Please print and read carefully these rules. Contact us if you have any questions about it.
What is drifting?
Drifting is a high-skill level motor-sport in which drivers control a car while it slides from side to side at high speed (approx. 110 to 140kph) through a fixed course. It is similar to Rally racing on ice barn, but is done on a tarmac (paved course) and judged on speed, angle of attack, execution and style rather than just who finishes the fastest. Drift cars are typically compact to midsized, rear-wheel-drive sport cars. The goal is to apply enough power to the rear wheels to break the tires' traction and initiate a slide while accelerating the vehicle forward, or "drift" Once a drift is initiated, it must be maintained through the turn using nearly a full power, a tap of braking and precise counter steering.
RULES 2012
0. Race number, Sponsors & Car looking
Top front windshield has to be free of sticker to put the mandatory KOE front banner including race number for all season 2012. All sponsors stickers has to be applied around the car. Car must have full body parts, must have professional and nice looking. No exception will be made.
1. Wheels
Factory wheels may be replaced with aftermarket wheels. All bots must fix the wheel.
2. Suspension
Suspension upgrades are allowed.
3. Body
Aftermarket body panels, bumper covers and wings are permitted.
4. Fuel
Any grade of automotive gasoline may be used for fuel. Competition use approved fuel cells are strongly recommended.
Fuel filler caps must be securely fastened so as not to open on impact. NO FUEL LEAKS OF ANY KIND WILL BE TOLERATED.
5. Brakes
Brake bias modifications and controllers are permitted.
Brake systems including caliper, rotor & pads, lines, fluid and pedals must be in good shape and working condition.
6. Engine
Engines are open for modification or replacement. All drain plugs must be securely fastened. NO FLUID LEAKS OF ANY KIND WILL BE TOLERATED.
7. Electric
Master electrical cut-off switches is mandatory and should clearly be marked if fitted outside the vehicle.
8. Seat
Drivers seat must be equipped with four mounting points seat or better. Racing type safety harness of nylon web, at least2 inches in width, with a metal buckle. Shoulder harness must be an H type not Y type harness. Original OEM safety belt also tolerated if not modifed. Safety Harness must be securely bolted to the frame. During competition, both driver and passenger door windows must be in a up position (closed position).
9. Driver
Drivers must be fitted with safety helmets. Drivers have to wear full lenght suits, full length Socks, Shoes, and Gloves (strongly advised to be made of approved fire resistance material Nomex, Kynol, etc.) with no holes in single or double layers. Underwear should be cotton based, or fire resistance, not nylon.
10. Leak
Catch tanks must be installed and securely fastened. NO FLUID LEAKS OF ANY KIND WILL BE TOLERATED.
11. Hook
Functional and visible tow hooks must be installed on both front and rear of vehicle.
12. Lights
All cars must have at least 1 visible working brake light.
13. Body
All hoods and deck lids must be adequately and securely fastened.
14. Batteries
Batteries must be securely fastened down, positive terminals well insulated and if located in the cockpit must be covered or have leak proof caps.
15. Exhaust
Every car must maintain an exhaust system with no risk of fire.
16. Soft Top
Soft Top vehicle (Convertible) must have a solid hard top or full size roll cage.
17. Roll cage
Roll cage are mandatory. Well known brand are advised like OMP, overall security check of the roll cage will be done at tech inspection. 1 wildcard to enter race can be given in case of issue at first time inspection of the year, meaning you can only enter 1 round without roll cage.
18. Automatic extinguisher (new for 2012)
Automatic extinguisher system with internal and external activation triggers is mandatory.
Example of kit : http://www.driftworks.com/shop/car-parts/safety/fire-extinguishers/2-25l-plumbed-in-fire-extinguisher-kit.html
19. 5 minutes rules
When the process of battle is started and the first car is on the start line. First car should not wait the second car more than 5 minutes on the start line. Whatever the battle to be run : warmup, 1st battle, 2nd battle or one more time battle. This rule is not applicable when the problem come from local organisation (traffic jam in paddock, tire machine overloaded, etc..). This 5 minutes rule is only applicable once with same opponent.
20. Wildcard
1 wildcard to enter race can be given in case of issue at first time inspection of the year with one of the rules, meaning you can only enter 1 round without fitting to the rules, wildcard will be issued only for minor issues.
