Red RC

September 30, 2024

Sobue wins ISTC Worlds Warm-up Race

Akio Sobue took the win at the official ISTC World Championship Warm-up race over the weekend, the Axon driver coming out on top of the small international entry to win ahead Xray’s Alexander Hagberg and Serpent’s Dominic Greiner. With Finishline RC Raceway in Bakersfield, California, set to host the 12th running of the IFMAR World Championship for Electric Touring Car from Nov 5-10th, the official Warm-up race attracted 23 modified entries. With reigning back to back World Champion Bruno Coelho and hotly tipped title favourite Michal Orlowski competing at 1:10 Offroad European Championships in Sweden, where they claimed a title each, it was 2022 Worlds podium finisher Sobue who set the pace throughout the event. Topping all three qualifiers he secured the TQ ahead of Hagberg and former Nitro Touring Car World Champion Greiner and that’s how they ran & finished in the opening two A-Mains. Hagberg took A3 from Greiner with multiple 1:10 Offroad World Champion Ryan Cavalieri getting a third that gave him fourth overall. In Pro Stock it was Schumacher’s Ollie Payne who took the win. Former World Champions Marc Rheinard and Atsushi Hara opted to not race and instead will begin testing at the track today. Red RC will be travelling to Finishline RC Raceway in 5-weeks time to cover the main event.

Image: Serpent [Facebook]

September 29, 2024

Kato executes perfect 1-hour main to win ABC Indonesia

Infinity driver Kouki Kato executed a perfect race to win the season finale of the Asian Buggy Championships in Indonesia, the Japanese driver winning the fourth round in Jakarta from the Sworkz of newly crowned overall Champion Christian Wolhuter. Lining up on pole position for the 1-hour final at West Side Raceway ahead of team-mate Naoto Matsukura and Wolhuter, Kato quickly gapped the field and grew that advantage over the rest of the 15 car grid as his rivals made errors and later hit problems. While Kato ran his own race out front, the focus turned to the battle for 2nd between Wolhunter, Matsukura and Jason Nugroho. Unfortunately leading local challenger Nugroho and Matsukura, who had just set the fastest lap of the race, would both suffer the same faith within 5-laps of one another as they needed lengthy pit stops to fixed rear suspension links on their cars. With Kato winning by over a lap from Wolhuter, it would be the Team Associated of track owner Adrian Wicaksono who completed the podium, a just reward for both his driving in the final and his efforts in staging the Asian Buggy Championships first race in Indonesia. Finishing on the same lap as Wicaksono having held the final podium position for a time, Mayako’s Joseph Quagraine finished fourth.

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September 29, 2024

Dominant Coelho claims European 4WD title in Sweden

Xray’s Bruno Coelho is the new EFRA 1:10 4WD Offroad European Champion after a dominant performance in Malmo, Sweden. The first time the European Championships have been held on an indoor carpet track, the former 4WD Buggy World Champion took the European title in the category for a second time with the absolute perfect score. In qualifying the Portuguese driver topped all 5 rounds with his Hobbywing powered XB4’25 to secure the TQ ahead of defending Champion Michal Orlowski, the Schumacher driver securing the 2WD title for the first time earlier in the week. Sworkz’s Micha Widmaier completed the Top 3 for qualifying ahead of the Team Associated of 2022 Champion Marcus Kærup. Continuing his form into the A-Mains, Coelho took the first one by 1.4-seconds from Orlowski. While his Polish rival was slightly closer in A2, Coelho sealed ther title with another win. A3 would see Orlowski take the win ahead of former back to back Champion David Ronnefalk who came through from P6 on the grid but third for Widmaier would see the Austrian complete the overall podium.

