Michael Essa

Michael Essa
Nationality	United States
Born	Los Angeles, California
Formula D career
Debut season	2009
Current team	Essa Autosport
Car number	101
Wins	2
Best finish	1st in 2013
Championship titles
2013	Formula D

Michael Essa is an American drifter and racing driver who competed in the Formula D series, winning the championship in 2013 in a BMW M3.^[1][2]

Career

Essa started his career in autocross racing at the age of 16. He has also worked as a precision driver and advisor for the entertainment industry.

In 2009, Essa joined the Formula D drifting series roster. He has driven a variety of different cars in his drift career, including a Mazda RX-7, BMW E92 M3, BMW Z4 and a BMW E46 M3. He has won a championship and became the first privateer to become a Formula Drift Champion. In the 2015 season, Essa switched to a Chevrolet Camaro.^[3][4] Essa then switched back to a BMW E46 M3 for 2016 onwards.^[5]

In January 2023, Essa officially announced his departure from Formula D after 14 years.^[6] Since then he has become a part of Daily Driven Exotics^[7] YouTube channel, where he applies his skills and expertise on various projects such as rebuilding a modified McLaren 720S and applying custom modifications to Ferrari F12.

References

1. "Michael Essa". www.formulad.com. Retrieved 2023-04-12.
2. "Michael Essa wins the 2013 Formula Drift championship". 13 October 2013.
3. "Michael Essa Makes Camaro and SLP Sponsorship Official for 2015".
4. "Michael Essa Profile - Bio, News, High-Res Photos & High Quality Videos". www.motorsport.com. Retrieved 2023-04-12.
5. Korecki, Danny (4 April 2019). "This is what it's like riding shotgun in a tire shredding, 1,000 horsepower Formula Drift race car". CNBC. Retrieved 4 April 2019.
6. "Facebook". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 2023-04-14.
7. "Daily Driven Exotics YouTube Channel". youtube.com.