GRIDLIFE Summer Apex Returns to Road America at Full Throttle
Drifting, live music, and more than 300 drivers combine for a genre-blurring festival weekend.
ELKHART LAKE, WI (July 24, 2025)- As the Summer hits its stride, Road America is set to host one of the most diverse and dynamic events on its 2025 schedule for the second time.
After an impressive debut in 2024, GRIDLIFE Summer Apex, the high-octane mashup of motorsports and music, returns to the legendary 640-acre facility July 25–27 for a second act that promises to be bigger, rowdier and louder than last year.
It’s only the second time the Festival has touched down at Road America, but last year’s debut felt like a generational shift for the nearly 70-year-old circuit. GRIDLIFE made history in 2024 as the first to bring drifting to the legendary course, turning the sprawling Motorplex into a tire-shredding playground while packing the grandstands and hillsides with record-breaking crowds for the series. For a venue known for tradition, it was a thunderclap of something new.
This year, GRIDLIFE isn’t just back, it’s doubling down.
The cars are faster. The grid is deeper. And the music? It’s expanded to host even more artists.
MORE MUSIC
Positioned in the heart of the carousel, the all-new custom-built NOS Energy Drink Main Stage will bring heavy energy Friday and Saturday with top artists Disco Lines, Of The Trees, Flosstradamus, Jon Casey, Cofresi, Able Grey, and Aspen, plus more. After the main stage, the Laser Woods after-party lights up nestled in the trees near Canada Corner, featuring Sippy & Nikita, the Wicked. All this plus pop-up sets at the podium and more.
The weekend's audio overload continues deep into the woods with the Laser Woods Stage on-site afterparty, where late-night DJ sets and immersive visuals will light up the forest floor on Friday and Saturday after midnight.
And the beats won’t quit just because the sun is out, as fans can also catch local DJ sets in the Turn 5 Terrace and the Podium Stage throughout the weekend. (Full list of artists here)
MORE RACING
GRIDLIFE has never just been about the music. By day, the event unleashes a high-horsepower onslaught of track action headlined by more than 300 drivers:
More than 20 hours of full-course drifting across both the Briggs and Stratton Motorplex and Road America’s iconic 4.048-mile ribbon of asphalt with a total of 90 drifters entered
Eibach GRIDLIFE Touring Cup (GLTC) fields topping 50 drivers in elbows-out sprint races that reward finesse and pace in equal measure
New for 2025, the GRIDLIFE Grand Touring Cup (GLGT) expands on the success of GLTC with a faster formula that features a power-to-weight ratio that is (9:1) designed for both pro-level homologated cars and custom builds.
GRIDLIFE TrackBattle Time Attack where some of the fastest cars in North America chase the clock in short bursts of precision.
A return appearance by the GRIDLIFE Rush Series, bringing open-cockpit spec-class thrills that feel pulled from European road racing.
The debut of Fire Laps, GRIDLIFE’s new live data platform, delivering real-time lap times telemetry and leaderboard updates directly to fans.
This year’s guest driver lineup is stacked. From Formula Drift veterans to YouTube icons, the roster reads like a roll call of fan favorites all ready to throw down on the longest circuit of 2025.
Matt Coffman returns aiming to top his jaw-dropping 160+ mph entry from last year. Justin Pawlak and Vaughn Gittin Jr., the original duo to drift Road America’s main straight back in 2010, are back to reprise their roles in GRIDLIFE history. Ben Hobson makes his Road America debut behind the wheel for RTR while YouTuber and StanceWorks founder Mike Burroughs puts his one-of-a-kind Ferrari 244 GTK to the test in TrackBattle time attack.
Fans will also catch Cole Richards fresh off a win at Formula Drift Prospec New Jersey and Bucky Lasek, skateboard icon and Subaru rally driver, competing for Subimods in time attack. The list keeps going: Eric Magnussen, Travis Reeder, Jason Oehler, Eric Flemming, Allen Patten, TJ Hunt, Dewey DeWitt, Nate Hamilton, John Veloso, Luke McGrew, Andy Holst of Top Garage, Evan McLaren, Jonny Grunwald, Mike Janssen and Gregg Bucell. Rounding it out in the RUSH Series are seasoned pro James French and 19-year-old electric racing pioneer Ellis Spiezia.
MORE THINGS TO DO
There’s more to GRIDLIFE Summer Apex than just racing and music. From brand activations to arcade battles and RC drifting, from car corrals to community games, the festival fills every corner of Road America’s sprawling campus. And for the younger fans, KIDLIFE offers hands-on fun with toys and tie-dye in the arcade tent.
FCP Euro, Hyundai, Falken Tire, Eibach, TOYO Tires, Turn 14 Distribution, Lowend Garage, Subimods, Sunoco, GTechniq, Racetreads, MAPerformance, Radium, BC Racing and Haltech will all be on-site in and around the paddock with interactive fan activations.
Those looking to meet their favorite drivers can take part in the GRID Walk autograph sessions; Saturday from 12:10-12:40 p.m. and Sunday from 12:45-1:15 p.m. Drivers Vaughn Gittin Jr. and Ben Hobson will also host an autograph session at the RTR rig on Saturday at 3 p.m.
Tickets and camping are still available but moving fast. General admission tickets start at $49, and while most camping is sold out, a limited number of select sites remain. For the full schedule, lineup and last remaining passes, visit summerapex.com.