February 7, 2023

Maker joins Sunpadow team

Sunpadow batteries has announced that multiple Australian National Touring Champion Ryan Maker has officially joined Sunpadow team.  A driver with a wealth of top level international race experience, Maker is also responsible for the popular brand RC Maker which makes both aftermarket parts and racing accessories.  With his racing now powered by Sunpadow lipo race batteries, Ryan said, “It is a great honour to work with Sunpadow team in the new season, I will try my best to face all the competitions, and at the same time, provide more assistance in terms of power for the Sunpadow drivers in my country”.

Source: Sunpadow [sunpadow.com]


February 6, 2023

Redcat RDS Competition Drift Car

Redcat is releasing a competition spec rear wheel drive drift car, the Redcat RDS. The RDS is ready to run and includes all the necessary radio gear and electronics to get you on the track quickly.  As most drift competitors already own several battery packs, the RDS does not include a battery or charger.  It will accept a competition style 2S shorty LiPo pack, LCG 2S shorty pack, or a standard sized 2S stick pack. Redcat engineered the RDS, from the ground up, for a specific purpose, to compete.  The lead engineer on the project, Shane Mikula, is a seasoned drifter who owns and operates a competition drift track/hobby shop.  Mikula’s track, named TandemRC, is one of the top drift tracks in the US. Mikula has been at the centre of the drift scene for many years, getting direct feedback from fellow drifters. Through his own experience and others’, he’s definitely learned a thing or two about what competitive drifters are looking for in a competent car.  Using this knowledge, the Redcat engineering team has developed a highly competitive rear wheel drive drift car that excels on surfaces which are found on many prepared RC drift tracks, such as carpet, p-tile, and polished concrete.

Continue reading here


February 6, 2023

JConcepts Winter Indoor Nats wins for Horne & Phend

The JConcepts Winter Indoor Nationals travelled to San Diego over the weekend and it was Team Associated’s Aydin Horne and TLR’s Dakotah Phend who took the big wins at SDRC Raceway.  The first stop of 5 events on the INS13 calendar, in 2WD Buggy it was Horne who took the TQ ahead of Phend and Tekno’s Ryan Maifield, the later running Team Associated chassis’ at the event. Qualifying opened with Tom Rinderknecht topping Q1 from Maifield but P4 & 5 in the next two rounds left the Xray driver fourth on the grid.  In 4WD, Phend topped the first and third round qualifiers to take TQ honours ahead of Associated’s Spencer Rivkin who was second fastest ahead of Horne in all three runs.  Again Rinderknecht would post a TQ run setting the pace in Q2 but like in 2WD he would start the 4WD A-Main from 4th.  In the finals the Top 3 would lined up on the podium as how they qualified.  2WD went down to A3, which was duly won by Rivkin from 6th on the grid giving him 4th overall.  In 4WD, Phend tied things up early with wins in A1 & 2 leaving Rivkin to win A3 from Horne who completed the overall podium.

View 4WD Buggy Podium here


February 5, 2023

Coelho & Rheinard win Snowbirds

Bruno Coelho and Marc Rheinard are the two big winners of this year’s Snowbird Nationals.  In Modified Touring Car, defending Champion Coelho took the overall TQ for Xray from the Awesomatix of Rheinard with Alexander Hagberg lining up 3rd.  With just a single A-Main to decide the winner of the 29th running of the iconic American race, World Champion Coelho would hold off his German rival taking the win by 2/10th of a second.  A further 1.6 seconds back, Hagberg made it an all European podium line-up.  Top American finisher would be ROAR National Champion Sam Isaacs in fourth.  In the 1:12 GTP Modified it was Rheinard who was Top Qualifier.  The reigning 1:12 World Champion lead the 8-minutes from start to finish posting the fastest lap in the process.  Behind former World Champion Hagberg came through from 5th on the grid to finish 2nd ahead of 2nd and 3rd place qualifiers Donny Lia and Iaascs.

View 1:12 Podium here


February 5, 2023

Orlowski caps of double EOS title success with 4WD win

Michal Orlowski has capped off a double EOS title victory with the 4WD Buggy win at the season finale in Germany.  The Schumacher driver had struggled in Saturday’s 2WD action as team-mate Broc Champlin took a debut win in the series in style from the TQ but still secured the overall title.  Switching to 4WD however it was business as usual for the Polish driver as he topped all three rounds of qualifying.  Starting the triple A-Main as Top Qualifier, he wrapped up his second 4WD victory of the season with wins in A1 & 2.  Completing a very successful debut in the carpet surface series, American visitor Champlin made it a 1-2 for the British manufacturer.   Taking the win in A3,  Bartosz Zalewski from Poland completed the Round 3 podium for Xray.

Image: Michal Orlowski [Facebook]


February 4, 2023

Coelho to defend Snowbirds title from TQ

Bruno Coelho is to defend his Snowbird Nationals Touring Car title as the Top Qualifier.  The back to back World Champion put his Xray on pole position with a fastest time in the penultimate round of qualifying but the FTD  qualifying format meant he had to wait til the completion of Q4 for the result to be confirmed.  Setting the pace in all four qualifiers at the Wyndham Orlando Resort and Conference Centre venue, starting behind the Portuguese star for the 29th running of the iconic Florida race will be Marc Rheinard.  Top Qualifier in 1:12, he took his Awesomatix touring car to its best time also in Q3.  Coelho’s team-mate Alexander Hagberg completes the Top 3 on the grid for the single A-Main ahead of 2022 Runner-up Sami Isaacs and Canadian Keven Hebert.

Image: Bruno Coelho [Facebook]


February 4, 2023

Rheinard takes 1:12 TQ at Snowbird Nationals

Reigning 1:12 World Champion Marc Rheinard has secured the TQ at the Snowbird Nationals in Florida.  The Awesomatix driver secured the top spot at the 29th running of the legendary race with his fastest run in the 3rd of the four rounds of qualifying.  Behind the German,  American’s Donny Lia and Sam Iaacs, the defending champion, made it an Awesomatix 1,2,3 on the grid.  Posting his fastest run in the final qualifier, Keven Hebert leads the Xray challenge ahead of team-mates Alexander Hagberg and class debutant Bruno Coelho was fastest in Q1, a time wouldn’t be able to better.  New Schumacher signing & 2022 podium finisher Ollie Payne starts 7th.

Image: Marc Rheinard [Facebook]


February 4, 2023

Debut EOS win for Champlin

American offroad racer Broc Champlin has claimed a debut victory at the Euro Offroad Series. Making his first appearance in the indoor carpet track series at the season finale in Daun, the factory Schumacher backed up his domination of qualifying yesterday to win the 2WD final today by winning the opening two A-Mains. Winning A1 by a comfortable margin of almost 4-seconds, Champlin’s closest rival would be 18-year-old Alexander Landén driving his Team Associated with Xray’s Martin Bayer coming through from 9th for 3rd. A2 it was again the visitor from Las Vegas who controlled proceedings with the Team Associated of Dane Marcus Kaerup coming up from P5 on the grid to finish second ahead of Sworkz Micha Widmaier and EOS Champion Michal Orlwski. With the overall victory secured, Champlin was able to sit out A3 as the rest of the field battled for the rest of the podium. Again Kaerup would work his way to the front to take the win from Widmaier securing them 2nd and 3rd overall respectively. As the ROAR Offroad Carpet Nationals 4WD Champion, Champlin’s attention will now turn to 4WD and targetting the double on his already impressive EOS debut.

Image: Schumacher [Facebook]