Paweł Korpuliński is the 2026 Drift Masters European Champion. The Polish driver sealed his first title at the Red Bull Drift Masters Grand Finale inside Warsaw’s PGE Narodowy stadium on 11–12 September, finishing the season on 509 points in his Nissan S14.
A two-man Polish title fight
The finale opened as a straight fight between two Poles. Five-time champion Piotr Więcek led the standings on 436 points, with Korpuliński 22 points behind. Whoever won, the crowd was almost guaranteed a home champion — the only question was whether it would be Więcek’s sixth title or Korpuliński’s first.
Korpuliński answered it in the bracket. He beat Duane McKeever in the semi-final with two composed runs, and by then the points were already beyond his rivals’ reach. Więcek finished third on the night after beating Korpuliński in the battle for the last podium spot.
Shanahan wins the battle, Korpuliński the war
Waiting in the final was Conor Shanahan — the same rival Korpuliński had faced in the 2025 Warsaw final. The Irishman, defending champion, took the round win in his Toyota GT86, but the evening belonged to the man in the Nissan. James Deane had topped qualifying.
A breakthrough season
Korpuliński’s year was built on steady results and a big mid-season breakthrough, including his first Drift Masters round win at Mondello Park in Ireland, and he became the first Pole ever to lead the series heading into a round. His podium at PGE Narodowy in 2023 now feels like the beginning of this story.
The Warsaw show also brought two Red Bull RB7 Formula 1 cars into the stadium for a doughnut showdown against a drift car — a reminder of why the Grand Finale is billed as the biggest drifting event on the planet.
Lead image is illustrative. Photo: Alex Eddit / Wikimedia Commons (CC0).