Bringing you another installment in a series of posts covering Final Bout 7. Yes, I know, it’s been months since the event. However, I don’t want to just post photo-dumps from events. This is a blog, so I feel like I need to take the time to write, which ends up taking me forever to finish. I promise I’ll get faster at some point.

With that being said, lets take a look at some of the best shots I took while wandering around the pits. For the camera nerds out there, these were all taken on a Sony Alpha A6400 with a 50mm 1.8 prime lens. I have to say, investing in decent camera equipment is paying off.

Max Gemmel (@max_goldstar) from Gold Star transported his S13 all the way across the country along with the cars from Run-Up! to drive Final Bout. I’ve never been a fan of the matte paint look (which I’ve never seen in white), but he managed to pull it off. I think the full Uras GT aero kit and the carbon accents and diffusers are the key to making it work. If the wild exterior wasn’t enough to pique your interest, under the hood you’ll find a NA K24 conversion and a BMW ZF mission.

Bryan Dela Cruz’s (@runupdc) 180SX is pretty easy to take really good pictures of. Tripled-chromed Blitz 03s definitely contribute to it being so photogenic. Bryan sent it on the track too, despite the fact that those wheels could cover the down-payment on a house.

Nic Michuda (@n_michuda) brought out his Elixir kitted Altezza. Those aren’t weld on metal flares in the rear. The factory quarters weren’t actually hammer-pulled like they do in Japan. With a VVT 1JZGTE and Garret G25-660 under the hood it moves as good as it looks.

Joey Gonzalez’s (@joeyup) 180SX rounded out the trio of very clean and classy cars from Run-Up! He was no slouch in the wheel department either with his car sporting a set of pretty rare Panasport G7 C5C2s.

Jimmy Yates (@jyw0rld) from Essence managed to steal an S13 Silvia from Meihan and ship it from Japan to Wisconsin just in time for Final Bout. All joking aside, his new S13 looks amazing and seems like an interesting compliment to the R32 sedan he has been drifting for years. I’ll be heading to Texas at some point in 2025 to cover a round of the series he run there, Knuckle Up so stay tuned for that.

Although he may not look it, Derek Bianski (@breakingbianski) from Breaking is one of the OGs of drifting in the US. The majority of that time has been behind the wheel of his now legendary FD RX-7. Every year he seems to step up the game styling-wise, but 2025 is going to be a game changer. I think I might need to convince him to do a build update some time soon…

Derek’s FD is a really hard car to get a shot of unless it’s out of the direct sun. All the luminous accents reflect so much light it washes everything out. Then, when it’s in shade the luminous bits don’t look nearly as “neon” as they do in person. I had to fiddle with the color vibrance on this shot to get it even close.

Jon Lewis (@jonxxlewis) is the youngest member of Breaking, but certainly not the shiest. They scored high enough in the team comp to make it into the individual comp, and Jon was quick to volunteer to take on the vet Leigh Roto from Proceed. In the end he was outgunned in his turbo KA24 240SX, but he put up an admirable fight.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, Jordan Tippman’s (@jordantippmann) Breaking C33 Laurel is a perfect street drift car. It’s comfortable, reliable and he makes big upgrades only when it starts to hold his driving back. It’s a lesson to young guys that feel like they need to build a fully stripped, caged and wisefab’d car out of the gate.

Like Bianski, Derek King (@dearderekking) is another one of the OGs of US drifting, and his big power FD RX-7 is one of the 20 cars he seems to own. It seemed to run flawlessly throughout the weekend despite the lack of a side-brake. I think over the weekend Breaking managed to remind people how well they can drive together.

Matt Degroot (@illmatic.bs) from Bayside has certainly figured out how to nail early 2000s Japanese styling. He designed and cut all the livery himself at Reveal Design Shop (@reveal.ds). He’s also responsible for a lot of the design work for Final Bout.

Trace Butow (@trace.is) from Gleam has moved on from his absolutely slammed JZX90 Mark-II to an immaculate S14 Silvia. White Advan AVS Model 6s on a black car is a great combo.

Yusef from Thrash Racing (@thrashracing) was in-attendance as both a sponsor and vendor. I’m not sure if there’s another instance where an American successfully revived a defunct Japanese brand like Thrash. The best part is they’ve managed to stay true to the original Thrash design aesthetic while increasing the catalog.

Jacob DeGayner (@muse_ferrigno) from Muse is putting a lot on the line when he takes his S14 out on track. I think he may have called Car Modify Wonder and said, “I’ll take everything”. Like the other Muse cars, his S14 is sitting on mint Volk Racing GT-Cs. The paint color reminds me of the old Supermade cars, but a sort-of candy version of it.

Bosstown (@bosstown.cc) brought out a trio of very clean 180SXs. I’m not sure who own the one above, but the shot came out too nice to not include. If anyone wants to DM me on Instagram (@run.matsuo) I’ll be happy to update this with the owner’s info.

Previous to Final Bout, I’d seen pictures of Chris (@lvl60mew) from Oblivion’s 180SX. I didn’t realize it was running a CA18DET until I ran across it in the pits getting repaired (diff issue, I think). Obviously, the correct choice in engine made me like it even more. I was wondering why it sounded so much better on track than all the SR20 cars…

Collin (@collindoesdrifting) from Oblivion has been a pretty damn period correct (early 2000s) S13. The Blitz wheels, aluminum GT wing, Euro-tails, rolled/pulled factory fenders, bricks, Ganadors, Bride bucket and vented hood are certainly the right recipe.

Alexi from Noriyaro was in attendance as a special guest. I don’t think he realized how popular he had become among US drift fandom as he was getting stopped frequently for autographs or to have a chat. We spent a bit of time reminiscing about the good ‘ole days of drifting in Japan. Very nice guy.

You don’t see two-tone S13s with full aero very often. Brian Werner (@jerk705) from Ghost pulled it off with SR20 Silvia triple projectors and Gram Light 57DR.

Sebastian Suaza (@cerebulanebula) from Garage Moon Power and Koruworks spent the last few years putting together one of the more interesting drift cars in the US. It’s an amalgamation of multiple styles and influences from Japan. To top it off there’s a K24 under the hood along with a ton of fabrication he did himself.

Simba Nyemba’s (@ggsimba) S13 has gone through various looks over the years. The blue color change and new Procced livery is probably the best yet.

Josh Maghirang (@revgasm) 180SX has become pretty legendary over the years. I'll admit, I love seeing him run the uber-rare Ikeya Formula aero kit, but M-Sport looks great too along with the new Proceed livery.

Leigh Roto (@terboboost) spent years behind the wheel of an A70 Supra before eventually moving on to this BRZ. The power output got a significant bump by way of an HKS GTIII-RS turbo kit. He also recently added Origin-Labo’s new full aero kit to go along with the new Proceed livery for 2024.

That wraps up this post. Stay tuned as I’ll be throwing up mini-features on specific cars from the event.