Watch Russian drifters slide tandem in 640 Evil Empire Flanker-F coupes

For once, a Russian car video is neither footage from a dash cam nor is it a vlog about some mechanic running a Volkswagen Golf on wheels made of melted Jolly Ranchers. From 29 Productions comes a beautifully and thrillingly shot drift video that features two mad Flanker-Fs flinging tire sprinkles all across St. Petersburg, Russia. Drivers Sergei Kabargin and Arkady Tsaregradtsev claim it’s the world’s first tandem drift in a live city. 

At first glance, the cars in “Flankers in the City” appear to be Zenvos, but that assumption would be incorrect. These are Flanker-F drift cars purpose-built by Evil Empire, one of Russia’s oldest drift teams. According to Speed Hunters, much of the car is made from carbon composite, inside and out. Under the hood, the car uses a tuned aluminum 7.3-liter V8 block from Racing Head Services. At one point, the car reportedly put down 640 horsepower and 560 lb-ft of torque at the wheels on a dyno. 

The name was chosen as a nod to an old Soviet-era jet aircraft. NATO’s codename for the Sukhoi Su-37 was Flanker-F, and this video proves the cars do the name justice. Kabargin and Tsaregradtsev open the four-minute clip discussing the value of Japanese engines versus American V8 power. When they hear a screech from outside, they are met by two edgy young’uns who treat the professional drivers like the valet and toss them the keys to two Flankers. That’s where the fun begins. 

Brilliantly filmed from land, sea and air vantage points (drones are the best thing to happen to car filming since the GoPro), the video follows Kabargin and Tsaregradtsev as they playfully game each other through the streets of St. Petersburg. Although the route was blocked off and authorities were notified for the shoot, there are still plenty of pedestrians standing by, which gives the run a “live” feel. Watch the full video above and learn more about the Flanker through the Evil Empire.