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Red Bull has always been known for pulling off some of the most insane stunts to promote its energy drink. But a recent unauthorized drifting stunt in Kyiv, Ukraine took things a little too far, which put pedestrians in danger and resulted in damages to a UNESCO world heritage site.

Red Bull’s drift stunt was turned down, but they did it anyway

Drifting demonstrations are always a lot of fun to watch. The sideways antics and tire smoke are almost always crowd-pleasers, which is why Red Bull wanted to film a drifting stunt with two cars drifting around a statue in front of the Saint Sofia Cathedral in Kyiv. Unfortunately, the Deputy Mayor, Konstiantyn Usov, turned the energy drink manufacturer down, reports Car Scoops.

But they did it anyway. BYKVU reported that Red Bull proceeded with the stunt without making any effort to secure the area from pedestrian traffic. Additionally, Jalopnik notes that the video was supposed to be for a commercial advertisement that featured Alyona Ayona, a local rap star, in the passenger seat of one of the cars.

“Red Bull did this early this morning endangering dozens of lives. People of the morning were going to work through a large area and were forced to dodge vehicles. The consequences could have been without exaggeration tragic,” wrote Usav, in a Facebook post. “Imagine the drift Red Bull on St. Peter’s square in the Vatican. Or motocross near La Sagrada Familia. How much would the police arrest the villains?”

The stunt resulted in 2,000 square meters of damage

The Red Bull Drift Brothers perform after final practice ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Austria
The Red Bull Drift Brothers perform after final practice ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Austria. | (Photo by Clive Mason – Formula 1/Formula 1 via Getty Images)

Images from the drift stunt were posted on the Red Bull Ukraine Instagram, which tagged pro drivers Conor Shanahan and Oleksandr Grynchuk, who were the alleged drivers of the drift cars. Sadly, the stunt resulted in 2,000 square meters of damage to the brick pavement during the run. BYKVU also reported that the Red Bull crew tried to clean up the tire marks later that day, but to no avail.

“It will be better than it was,” the crew reportedly stated. However, it’s not looking too good. There are still dark tire marks on the brick pavement and it will take a lot more than elbow grease to get those off. There is reportedly a police investigation underway and Red Bull could be facing charges for disorderly conduct.  The rapper will also be questioned about the incident.

Is this Red Bull’s craziest stunt?

Red Bull has always been known for pulling off some of the craziest stunts to promote their brand, but this unauthorized stunt in Kyiv wasn’t the craziest. Among other stunts like having Robbie Madison jump his motorcycle to the top of the Arc de Triomphe in Las Vegas and back down again, Red Bull also broke records with other stunts. For example, who can forget Felix Baumgartner’s epic skydive from the edge of space?

We can’t. And unfortunately, the residents of Ukraine, Kyiv may not forget this recent Red Bull stunt for a while either. But hopefully, it will all come to a peaceful resolution.

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