August 15, 2023

Kobbevik takes 16th National title with 1:8 Offroad win

Sworkz’ Daniel Kobbevik claimed his 16th National title over the weekend with victory at the 2023 Norwegian 1:8 Nitro Offroad Championship at 3starRaceway in Nedenes.  Open 2-years, while track is small in size it is fast and features many cool elements.  Having won the title back in 2021 but forced to miss the race in 2022 due to a clash with the 1:10 Offroad European Championships, Kobbevik’s limited 1:8 racing didn’t hamper his efforts as he topped 3 of the 5 rounds of qualifying to become the Top Qualifier.  Mugen’s Vincent Rüger would TQ Q1 & 3 to take pole for the other Semi Final.  With ever changing weather conditions, the Semi Finals proved challenging but Kobbevik won his in the faster time to secure pole for the 45-minute final ahead of Rüger and the Kyosho of Mathias Fink.  Switching to a softer compound tyre for the final, Kobbevik would quickly run out of tyres causing the battle for the lead to heat up with Rüger.  With both drivers adjusting their fuel strategy as the pushed each other unfortunately Rüger would come up short and run out fuel.  This gave Kobbevik breathing space he would hold to finish over half a lap up on Kruger.  With Fink retiring after just 8-minutes of racing, 11th place starter Danny Kwiatkowski would come through to complete the podium with his Kyosho.

Image: Magne Kobbevik


August 14, 2023

Nicholson defends QLD State Title

Team Yokomo’s Simon Nicholson successfully defended his 1:10 Touring Car Queensland State title over the weekend which was hosted by the Bundaberg Onroad RC Club.  Winning the title in Brisbane last year ahead of Antoni Caretti, Nicholson got his 2023 RCRA SpeedyRC EP Onroad QLD State Championship off the the best possible start as he took a clean sweep of the four qualifying rounds to secure the overall TQ.  Starting ahead of fellow Yokomo driver Steven Cornell with Jason Dorn lining up P3, Nicholson would continue to dominate with triple wins in the final to secure the title with Cornell and Dorn maintaining their starting positions to joining him on the Bundaberg podium.  In 13.5 Stock, Lachlan Pearson took his Team Destiny chassis to the title having also started from the TQ.

Image: Team Yokomo [Facebook]


August 13, 2023

Phend & Rivkin defend ROAR National titles

Team Losi Racing’s Dakotah Phend and Team Associated’s Spencer Rivkin have successfully defended their ROAR 1:10 Buggy National titles.  The 2023 championships took place at HobbyTown Columbus in Georgia where 2WD Champion Phend would line up second on the grid behind Top Qualifier Broc Champlin as he attempted to keep his run of title going.  A P9 in A1 after contact with Rivkin put Phend on the back foot as the World Champion took the win ahead of Ryan Cavalieri.  In A2 & A3, Phend, having already retained his Mod Truck title earlier in the event, would win both encounters from Rivkin and the Schumacher of Champlin and that was how they would like up on the final podium.  In 4WD,  starting from the TQ, Rivkin would retain the title he took from Phend last year at SDRC Raceway in San Diego with wins in A1 & 2.  While Champlin would win A3, he would again have to settle for the final step on the podium as Xray’s Chase Lemieux took second overall with P2 finishes in A1 & 3.

Image: JConcepts [jconcepts.net]


August 13, 2023

Gruber takes ENS Round 2 victory

Capricorn’s Toni Gruber took the 1:8 victory at the second round of the ENS in the Netherlands today, the German leading home Dutch driver Jilles Groskamp at the Apeldoorn circuit.  As he did at the circuit last year, Gruber would start the 45-minute final as the Top Qualifier.  His third consecutive ENS TQ start, this time round the reigning 1:10 European Champion would convert the pole position into victory, setting the fastest lap of the race with his Ielasi Tuned powered LAB C804 to build up a winning margin of almost 2-laps over the Infinity of Groskamp.  Winner of the Dutch ENS encounter last year, Dominic Greiner would lead for a number of laps following a tyre stop from Gruber but the former European Champion would be forced to retire as the race reached half way.  With the third place qualifier out, Mugen’s Steven Cuypers, winner of the recent Dutch National Championship third round at the track, would complete the podium line-up after a strong race from 8th on the grid.  Making it a Capricorn double Melvin Diekmann took the 1:10 win, his second of the season, with Tim Benson runner-up and Top Qualifier Milan Holthuis third.