Image: Hobbywing Technology [Facebook]

September 29, 2024

Xray X12 ‘25

Xray has unveiled its latest 1:12 kit with the Slovakian manufacturer’s newest pan car featuring an all-new one-piece chassis design with more consistent handling in all conditions and improved tweak resistance. The X12 ’25 chassis concept integrates with the front Tweak-Free Suspension and the rear Tweak-Free POD System to maximise performance. The chassis plate’s edges are beveled for less drag on the track surface during cornering to improve handling and efficiency with special cut-outs for optimal flex characteristics. The standard chassis is CNC machined from 2.0mm Swiss 7075 T6 aluminium. A new 2-piece rear pod concept is positioned above the one-piece chassis. The new configuration is more adjustable with improved tweak resistance. The new pod plate is used to set droop, pod angle adjustment and supports the side springs. All-new rear spring location creates more forward traction and lowers CG. New lightweight aluminium bulkheads help lower CG as part of the new POD assembly, with the left side bulkhead adding a cooling fan mounting provision.

View the full X12’25 presentation here

September 28, 2024

Kato Top Qualifier at Asian Buggy Championships Finale

Making his debut in the Asian Buggy Championships at the season finale in Indonesia this weekend, it is Infinity driver Kouki Kato who will start the 1-hour Main as the Top Qualifier. The reigning Japanese National Champion secured the top spot on a tiebreak with team-mate Naoto Matsukura who would take the fifth & final round of qualifying at West Side Raceway. Having ended Day 1 of qualifying with a TQ run, Matsukura did the same again today in Jakarta. With 2 from 5 to count, his Q5 time however was 2.8-seconds shy of what he needed to deny Kato, who topped three rounds, the overall TQ. The driver with the fastest lap of qualifying, set this morning in Q3 when he was P2 behind Kato, Indonesia’s own Jason Nugroho locked himself into 3rd place on the grid ahead of Australian Christian Wolhuter, the Sworkz pairing also going to tiebreak for their grid positions.

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September 28, 2024

Kato goes top again in Q3 at Asian Buggy Championships

Having kicked off Day 1 of qualifying at the Asian Buggy Championships Finale in Indonesia with a TQ run, Kouki Kato repeated the feat at West Side Raceway as he opened the second day’s action at the top of the Q3 time sheets. The Infinity driver would set the new fastest time of qualifying by a massive 6-seconds, overnight track maintenance and a better tyre choice by the Japan National Champion contributing factors. With Q2 winner Naoto Matsukura setting the early pace in the 5-minute qualifier, until the first of two mistakes dropped him to P6 for the round, it was local racer Jason Nugroho who continued to be Kato’s closest rival. Setting a new fastest lap and getting very close to being the first driver to go 39-seconds, the Sworkz driver finished 2.6-seconds back on the Pro driver with the similar car of Christian Wolhuter completing the Top 3.

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September 27, 2024

MCD Octox 1:8 GT-E – First Images

Having announced plans to enter the 1:8 GT Onroad market in June, MCD Racing has just released first images of their impressive looking new Octox 1:8 GT-E. One of 1:5 scale racing’s most successful manufacturers, they accompanied the images with the statement, ‘After two years of development, we’re excited to reveal the pictures of the new OCTOX GT-E! With new molds for composite molding, gears, transmissions, suspension, and body shells all produced in-house, and final tests underway by our team drivers, the OCTOX GT-E is set for release in the first quarter of 2025.’

View more images of car here

September 27, 2024

Matsukura ends Day 1 of ABC qualifying with TQ run

Day 1 of qualifying at the Asian Buggy Championships season finale in Indonesia closed with Naoto Matsukura hitting the top of the time sheets. With Infinity team-mate Kouki Kato taking Q1 as Matsukura found himself P7 after a costly last lap mistake, the No.2 seed made amends in the second of the 5-planned qualifiers to post the fastest 5-minute run so far ahead of the Sworkz of Christian Wolhuter, the young Aussie another driver to benefit from eliminating driver errors. Despite improving his Q1 time by 1-second Kato found himself P3 with the Japanese Champion feeling he didn’t have the right tyres for the condition of the last run of the day. A close 2nd to Kato in the opening qualifier, Jason Nugroho would run the fourth fastest time despite suspected radio problems. Seeding fourth fastest but not having a good Q1 attempt, Kyosho’s Rama Tribudiman completed the Top 5 with his second effort.

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