Drone Racing League (DRL) Pilots: Champions, Contenders and Where They Race Now

The best Drone Racing League pilot of the moment is still flying, just not in the DRL. Minchan “MCK FPV” Kim went into the league’s last event in February 2025 as defending world champion. In January 2026 he beat an autonomous drone in Abu Dhabi, and in October he won the MultiGP Championship in Texas. The DRL itself has not announced a race since.

This page lists every DRL world champion, the full field from the league’s most recent race, and what each pilot’s record tells you if betting markets ever return.

Where the Drone Racing League stands

The DRL launched publicly in 2016 and became the first aerial sport with a US sportsbook partner when DraftKings signed on in January 2021. Infinite Reality acquired the league in April 2024. Its next event, the DRL U.S. Air Force Miami Invitational, was a 12-pilot, one-night race at loanDepot park on February 1, 2025.

No DRL season or event has been announced since Miami. The league’s website still leads with that race. For now, DRL pilot records are history, not a live form guide.

DRL world champions

Jet’s 2016 win made him the first professional drone racing pilot. His 2017 title came at the season finale at Alexandra Palace in London, the first DRL race British bookmakers priced. HeadsUp later became the second pilot to win back-to-back world titles.

The last DRL field: Miami 2025

These 12 pilots were named for the Miami Invitational. Ages and details are as published by the league in November 2024.

Drone racing pilots to know

MCK FPV (Minchan Kim)

Won his first race at 12 and the DRL world title in his rookie season. In January 2026 he was the human pilot in A2RL’s Human vs AI final in Abu Dhabi. He beat TII Racing’s autonomous drone 5–4 in a best-of-nine after the AI clipped a gate on the decisive run, according to the organizers. Then on October 15–17, 2026, he won the MultiGP Championship in Carrollton, Texas.

HeadsUp

A Tennessee pilot who won the world title in each of his first two DRL seasons. The U.S. Air Force named him its Team Pilot for 2025.

Halowalker

The German pilot finished second on the championship podium in the season before Miami, in only his second year in the league.

Amari

A Texas-based veteran who finished third overall in the same season, behind MCK FPV and Halowalker.

Killian

The French pilot made the podium at nearly every event in his debut season, which marks him as the obvious next contender.

Jet, Nurk and Vanover

The league’s first generation. Jet set the template with two titles. Nurk, an Indiana software engineer, broke Jet’s run in 2018. Alex Vanover won as a rookie in 2019, a feat HeadsUp and MCK FPV later repeated.

Gab707

The nearly man of the early DRL, runner-up to Jet in 2017 and beaten by Nurk in the 2018 Golden Heat.

How pilots made it into the DRL

The DRL recruited heavily through its simulator. The annual DRL SIM Tryouts, sponsored for years by Swatch, gave the winner a professional contract worth $75,000. ChrisM came through that route in 2023, and Jacob “Jawz” Schneider and Emmanuel “UFO” Mota are among other tryout recruits.

Once in, pilots flew identical league-built drones. The Racer4, introduced in 2019, reached about 90 mph, so equipment was equal and results came down to lines, reflexes and nerve. Interested in the hardware? See our guide to the best racing drones.

Reading DRL pilot form for betting

We don’t publish odds on DRL pilots because no sportsbook is pricing them. If the league returns, a few patterns from its history are worth knowing.

• Rookies win. Vanover, HeadsUp and MCK FPV all took the title in their first DRL season. Don’t dismiss new names.
• Consistency beats peaks. In the 2022-23 format, a level win earned 25 points and second place 20. Steady podiums often beat occasional wins.
• Real and simulated races differ. Seasons mixed in-person levels with DRL SIM levels, and simulator levels paid fewer points.
• Crashes decide finals. A six-pilot Golden Heat leaves little room for error, so favorites lose more often than in most racing.

For how DRL betting worked at DraftKings, and what you can bet on today, read our US drone betting guide. For the team side of drone racing, see our DRL and DCL teams explainer.

Where DRL pilots race now

• MultiGP: the US grassroots circuit and home of the annual championship. See our MultiGP finals coverage.
• Drone Champions League: the team-based international series. Read our DCL guide.
• Human vs AI events: A2RL invites top human pilots to race autonomous drones. Our A2RL x DCL page covers the format.