Image: Jilles Groskamp [Facebook]


August 12, 2023

Champlin & Rivkin Top Qualifiers at ROAR Nationals

Schumacher’s Broc Champlin and Team Associated’s Spencer Rivkin are the buggy Top Qualifiers at the 2023 ROAR 1:10 Offroad Nationals which are being hosted by HobbyTown Columbus in Georgia.  In 2WD, Champlin dominated Friday’s opening day of qualifying topping the two rounds on the schedule with his LRP powered LD2.  The first of Saturday’s qualifiers would go to World Champion Spencer Rivkin as Champlin ended up P5.  With two from four to count it was all to play for for Rivkin but TLR’s defending ROAR 2WD Champion Dakotah Phend would lay down the fastest run of the four in the final round just ahead of Champlin to secure second on the grid.  Only P6 for the round, Rivkin will line-up third on the grid.  In 4WD, it would also be Champlin who kicked off qualifying at the top of the time sheets.  Q2 would see the Xray of Chase Lemieux put in a TQ run before defending 4WD Champion Rivkin became the third different driver to hit the top spot.  It all came down to Q4 with Champlin looking on target for the double but over the final 2 laps Rivkin edged in front to take the round by 3/10ths of a second and the overall TQ for tomorrow.  Champlin starts 2nd followed by Lemieux, Tater Sontag, Dustin Evans and Phend.

Image: JConcepts [jconcepts.net]


August 12, 2023

Gruber Top Qualifier at Dutch ENS

Toni Gruber is the Top Qualifier at the second round of the ENS in the Netherlands.  After a dominant performance on Friday when the Capricorn/Ielasi Tuned driver topped all three qualifiers, unfortunately Saturday morning rain forced the cancellation of the remaining two qualifiers at the Apeldoorn track.  Top Qualifier at the season opening in Ettlingen, Germany, and at the recent European Championships in Portugal, Gruber will start Sunday’s scheduled 45-minute final on pole from Infinity’s Jilles Groskamp.  The Dutch driver was the closest challenger to his German rival setting the second fastest time in each of the three rounds of heats.  Capricorn’s Dominic Greiner, winner of the season opener in May, completes the Top 3 ahead of Shepherd’s Lars Hoppe counting a P3 and P4 run as his best two rounds.  In 1:10, Infinity driver Milan Holthuis secured the TQ ahead of Round 1 Top Qualifier & winner Melvin Diekmann with Tim Benson set to line up 3rd on the grid.

Image: Toni Gruber [Facebook]


August 8, 2023

Bowie Ginting wins Xcampus Race 2023

Team Yokomo’s Bowie Ginting took the win at this year’s Xcampus Race at the LC Arena in Indonesia.  A highlight of the electric onroad racing calendar in Indonesia, the event attracted almost 100 entries with Ginting adding to his tally of wins at the annual event.  In qualifying Ginting secured the overall TQ after topping all three rounds of heats with Infinity driver Muhammad Izzah his closest rival securing P2 on the grid ahead of Ary Aditya and Teddy Syach.  In the triple finals, things went to A3.  Having won A1, Ginting had a DNF in A2 with Infinity’s Ryan Ignatius taking the win, but the pole sitter was back in business in A3 leading home Izzah to take the overall win. Ignatius’ A2 win would see him completed the overall podium.

Image: Bowie Ginting [Facebook]


August 8, 2023

Cragg claims 27th British Championship title

Neil Cragg claimed his 27th British National Championship title over the weekend with the Team Associated driver successfully defending his 1:10 2WD Buggy title at the season finale at TORCH.  Hosted by Titchfield Off Road Club Hants, the sixth & final round of the BRCA Championship was the 2WD decider after the 4WD title was decided at the previous round in favour of Tommy Hall who would also be Cragg main 2WD title rival.  In qualifying it was Schumacher’s Lee Martin who took the TQ from Hall and Cragg.  Unfortunately heavy rain would force the meeting to be cancelled on the Saturday and the result declared on qualifying which gave former World Champion Cragg the title by a single point from Hall with Martin completing the 2023 Championship Top 3.  In the concluding round of the 4WD Championship, held on the Sunday, Schumacher’s Ben Smith secured his first ever Nationals TQ ahead Cragg and the Hall brothers Tommy & Jamie.  In the final Smith would win the opening two legs to secure the win with Tommy Hall and 2WD winner Martin joining him on the Round 6 podium.

Image: Racewayone [racewayone.com]