Adding to the tunability of their R1B 2WD Buggy, R1 Wurks has released #2 Reduced Ackermann Steering Plates. Providing a slightly reduced Ackermann setting, they offer an additional setup option to experiment with and fine-tune your steering characteristics. Precision CNC-routed from premium carbon fibre, they deliver a smoother steering feel that may be particularly well suited to high-grip surfaces.
There was a time when we would attend either electric onroad or offroad races and Yokomo would be mentioned in the opening paragraph of every race report, they were a real force. That hasn’t however been the case now for a number of years but 10-years on from winning the IFMAR Electric Touring Car World Championship, that race in China giving us the iconic photo of Ronald Volker’s mechanic Yukijiro Umino reaction to what a world title means to everyone involved, there are positive vibes coming from the Japanese manufacturer’s camp here at Huge RC in Bangkok. With team leader Christopher Krapp admitting they are realistically not here with a chance of winning the 2026 World title, compared to 2-years ago there is a new energy in the team and a desire from the top management for the historic racing brand to return to being taken serious again as producer of competition level cars. On arriving in Bangkok, less our luggage, returning to our hotel after buying some necessary supplies, the first RC racer of these Worlds we’d meet was Krapp. A driver we have respected for always being personable, as always the German had a friendly handshake and positive energy but it was even more positive this time as he proudly introduced Yokomo’s new Managing Director and new Designer. While many manufacturers are contesting these Worlds with skeleton crews, Yokomo is taking the opposite approach. With Krapp and his crew hungry after their travels and looking for a food recommendation, pointing them in the direction of some good local street food we joined them for a catch up and that led to an interesting insight that we would follow up on the next day at the track on how Yokomo wants back in the game.
Adding to its line of RC accessories, T-Works is now offering Liquid Mask. The water-based, eco-friendly and low-odour mask can be diluted with water for easy spraying to forms a tough film that peels off cleanly after cutting. The dry film is compatible with both water-based and oil-based paints. The liquid mask is formulated from deionised water, acrylic polymer emulsion, thickener, defoamer, preservative, and colorant. It is offered in 100, 500, and 1000ml size bottles.
Source: T-Works [rc-tworks.com]
Xray’s Bartek Zalewski has completed the double at the annual JConcepts Florida Carpet Championships at Beachline Raceway in Orlando. In qualifying, 2WD would see Schumacher’s Daniel Kobbevik secured the TQ as the Norwegian topped 2 of the 4 rounds. Behind Zalewski claimed P2 ahead of the Schumacher of defending Champion Broc Champlin and Team Associated’s Marcus Kaerup. In 4WD, defending Champion Michal Orlowski absent due to the Touring Car Worlds taking place this week in Thailand, it was Zalewski who would become the Top Qualifier with the fastest time in three rounds. Taking Q1, Kobbevik lined up P2 wth Champlin again securing 3rd ahead of Brennan Schimmel and Kaerup. In the finals, Zalewski wrapped up 2WD after A2 winning both encounters while Kaerup took A3 to secure second with Top Qualifier Kobbevik completing the podium. In 4WD, Kobbevik would force the racing to go the distance as he won A2 while A1 winner Zalewski dropped to sixth. In the decider however Zalewski lead from start to finish to win by 1-second from Kobbevik to compete the double and be declared the overall JConcepts Florida Carpet Championships winner, a title that was held by Champlin for the past two years.
Image: Bartek Zalewski [Facebook]
Xbility driver & designer Jose Pequito has taken his 3rd consecutive 2WD Open World title at the 1:28 PN Racing World Cup which was staged at the Mini-Zshop track in the Netherlands over the weekend. The Portuguese driver, who won the title in Colorado last year, would qualify second for the finals with the TQ honours going to RTRC driver Thomas Robin who set the fastest time of the 3 rounds in Q3. In the 8-minute triple finals, wins in A1 and A2 ahead of RTRC’s Mathieu Da Rocha would secure Pequito his World title hat trick. Winning A3, French RTRC team driver Guillaume Loie would snatch the runner-up spot from his team-mate and fellow countryman Da Rocha. Xbility would also claim the World title in the Formula 1 class, with Dutch driver Ruben Klomp taking the TQ and win.
