RANCHO CUCAMONGA, Calif. (Nov. 13, 2013) — Falken Tire Corp. is inviting fans and video gamers to help design its 2014 Formula Drift entry, ahead of the launch of the Forza Motorsport 5 Xbox One videogame.
Falken said the contest — accessible via its Facebook page — continues its strong relationship with Microsoft Corp., whose Forza Motorsport 5 game is considered the best-rated videogame racing franchise of the past 10 years. The new version is slated to be released Nov. 22 for the new Xbox One games and entertainment system. Falken said.
In anticipation of the launch, Falken said Forza Motorsport 5 will be at the heart of a nine-week promotional effort that will encourage gamers and Falken customers from around the world to submit their design for the new Subaru BRZ competition car that will be driven by 2011 Formula D Champion Daijiro "Dai" Yoshihara for the 2014 drift season.
"Falken Tire is again reaching out to the Forza online community to ask people to create their own one-of-a-kind Falken livery for Team Falken's new Subaru BRZ," said Nick Fousekis, Falken's director of motorsports marketing. "We are asking players to submit their Forza 5 Motorsport screenshot-based designs to Falken Tire's Facebook page."
"The winning design will live on (Mr. Yoshihara's) Subaru BRZ for the entire season," said Jonathon Bradford, Team Falken's Formula Drift supervisor. "Being a part of this very important network of Forza Motorsport players is key to building awareness of our brand as well as the Formula Drift Championship.
"We suspect there's a very strong crossover among fans and participants of both sports, and they're also likely Falken customers."