Japfest, Ireland's biggest celebration of Japanese modified and tuner cars, is returning to Mondello Park racing circuit in County Kildare this Sunday, October 9, in what organisers say promises to be the best event yet.
Action on and off the track
As well as a stellar line-up of more than 500 JDM (Japanese Domestic Market) cars, including Nissan Skylines and Silvias, Mitsubishi Lancer Evos, Subaru Imprezas and Mazda MX-5s lined up on display and taking part in the Show & Shine, there'll be plenty of on-track action too.
The season finale of the 2022 Irish Drift Championship will take place at Mondello in the midst of Japfest, following on from the first round of the Drift Masters European Championship and the LZ drifting festival, which took place at the circuit earlier this year and attracted some of the biggest international names in the sport.
Expected to make an appearance at the event are some of the biggest names in Irish drifting, including James Deane and Dave Egan.
Explosion in drifting's popularity
"JDM car culture and drifting both in Ireland and abroad has continued to grow to levels previously unthought of, and Japfest 2022 will be a celebration of that fact," said Egan, a well-known drifter and the CEO of Drift Games, a company which provides drifting experiences at Mondello.
"With the last big car show of the year only days away, we're ready to blow the roof off Mondello Park one last time."
Egan's comments were echoed by Roddy Greene, the managing director at Mondello.
"This year's Japfest will be the best we have ever had, the level of competition within Irish Drifting and JDM cars continues to build year on year. Drifting in Ireland has exploded and we see that with the popularity of our events."
Some tickets still available
Single entry tickets for next Sunday's event are €25 for adults and children over eight years old, with tickets for children up to eight priced at €10. Grandstand tickets are now sold out; however, a limited number of tickets still remain available on Mondello's website. Spectator gates open at 10am.