21. Team championship and pointing system by team
The team championship is not to be confused with team drifting. Our new team championship is to be compared to F1 manufacturers championship. A team is composed of 2 drift cars and during all season we will add the individual points of these 2 drivers to the team. At the end of the season, the best team will be declared "King of Europe Team champion". A cup for the best team of the week-end will be offered at every King of Europe event. Changing team during the season is not allowed.
22. One more time battle rule "sudden death style"
Drivers are getting better and better and number of "one more time" is getting higher years after years, so from 2011, we will have only 1 "one more time" twin battles (3rd and 4th Battles). In case of equal points after these 4 battles, we will only go 1 by 1 as a sudden death battle. The highest qualified driver will be leader of the first "sudden death battle", sudden death battle will continue only if the score is 5-5.
23. Slow drift penalty
During qualification we will put speed gun on the fastest corner (usually the first one) to take your best qualification speed. When twin battle come, as a leader of the battle, your speed can't be 10% slower than in qualification, if so, you will get sanctionned by a 0 point. Also as a leader, slow drifting tactic to make understeer or spin your opponent will get as well a 0 point. We only expect high speed and full throttle battle!
24. Low angle penalty
Drift is angle, during twin battle, follower has to follow leader with same angle or better angle. If follower lower his angle in order to higher the speed to keep up with leader, follower will loose point. If follower also use that technique to overtake, it will not be considered as real overtake and follower will get point penalty.
25. ZERO point rules
As a reminder you will be awarded of 0 point in these cases :
* spin (in qualification or battle), passing finish line while starting to spin and spin after finish line will be considered as a spin
* getting overtaken (in battle)
* being 10% slower than in qualification on first corner (in battle)
* voluntarily slowing drift during battle (in battle)
* playing dirty tactic (in battle)
* 4 wheels off the track (in qualification or battle)
* major understeer (in qualification or battle)
* voluntarily touching the opponent (in battle)
26. Live video recording for judging
During twin battle, an additional judge will be dedicated to live video recording of the 2 battles. Every battle run will be recorded in 2011, and judges will review it immediatly if necessary during a very tight battle.
27. Standing burnout and respectful spirit
Driver doing standing burnout leading to permanent damages to the track or having any other kind of non-respectful spirit during the competition, will be immediatly excluded from the event and will get no point at this event whatever result he had already achieved.
28. Judging info - Qualifications and Telemetry
Each run is judged on four criterias : Speed, Line, Angle, and Impact. Only the best run counts!
Speed is the amount of speed the driver is able to carry through the entire course, not only judging the entry speed but the real overall average speed. Maximum points are awarded for high speed entry and consistent speed through the entire course. Telemetry system give us your entry speed and your global average speed.
Line is the ideal path a vehicle must take on course and is marked by inside Clipping Points and oustide Clipping Points. Inside Clipping Point are points on the course where the vehicle’s front bumper should come as close as possible to this point. Outside Clipping Points are also reference points and scored by determining how close the corner of the vehicle’s rear bumper comes to the point. Telemetry record the line of each driver in qualification and will give exact distance from each clipping point. Perfect line means also perfect drift, any understeering or other technical mistake will remove points from your line points.
Angle measures the amount of counter-steer and relative rear slip angle a driver uses through the course. Telemetry record, attack angle at the start of drifting and averagle angle through the course.
Impact is the general feel of the pass. This is the most subjective criteria and judges will look at the spectators for the most “excitement” that the driver can bring.
Drivers should be able to demonstrate full control of the car at all time. Telemetry give up to 30 points in speed, up to 30 points in angle, up to 30 points in line. Judges give 10 points for the show. Spins, major under-steer or 4 wheels off track at any point during the pass results in an automatic zero (0) score. Best qualification score will get 20 points extra at the championship!!! (40 points in final round!)
29. Judging info - Twin Battle
Because professional drifting events are judged on execution and style, it is mandatory that the judges are intimately familiar with the capabilities of the cars and the advanced driving techniques employed by the competitors. Twin Battles are based on two runs, in 1-on-1 format, with competitors paired up based on seeding position (Top16 or Top32). The higher qualifier will lead the first run and the second led by the lower qualifier. The critical success factor is for the lead car to be able to run the course at high speed and full throttle (as described in rule #23) without error while being pressured by the following car. The following car is to try and “out drive” the lead car with at least same angle or better angle. Driver consistency during a tandem battle is critical. Most of the time a driver loose the battle due to its own mistakes (hitting cones, going out of the track, understeer) rather than being just overpushed by the follower...
