FROM left, Lateral Drift Productions president Charlie Cruz, Hyundai Asia Resources Inc. chair of the board Edward Go, Hari president and CEO Ma. Fe Perez-Agudo, John Boban for pro division third placer Audel Sison, pro division overall champion Gio Rodriguez, Jason Choachuy for pro division second placer Alex Perez, and Ramon Anthony Rayos and Ronnie Trinidad from Lateral Drift Productions
After six rounds of race weekends, the Hyundai Lateral Drift Pro-Am Championship Series 2013 held its final round separating the country’s best drift drivers from the rest last Nov. 30 at the Megatent in Libis, Quezon City. In the series’ eighth season, the level of drift competition heated up and so did the level of judging. The organizers of the Hyundai Lateral D Championship invited professional drift couples Hiromi Kajikuma and Kimihiro Obata from Japan, the drifting capital of the world, to serve as the series’ guest judges for all the six rounds.
Last Monday, Hyundai Asia Resources Inc. (Hari) conference hall in Bonifacio Technology Center at Bonifacio Global City, Hari chair Edward S. Go and president and CEO Ma. Fe Perez-Agudo, together with Lateral Drift Productions Inc. president Charlie Cruz, presented the awards to the season’s top performers.
“Pilipinas Got Talent” Season 4 finalist Gio Rodriguez, who was a consistent top contender, placed first in the pro division over six-time champion Alex Perez while another veteran, Audel Sison, placed third.
Rodriguez dominated this year’s pro division, winning three out of six rounds. In the amateur division, Mark Bernardo took the top award. He also bagged the “Rookie of the Year” title. He was followed by EJ Malibiran and Rob Tan for second and third place, respectively.
Agudo said: “As we promote Filipino motorsport champions with international clout, we raise Hyundai as a brand to contend with in the world of motorsports and affirm how our cars’ Modern Premium features exceed the expectations, not just of discriminating city drivers, but also of the toughest motorsports contenders.”
Elantra Cup Race Series
During the awarding ceremony, Agudo also announced its first one-make race series for its Elantra sedan, adding that Hari looks forward to an even more “high-energy” Season 9 of the Hyundai Lateral Drift Series, as well as a surprise announcement of Hyundai’s participation in a new one-make race dubbed as the “Hyundai Elantra Cup” with the objective of driving greater awareness and creating a bigger fan base for local motorsports. The Elantra was the recipient of the prestigious 2011-2012 Car of the Year-Philippines. With its network of 41 dealers nationwide, Hari is ranked the third largest automotive brand in the country.
“We are looking at the first quarter (2014) for the Elantra Cup and definitely it is going to be very exciting, we hope that the motoring media as well as the Lateral Drift enthusiasts will be there to support us. I am pretty sure it is going to be a very successful event again, especially that it is going to be in support of the Hyundai i20 joining the World Rally Championship next year. So Hyundai has joined the motorsports arena, and that is the reason why in the Philippines we must and we will also be part of that global success,” Agudo said.
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