Matt Field's driving style is aggressive with just enough style to make him a fan favorite. He's driving a 270hp sr20 s13. |
A racers' driving styles is as unique as their personality, it's in fact an expression of the individual's character. For San Jose, California native, Matt "Mofo" Field, it's about controlled aggression and precision and just enough flair to make people stop down and take notice. Matt Field regularly displays the kind of talent that has people convinced that once he fits all the square and round pegs into the proper holes, he'll be a consistent force to reckon with.
"This is my 4th year in Formula Drift," Field said. "This season we have already made it to the top-32 once, top-16 three times, and we've had one top-8. We have gone against champions from previous years and won. We have faced many great drivers and we've won some and lost some. And I am always very excited to see what the next event has in store has in store for us."
The AEM sponsored driver Matt Field is finishing more consistently towards the top with each passing round this season. |
Matt Field was introduced to competitive level motorsports at a very young age, riding Honda ATV's at the age 4, and 1/4 midget racecars at the age eight. Before he was legally old enough to drive on the street, he raced competitively, as the co-driver of his father's off-road race truck. To date, the father/son team has brought home over 30 wins and four championships.
"I have always had a competitive spirit and drifting proved to be no different," explains Field regarding his move into drifting." My first competition was a local event at Altamont Raceway. I placed 3rd and knew I couldn't stop there. I began making the long trek down to So Cal to compete in Just Drift. My first competition I entered down there I ended up winning. All the promoters of the event told me to come back next year and run a full season. So I did, and in doing that I earned my Formula Drift license. Long Beach here we come."
Matt Field learned quickly that in Formula Drift power is the name of the game. |
Matt Field's Formula Drift debut was in 2010 at the Long Beach event. "I had never even been to a Formula Drift event before that," he said. "I went out there with my 270hp sr20 in my s13 and thought I would do well. Big mistake. I learned quickly that power is the name of the game. A bigger turbo made some more power, and I instantly went from not qualifying, to qualifying every round I entered. I finished out the season strong with my first top 16 at Irwindale."
Last season at Irwindale, Matt Field put together the kind of performance that clearly illustrated what he's capable of when everything meshes together at the right moment. It was Matt Field versus Diago Siato, in a ridiculously dramatic elimination rounds showing, where he came within a tire smoke plum of eliminating the 2012 champion in the final round with two "One More Time" rounds. That evening the crowd went wild, stomped the stands and the news buzzed around the globe.
In a follow-run, Matt Field knows to keep pressure on his opponent. |
This year Matt Field recently went toe-to-toe with Vaughn Gittin Jr. in Formula Drift round 4 in New Jersey, finishing his day with a strong follow-run behind the drifting icon. "We finished with our heads held high," remarked Field after the event. "JR is a really great driver, in an amazing car, so it feels good to be able to be that close in drift to him. We were able to maintain the pressure during the follow-run, and it just made the team and I feel amazing. They were stoked because we built a car that can do what we want it to do, and I was happy that I was able to put the car where it needed to be. The key to a good follow-run is to initiate drift at the same time and to continue to pressure the lead driver. Letting them know you are there, knocking on the door. The more pressure you can put on them, the better it looks for the follow driver."
"This year has been a huge improvement for the team and me. We went from worrying about qualifying each round, to worrying about making it into top-16. The season had its ups and downs, but with a more competitive car, we made up huge ground. We improved from a 33rd finishing position, to a 19th finishing position in the year round points."
"2012, was more than a struggle for us. Since I did not have the funding to do much to the car, I kept the same engine. Didn't rebuild it, just put it back in and ran. The engine was tired, that was for sure, but we didn't have any options. The season was already going better for us, but we were just plagued with car issues. Small things kept us from the top. This last season, even with all the parts failures, we were still able to improve."
The AEM sponsored driver and his Reckless Drift Krew just completed round 5 at Evergreen Speedway in Monroe, Washington as this story was ready to post. Heading into the event Matt Field commented, "We have never had an easy bracket setup to get to the top, and I don't expect this round will be any different. We are ready though, and out for blood." Field ended his day in Monroe with another top-16 finish.
Matt Field uses an AEM Dryflow Universal air filter in his Nissan Silvia S13 due to its high flow and high filtration efficiency. 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. |