Lead Car must be able to clear the course without making any errors due to distraction or pressure by the following car. Clippoints are only used in qualification and not in battle. Qualification with clippoints show the audience the skills driver has, to fully control his car and put it where the clippoints line is. Battle without clippoint show the audience the skills driver has, to push the car to the limit on its own racing line and with pressure of the opponent.
Following car needs to run as good as the lead car, means in the first step to keep SAME angle as leader but may also put pressure on the lead driver. The following car should keep as close to the lead car as possible to gain the advantage. If the following car come back with more speed but LESS angle, this will not be considered as 5-5. Overtaking using that technique is not considered as overtake and follower will have penalty (as described in rule #24)
Live telemetry will give average angle of both drivers and average distance between the 2 cars, so it is very important for the follower to keep as close as possible to the leader from start to finish line. Live telemetry can give also entry speed in case of suspicion about rule #23.
Passing is an extra during twin battles. You should only pass if the lead car slow down too much or is out of the track line. Passing must be executed in a safe and professional manner. Passing must be done while in drift, without the interrupting the line of the car being passed and in the proper line. If a pass result in contact, the passing car may be penalized depending of the real circumstances. Following car should be focused on drifting and pushing the leader not only focused on overtaking, this would be a MAJOR mistake and would most of the time result in the understeer of following Car.
Collisions might occur during twin battle and in the event of contact, the driver at fault will lose the battle. Judges are the only persons who will decide who is the faulty driver.
Pace Zone can be marked with a cone or comparable marker and may be placed on the starting straightaway to keep the twin battles fair and close together. The use of a Pace Zone will be specified during the drivers’ meeting.
Twin Scoring will be observed by the judges during the head-to-head battle. Each leg will be scored on a 10 points sharing (5-5, 6-4, 7-3), the pointing is based on the rules stated above. At the conclusion of the head-to-head battle, judges will declare a winner from three options:
1. Driver “A” wins
2. Driver “B” wins
3. One more Time
In the event there is no clear majority, a “One More Time” will be granted, and the competitors will begin another 2-run head-to-head battle on a sudden death style battle. After 4 battles, sudden death battle will happen (not applicable for final battle). The highest qualified driver will be leader of the first "sudden death battle" (as described in rule #21).
All judging, video recording and live telemetry analysis will be done from the judging tower
We strongly advise drivers to use good tactics such as putting pressure on an opponent through a more aggressive drift angle, carrying a higher speed through a corner, and showing good strategy on the second battle according to the result of the first battle. Judges are thoroughly familiar with the capabilities of each competitor's car and if the driver is not pushing the car to the limit, they will be eliminated from the round.
30. Claim
Claim is only accepted before next battle start (your battle or next 2 drivers), stop your car on the track and come to the judges directly. Due to timing and battles going on, any other way of claiming can't be accepted. We will review your claim, explain our decision and show you video and telemetry data if necessary.
31. Professional looking
We expect only profesionnal looking cars at King of Europe especially with our 2012 worldwide TV broadcasting. Work well this winter on the look of your car, it is very important also for yourself and your sponsors and as you can see on the left side on the picture below, you don't need fully sponsored car to get a nice looking car, just find the right theme and go for it! Dirty looking car wiil be a reason for not passing inspection.
Not only car is important but driver's look and paddock's look also, everybody want to go high in the drift so look professional first! Same rules like the car, an amateur look for the driver can be a reason for not passing inspection during registration.
32. Pointing system
Registration at one event : 20 points (for final round : 40 points)
1st Ranking in Qualification : 20 points (for final round : 40 points)
Best 16 or 32 drivers (depending on driver registration numbers) will advance to the Top16 / Top32 and will earn the following points :
1/16 Final : 20 points
1/8 Final : 30 points
1/4 Final : 50 points
4th Place : 70 points
3rd Place : 80 points
2nd Place : 90 points
Winner : 100 points
ATTENTION : Points at the final round are double!!!!!!
