| Vaughn Gittin Jr. | |
|---|---|
 Gittin in 2013 | |
| Nationality |  United States |
| Born | (1980-09-20)September 20, 1980 (age 45) |
| Formula D career | |
| Debut season | 2004 |
| Current team | RTR Motorsports |
| Car number | 25 |
| Former teams | Falken Tire |
| Wins | 13 |
| Best finish | 1st in 2010, 2020 |
| Championship titles | |
| 2010 2020 | Formula D Formula D |
Vaughn Gittin Jr. (born September 20, 1980) is an Americandrifter, racing driver, and founder ofRTR Vehicles. He has competed in theFormula D series, winning the championship in2010 and2020, as well as in theD1 Grand Prix,Ultra4 USA, andNASCAR Canada racing series. Gittin is the owner and founder of the RTR Vehicles company and RTR Motorsports team, which has often collaborated with and been sponsored byFord andMonster Energy.[1]
He is credited with popularizing the use of American cars, specifically theFord Mustang, in drifting competition where the field formerly only consisted of turbochargedJapanese import vehicles.[2][3][4]
Gittin began racing in Formula D in the inaugural 2004 season, driving a self-builtNissan 240SX (S13), with sponsorFalken Tire.[5][6] He quit his job in information technology, and began pursuing drifting full-time.[7] In 2005, he began driving forTeam Falken in aFord Mustang GT (S197).[8] He finished in 4th place for the 2006 season.[9]
In 2010, Gittin announced he would be partnering with Monster Energy as his title sponsor.[10] Gittin won his first Formula Drift title in2010, with 2 event wins.
For 2013, Gittin formally announced the launch of his own RTR Drift Team.[11][12] He retained Monster Energy as his title sponsor, but this marked his departure from longtime tire sponsor and team partner Falken Tire to new sponsorNitto Tire.[13] Gittin was awarded the Ace Driver of the Decade title in 2013 to recognize an impressive competition record that saw him take more tandem battle victories than any other driver in 10 years of Formula Drift history.[14][15]
Gittin finished third in the Formula Drift Championship for the2016 season, after securing two victories in the season.[16] He also finished fourth in the2017 season after campaigning a brand-new engine program and two-car team.[17]
10 years after his first championship win, Gittin won the2020 championship, with a season that included 2 wins and 2 podium finishes.[18][19]
Gittin stepped back from Formula Drift after the 2021 season, withAdam LZ taking his place in the RTR Racing team lineup alongsideChelsea DeNofa.[20] He returned in2023 in a part-time capacity, driving for half the season and sharing a car with LZ. He scored an event win at Round 2.[21]
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Gittin also competed in theD1 Grand Prix All Star exhibition matches from2004 to2007. He won the USA vs Japan event in2005, and the All Star Duel event in2007.[5]
In 2016, Gittin began competing in the Ultra4 USA racing series at theKing of the Hammers. He went on to finish in the top 10 in his first appearance. In 2018, he won the East Coast Championship in the Ultra4 4500 Class. He finished in 7th place in the highest 4400 class in 2019, the highest finish of any crossover driver in series history.[22]
For 2014 and 2015, Gittin competed in NASCAR Canada.[23] He finished 14th out of 32 drivers in Québec in 2014, and he also finished in 5th place during his first Trans AM race at Road America in 2015.[22]
Gittin appeared as a guest driver alongside event creator and fellow Monster Energy teammateKen Block in hisGymkhana Grid event, from 2010 to 2012.[24][25] Thegymkhana exhibition event featured drift stunts, pyrotechnics, and obstacles such as barrels, tires, ship containers and tanks.[26]
Gittin startedRTR Vehicles in 2009, with RTR being an acronym for "Ready To Rock". RTR first announced the launch of a collaborative special edition of theFord Mustang entitled the Mustang RTR-C to be revealed at2009 SEMA Show, and limited in production to 10 vehicles.[27][28] Throughout the years, RTR has created aftermarket accessories, customization packages, and third-party special models for the Ford Mustang. This continued until 2025, when an official Ford Mustang RTR production model was announced in partnership with Ford, and later in 2026, a Ford Bronco RTR production model.[29][30]
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Gittin stated the purpose of launching the RTR brand in 2009 was to reinvigorate interest in the Ford Mustang for the younger generation, whose primary clientele was an aging demographic.[31][32] Noting the interest in low-displacement, high-boostimports, Gittin and Ford reasoned that the drifter's influence could help market the Mustang in a new way.[33][34]
In 2023, Ford partnered with Gittin and RTR Vehicles to develop a "Drift Brake" feature for theseventh-generation Mustang.[35] In lieu of a traditional hand brake actuated by a physical cable, this electronic parking brake in the Mustang's Performance Package can override the stability-controlled controller to lock the rear brakes with hydraulic line pressure.[36][37]
Gittin has appeared in multiple ad campaigns andviral video stunts for Ford and Monster Energy, such as the "Fire Drift" video[38][39], "Battle Drift" video withDaigo Saito[40], and "Drift King of the Ring" video drifting on theNürburgring race track.[41][42][43]
Gittin appears in the racing video gameShift 2: Unleashed, as a character which guides the player through their career and teaches the player how to drift.[44][45] He is also one of the rivals the player have to beat in two career modes, "Drift" and "Muscle".[46]
He also appears, in a smaller capacity, in the 2015 reboot ofNeed For Speed alongside fellow Monster Energy driver Ken Block for the "Style" portion of its storyline.[47]