Ubiquitous cameras are on hand to capture actor Tyrese Gibson as he dons a helmet and climbs into the passenger seat of an aftermarket-enhanced street racer. Getting in the machine next to him is a man by the last name of Walker. Gibson refers to him as his brother. In moments, the two cars are careening along an autocross course amidst a backdrop of billowing smoke—a cacophony of screaming engines and tires accompanies as soundtrack to the precise automotive choreography.
No, this isn’t a scene from the 2003 film 2 Fast 2 Furious, a star vehicle for Gibson that featured the late Paul Walker. This is FuelFest—a cross-generational celebration of car culture that Robb Report was on hand to witness at its Southern California edition in June. Next came Chicago about a month later, and the internal-combustion convergences take place again on September 19 in New Jersey. Started in 2019, FuelFest is a traveling exhibition that’s proving as endearing and enduring as its cinematic inspiration.
That’s not surprising, though, since the events are not only intended to rev enthusiasm for customized and highly tuned automobiles, but keep the philanthropic legacy of Paul Walker alive. For any who were fortunate to cross paths with the actor prior to his tragic passing in 2013, it was immediately clear that kindness was his defining quality, and he took a genuine interest in others.
“There was always a sense of urgency that Paul had to be kind and nice to everybody, everywhere he went,” Gibson tells Robb Report. “As if somehow he knew that something might happen.” Perhaps that sense of urgency was a factor that led Paul Walker to found Reach Out WorldWide, a nonprofit disaster-response organization, in 2010. It was also what eventually provided the call to action for his younger brother Cody, a trained paramedic.
“I was a paramedic for only about six months when Paul died,” says Cody Walker. “His charity, Reach Out WorldWide, was not set up to exist without him. He was funding all of the missions, all of the supplies, everything . . . so I didn’t know what I was doing, but I just felt compelled to try to figure it out. I was like, ‘you know, I want to make something fun, something that I enjoy, and I love this car stuff, and I’ve made some incredible friends in this space. Why don’t I create an event that brings everybody together? I can create something here, and we can donate a portion of the proceeds,’” recalls Walker about his thought process at the time. “I didn’t expect it to land the way that it did. I never expected that.”
Cody shared his “crazy idea” with Gibson over dinner at a Red Lobster, and the makings of FuelFest were forged. “FuelFest feels like a brand-new experience every single time,” says Gibson. “You see kids in diapers all the way up to 80-year-olds, all there—levels of diversity like nothing you’ll ever see, coming from all walks of life.” Equally varied are the vehicles presented, notes Gibson, who cites a range that includes a “Honda Accord that’s custom” to a “Lamborghini that cost $800,000.”
From home-garage projects to professional restorations to rarefied supercar examples from such marques as Bugatti, Ferrari, and McLaren, the array of dream machines is all-encompassing, and the atmosphere overwhelmingly welcoming. “Me and Cody, at a certain point, will end up on stage looking at 20,000 people,” mentions Gibson, still visibly moved by the fact that so many continue to embrace the familial bond the event fosters.
More than a car show, FuelFest has provided a stage for such names as Vin Diesel, Jason Statham, and Ludicrous, while the SoCal edition included a performance by Wyclef Jean to complement the more than 700 entries that were on display at the Orange County Fairgrounds in Costa Mesa. Yet, as with all the tour stops, the most popular and compelling element of the event was the drifting component, which attendees are welcome to experience as passengers (for an additional fee).
“We’re bringing to light a form of motorsport that’s very grassroots—drifting is very grassroots,” explains Walker. “You see a lot of these cars, and they’re not beauty queens, they are performance machines. We have pro drivers and semipro drivers,” he adds, noting how they “put their heart and their soul and every penny that they make into these cars.”
This Saturday, the New Jersey Motorsport Park, in Millville, N.J., will host FuelFest’s penultimate activation this year. Along with the de rigueur car show and attractions, there will also be what’s billed as the Globe of Death Motorcycle Stunt Show and Gazoo Racing drift karts. The 11-stop 2026 tour, which started in Qatar and included the United Kingdom and Japan, will culminate in Chandler, Ariz., on December 5.
Surprisingly, despite his role in the Fast & Furious franchise and the resultant persona fans project on him, Gibson is, admittedly, not interested in pursuing motorsport and had never been drifting. That is until the recent Southern California edition. “I told him, if I’m going around the track for the first time ever, you gotta come with me,” stated Gibson for the cameras as he stood next to Walker just prior to his wild ride. Naturally, Walker went too.
“I didn’t think we’d ever get him in a drift car,” says Walker of his brother in arms during a brief video shoot after the session. “He kept his word; he told me he would do it.” Walker then smiles at Gibson and asks; “Are you going to want to buy a drift car now?” Gibson’s reply is resolute. “No, that was the first and the last.”
The camaraderie between the two is infectious, permeating FuelFest. Pervasive, too, is the desire to give back, as evidenced by the fact that total donations to Reach Out WorldWide have currently topped $1 million. For those who attend, it’s also a collective remembrance of Paul and a heartfelt acknowledgment of the films themselves. After all, the combination helped younger generations discover, then continue to redefine, car culture for a new era.
Walker views FuelFest as “a living, breathing thing,” one that he plans to keep feeding. “There’s just a lot of different directions that we can go . . . each market is a representation of the local car scene there,” he mentions. “Every single year, we’re trying to up the ante. We’re one big family. This is a family event, and we only want good vibes . . . We seriously have the best crowd ever, and I just want to put the car community in the best light possible.” With Walker and Gibson among this motoring segment’s luminaries, that’s already a given.
Click here for more photos from the FuelFest tour.
