raceway, the Fresh Racing pilot will strengthen his chances of winning his first career championship before the decisive weekend, where he will be in an advantageous position against an opponent unfamiliar with the tracks in Krasnoyarsk and St. Petersburg.
Gocha, Tsar and all-all-all
Takayama Forward Auto will once again be playing catch-up, but with incredible motivation. The current champion in the team competition has never won in the four stages this year, so the team will clearly try to break this unfortunate series of failures in Moscow. A reason for optimism can be the first podium of Georgy Chivchyan on the latest Forward Racing RZ34-001 sports car based on the Nissan Z, won at ADM Raceway. Experienced Roman Tivodar and last year's winner of the «reverse» configuration of Moscow Raceway Timofey Dobrovolsky are also capable of breaking into the top 3.
We should not discount the Evolution Yuka ADV by Obsessed Motorsport – RDS GP 2022 champion Arkady Tsaregradtsev, young and talented Vladislav and Ilya Popov, who have already tasted the prize champagne, can also present pleasant surprises and be included in the distribution of places on the podium. High expectations at the Moscow stage are associated with LUKOIL Racing Drift Team. Andrey Astapov has already climbed to the podium on this track, Grigory Gusev successfully performs in RDS Europe and is ready to transfer his scoring streak to RDS GP, and Denis Sorokopud looks more and more confident from stage to stage.
For Carville Racing, which shone throughout the season last year, the weekend at Moscow Raceway will be one opportunity to finally make a name for itself and prove that its success in 2023 was not a fluke. If technical problems do not make themselves known again, much can be expected from Anton Kozlov and Nikita Shikov, and Grigory Burlutskiy, even in the process of learning a new track for himself, is able to please his fans and the team's fans.
The experienced AIMOL team of AVTOBAN includes Dmitry Ermokhin and Sergey Sak, as well as the bright debutant of RDS GP 2024 Sergey Kuznetsov at the wheel of Flanker F, who also intend to open the account of prize podiums for themselves and the team. At the previous stage at ADM Raceway, Kuznetsov achieved the best result in his RDS GP career, becoming fourth, so now he is ready to take the next step and be among the prize winners of the series.
The second Flanker F and the ambitious «Shabanyata»
In 2024, the competition regulations allow pilots of the RDS Europe «junior division» to receive a wild card and take part in one of the stages of the main national drift championship. For the first time, participants took advantage of this opportunity in June at Igora Drive: Artem Leitis from Lemarc Yakhnich Motorsport Winline Team, as well as three pilots who united to form the Predator Drift Team — Alexey Kozlov, Ilya Polischuk and Alexander Abramov — paved the way for their colleagues in the tournament with their successful example. Following them at ADM Raceway, Ilya Fedorov and Alexander Tsapelik competed in the legendary Volga GAZ-24. Four representatives of the «junior series» have once again been declared at Moscow Raceway.
One of the intriguing debuts will be the second Flanker F, driven by Arthur Zeleny, representing the STAR PЁR STARS AIMOL team. For the first time in the RDS GP season 2024, two Russian hypercars developed by Sergei Kabargin will take the start line. The debut trip to the RDS GP of the newly formed Shabanyata team may be no less interesting. As the name implies, the team’s mentor is the leader of the personal competition and RDS GP 2024 debutant Artem Shabanov, who feels comfortable in the role of a “playing coach”. Georgy Bibaev, Kirill Matskevich and Egor Gubin will perform as part of “Shabanyat” at Moscow Raceway. All three have already proven themselves in RDS Europe and will now try to loudly make a name for themselves in the “senior” series.
RDS GP 2024 Judging Panel
Over the course of seven stages of the 2024 season, the performance of the Russian Drift Series Grand Prix athletes in qualifications and paired races will be assessed by professional judges Anton Novikov, Vladimir Safonov and Stanislav Dolgikh. All three have extensive experience in both judging and drifting.
Schedule for the 5th stage of the RDS GP 2024 at the Moscow Raceway:
August 10, Saturday
- 09:00-10:00 – training
- 10:30-14:45 – qualifying
- 15:50-16:50 – opening ceremony and autograph session
- 16:30-19:00 – TOP-32 paired races
August 11, Sunday
- 09:30-11:00 – training
- 11:30-12:30 – pilots’ parade and autograph session
- 13:00-15:00 – TOP-16 paired races
- 16:30-18:30 – TOP-8/TOP-4/final paired races
- 18:30-19:00 – award ceremony
You can follow the events on the track both from the stands of the Moscow Raceway circuit and live on the RDS TV platform – qualifying races can be watched for free after registration, and paired races will be available by subscription.
About the Moscow Raceway track
The Moscow Raceway circuit became the first European-level track in Russia. Opened in 2012, the track is certified according to the FIA Grade 1 (International Automobile Federation) and FIM B (International Motorcycle Federation) categories, which allows the circuit to host Formula 1 and World Superbike races.
Over the entire existence of the circuit, it has hosted stages of the leading international series DTM, WSBK, World Series by Renault, FIA WTCC, FIA GT, Blancpain Series, as well as the Russian RDS GP, RCRS, RSBK, Russian Endurance Challenge and TRD Endurance.
RDS GP statistics on the «reverse» configuration of Moscow Raceway
2022 year
- Qualification: Georgy Chivchyan (98 points)
- Top 3 pair races: Roman Tivodar (winner), Arkady Tsaregradtsev, Andrey Astapov
2023
- Qualification: Anton Kozlov (96 points)
- Top 3 pair races: Vladislav Popov (winner), Timofey Dobrovolsky, Evgeny Losev