Image: MOD Live Media [Facebook]
The first of 2 days of IPD (International Practice Day) was completed at Huge RC in Bangkok today ahead of the IFMAR ISTC World Championships which officially gets underway on Wednesday, but taking today as a day to chat & catch up with what is a full house of drivers it seems there is a bit of a mixed view to the introduction of IPD to the category. Around for a number of years now in nitro onroad, it has merit to give drivers not in the position to attend the track for pre-event testing an opportunity to get extra track time as part of a single trip to the host track. In the case of nitro however the tracks are usual permanent. Think Gubbio, the Nitro Touring Car Worlds was held on the same layout this year as was used to decide the World Champion back in 2016 – both great events but neither won by Italians who had raced there many times more than their rivals over the decade in between! With a number of Pro drivers having done up to 10-days of practice leading up to IPD, one driver rumoured to have run 150 batteries in that time (that’s a lot of tyres), sure it is great for the rest of the drivers to get the two days to try catch up with set-up but the main talking point seems to be that all the testing is on a layout that won’t even be used for the event! On Tuesday’s registration day, 2002 ISTC World Champion Surikarn Chaidajsuriya, owner of Huge RC, and his crew will change track layout and the changes are pretty significant with a number of leading drivers saying the new layout will make for a much slower lap time and require a set-up change to get more steering as the track tightens up. Sure these guys are the best in the world and they will probably figure it out by Wednesday lunch time but many, both who came for a week or more of pre-event running or just the IPD, feel that had the race layout been done for IPD it might have encouraged teams to just come for the IPD. One driver pointed out also that had the race been held in Europe or the US, teams might have viewed the costs of an extra week of testing differently so for sure its sometime that maybe needs to be reviewed going forward. While World Championships are extra special events and teams go above & beyond for this once every two years opportunity to take the greatest prize, it is interesting to note that event duration was a point that was raised at a Section Meeting held during the recent IFMAR 1:8 Nitro Buggy Worlds in Texas. The majority feeling that event is too long as the ISTC Worlds just got three days longer. That said racers and manufacturers have for years complained and looked to have the Nitro Onroad Worlds made shorter yet the 2027 calendar lists the event as 10-days!
Another new Spring Steel Chassis release from Takashima D-13 this time with this 1.1mm chassis for the SP2 Electric Touring Car from Australian manufacturer RC Maker. Compared to the 1.2mm version, the reduced thickness offers lower overall weight and increased chassis flex, allowing the chassis to work more freely and generate additional mechanical grip. The thinner design also helps lower the overall centre of gravity, contributing to smoother weight transfer and a more compliant handling feel. These characteristics make the 1.1mm version particularly suitable for medium to low-grip tracks and Stock-class racing, where improved traction and chassis response are important. The 1.2mm option remains a good choice for drivers looking for greater chassis support and a more controlled feel in higher-grip conditions.
Better known for his exploits in offroad as a leading factory driver for Mugen Seiki, Burak Kilic has been announced as a new team signing for Italian 1:8 GT manufacturer Genius Racing. A regular in the Italian National GT Championship, the Turkish driver had raced the 2026 season with Raptor achieving a podium at the European Championships when he finished runner up to team-mate & reigning World Champion Alessio Mazzeo in eGT. In making the announcement regarding the signing of Kilic, which comes days after he announced the extension of his deal with Nova Engines, Genius Racing said, ‘Burak will play an important role in the development and racing activities of our GTC8 Nitro and GTC8 Eco platforms.’ A manufacturer whose car was the Top Qualifier of the 2023 Worlds in Australian in the hands of Alex D’angelo, 2027 is a big year for 1:8 GT with the IFMAR World Championships to be staged in Lostallo, Switzerland from July 26-31.
Source: Genius [genius-racing.com]
