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September 4, 2023

Gruber adds German 1:10 Nitro National title

Toni Gruber added the German 1:10 Nitro Onroad title to his 2023 over the weekend, the Capricorn driver making it the perfect season with two titles from the two outings he has had in the class this year having already won the European Championship in June. Racing at the MiniCarClub Rötz track, Gruber secured the TQ ahead of Melvin Diekmann with the fastest 4-minute run in qualifying which was 3.3-second faster than his team-mates best effort. In the 45-minute final, Gruber continued that form setting the fastest lap en route to a 9-second victory over Diekmann with Michael Heinrich completing the podium.

Image: Toni Gruber [Facebook]

September 4, 2023

Canas leads Sworks 1-2 at European Championship

Juan Carlos Canas has finally achieved a major championship title with the rapid Spaniard leading an Sworkz 1-2 at the EFRA 1:8 Offroad European Championship in Redovan, Spain. In qualifying, Canas was Top Qualifier topping 3 of the 5 rounds at the 2022 World Championship venue. Reigning World Champion Davide Ongaro was P2 with the fastest time in Q2 with Bruno Coelho P3 having set the quickest time in the opening qualifier. With Saturday originally scheduled as Finals day, the threat of heavy rain prompted a change of schedule to get the event completed by Friday night. In the Semi Finals Canas took the first 20-minute encounter from Bryan Baldo while a retirement exited Coelho from proceedings. In the other Semi, Ongaro took the win from Burak Kilic and Elliot Boots, but a slower race time it was Canas on pole for the final with defending champion David Ronnefalk lining up 6th. Racing into the night and finishing under the flood lights Canas dominated the 45-minutes adding the fastest lap to his tally on the way to victory by half a lap from his 2-time European Champion team-mate Elliot Boots. Ongaro’s Team Associated would complete the podium 4-second ahead of Mugen’s Burak Kilic with a similar gap back to Infinity’s Riccardo Berton in fifth. Ronnefalk’s year long reign as Champion would end in a retirement with 5-minutes remaining.

Image: Sworkz [Facebook]

August 28, 2023

Apolaro wins Great Lakes Challenge

One of the United States most iconic Onroad nitro races, the Great Lakes Challenge saw DJ Apolaro take the 1:10 Sedan win at the 2023 running of the event held at the TSRCAR track in Lebanon Ohio over the weekend. The Wallace Motorsports driver Apolaro would secure the TQ from Jamie Corrado after setting the fastest time in the 3rd of the 5 rounds of qualifying. In the 40-minute A-Main, Apolaro would have a flame out in the first couple of minutes of the race and had to fight his way back from 6th place. With just two minutes remaining he would find a way by Diatta Collymore for the win. Collymore led for most of the race being able to capitalise on DJ’s flame out, but finished in 2nd place. Jerry Guerra Having qualified 5th Jerry Guerra was able to come from as far back as 9th position to take 3rd place to make it an all Infinity IF15 podium. In the 1:8 Open class Michael Palazzola took the win from Top Qualifier John Dickson with Mike McBride rounding out the Top 3 after 45-minutes of racing.

August 23, 2023

12-year-old Thilo Baldes win German Nitro Championship

Thilo Baldes is the new German National Onroad Champion in the 1:8 Nitro Class 2. With his Reds Racing powered Shepherd Velox V8.2, the 12-year-old talent from Adenau near the famous Nürburgring won the 45-minute final race at the German Nationals in Kirchhain in central Germany with a concentrated and faultless performance. In the heat battle at temperatures around 35 degrees, Baldes relegated Julian Krajuszek (Mugen), who is the same age, to second place on the 230-metre racetrack and thus also secured the title of German Junior Champion in Class 2. Third place on the podium in the performance class 2 went to Sebastian Steck (Capricorn).

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August 22, 2023

1985 handmade Hudy Special 4WD 1:8 Onroad chassis

With IFMAR’s original & longest running World Championship taking place later this year in Japan, photos shared by Juraj Hudy of one of his early 1:8 Onroad creations grabbed our attention. Being raced at the recent veteran’s race at the Czech Nationals, the handmade Hudy Special 4WD car is from 1985, the year Rody Roem was crowned World Champion in Japan. With our own introduction to RC racing being through the category in the late 80s, it is interesting to see how chassis design has evolved over the last four decades when compared to the latest cars. Having had the pleasure of getting into an in-depth conversation with Juraj about all things engineering and what goes into the production of a chassis kit while waiting in airport lounge in Buenos Aires for our return flight from covering the 2012 1:8 Offroad World Championships, one year later we got to visit the lock up that was Juraj’s very first workshop. There he shared his story of the journey to the impressive high tech factory of Hudy & Xray and Hudy Racing Arena that is now just a few hundred metres away. Red RC will be travelling to Infinity International RC Speedway in Japan at the end of October as part of our 2023 Worlds coverage to tell the story of how the 23rd 1:8 Onroad World Championships unfolds.

View more Hudy Special 4WD images here

August 22, 2023

Kilic brothers 1-2 at German Nationals, Berkan Champion

Mugen Seiki’s Kilic brothers claimed yet another 1-2 at the German 1:8 Buggy Nationals with Berkan this time edging out Burak to become the champion for the first time. Racing at the MSC Ring in Braunschweig, Burak was chasing his third National title but in qualifying it was younger brother Berkan who would take the TQ after 5 rounds of qualifying from the defending champion. In the 45-minute final, there would be an intense battle at the front with the Sworkz of Joern Neumann joining the family rivalry, Berkan took the win by just 7/10ths of a second from Burkan. Setting the fastest lap of the race Neumann would complete the Top 3.

Source – Kilic Brothers RC [facebook.com]

August 22, 2023

Losam wins Hong Kong GP Onroad Championship

Serpent driver Lo Losam took the 1:8 win at the Hong Kong GP Onroad Championship which took place at the country’s well known Tom Racing Circuit. Hosted by the Hong Kong Model Car Association, the event would be effected by rain on the Saturday with the original schedule of 5 rounds of qualifying reduced to 3 with two to count. Losam’s first race with the Serpent 990, with factory driver Jeff Hamon providing him with set-up advice over the phone, the 20-year-old would go fastest in the first two rounds to lock in the overall TQ while the Mugen of Chu Williams would take the Super Pole shoot out to secure P2 on the grid. With the race attracting an entry from none other than legendary race announcer & recent 1:8 Onroad racing convert Scotty Ernst, in the 1-hour Main final Losam would have some issues at the start leaving him in P7. Within 3-minutes however he was back in the front where he would stay until the end winning by 4-laps from Williams with the Capricorn of 亞森 completing the podium.

Image: Kenny Ng [Facebook]

August 21, 2023

Greiner defends German National title

Capricorn’s Dominic Greiner successfully defended his 1:8 Onroad German National title over the weekend taking victory over Lars Hoppe and Merlin Depta. Hosted at the track of MSC Kichlain in the centre of the country and with more than 50 drivers in attendance, it would be the Shepherd of Hoppe who would take the overall TQ from Greiner and the Capricorn of recent European Championship Top Qualifier Toni Gruber. The 45-minute final would see multiple European Champion Greiner take the win by one lap from Hoppe with Depta, winner of the Semi A Final, taking his Capricorn from P5 on the grid to 3rd after Gruber hit problems during the race.

Image: Lars Hoppe [facebook]