August 19, 2024

Neumann adds 15th German 4WD National title

Sworkz’ Joern Neumann added yet another German National title to his CV over the weekend, the multiple European Champion taking the 1:10 4WD Buggy title for the 15th time at the distinctive blue surface ESV Bischofsheim outdoor track.   Winning the title for the first time in 2005,  in qualifying Neumann topped all 5 rounds to secure the TQ ahead of the Schumacher of 2021 Champion Marcel Schneider and Xray of Elias Jordan.  In the triple finals that order would stay the same for the final podium line-up.  Also racing in 2WD Stadium Truck, the results of both qualifying and the final was a repeat of 4WD Buggy, giving Neumann the double.  The 2WD Buggy Nationals are held separately with Neumann the reigning Champion.

Image: Joern Neumann [facebook]


August 19, 2024

ENS Champion Gruber claims 1st win in Netherlands

Euro Nitro Series Champion Toni Gruber claimed the first win of his title defence over the weekend, the Capricorn driver taking the win at the third round at the Apeldoorn track in the Netherlands.  In qualifying it was the Mugen Seiki of Round 1 winner Simon Kurzbuch who secured TQ ahead of Gruber with the Infinity of Swiss driver Oliver Krahemann completing the Top 3.  With rain washing out Friday’s action, qualifying would be reduced to just two rounds with the fastest to count and for Shepherd’s Lars Hoppe, the winner of Round 2 in Austria, he ended up P9 on the grid.  While former World Champion Kurzbuch lead away the 12 car field for the opening minutes of the 45-minute final, once Gruber hit the front with his Ielasi Tuned C804R he was able to edge out a comfortable gap to win by more than 2-laps from Krahemann who put in an impressive showing.   The Infinity of Teemu Leino would completed the podium, the Finn just holding off Hoppe with Kurbuch rounding out the Top 5.  In 1:10 Nitro Touring it was reigning Champion Melvin Diekmann made it a double for Capricorn, securing victory ahead of the Infinity of former Champion & Round 2 winner Jilles Groskamp with Top Qualifier Milan Holthuis taking the final step on the podium.

Image: Ielasi Tuned [Facebook]


August 19, 2024

Champlin doubles at ROAR Carpet Offroad Nationals

Broc Champlin is the new ROAR Electric Carpet Offroad Nationals double Champion, the Schumacher driver taking the titles in both 2WD and 4WD Buggy at Coastal RC Speedway in Virginia.  Having claimed a trio of 3rd place podium finishes at last year’s Nationals in Florida, this year Champlin would dominate proceedings.  Securing the TQ in 4WD Buggy ahead of the TLR of defending Champion Dakotah Phend, he also secured the top spot in 2WD, ahead of the Xray of Chase Lemieux and Phend.  In the finals, Champlin wrapped up the 4WD title with wins in the first two encounters with A3 winner Phend finishing runner up ahead of Lemieux.  In the 2WD Finals, Champlin had a little more work to do after Lemieux took the win in A1 but staying out front in A2 & 3 he would completed the title double.  After his strong start, Lemieux would end up with a P4 and P7 in the next two.  With the Team Associated of fourth place qualifier David Batta claiming the runner-up spot with two P2 finishes, Lemieux just held off World Champion Tater Sontag to complete the podium.

Image: JConcepts [Facebook]


August 19, 2024

Yokomo SO2.0 Dirt Edition 2WD Buggy

Yokomo has released a new ‘Dirt Edition’ of its SO2.0 1:10 2WD Buggy. Sharing the same fundamental components as the standard SO2.0 which as launched this time last year, the ‘Dirt Edition’ edition has been optimised for dirt surfaces with several key modifications.  The rear suspension arms have been shortened and equipped with dirt-specific springs, allowing the vehicle to better adapt to uneven and loose dirt surfaces.  For enhanced rear traction the buggy features a hard graphite-molded gearbox coupled with a ball differential. This setup is specifically designed to increase rear traction, ensuring stability and control even in challenging dirt conditions.  The hard graphite gearbox not only boosts rear traction but also contributes to the overall balance of the vehicle.  By adjusting the chassis weight distribution, the Dirt Edition achieves a perfect blend of cornering precision and acceleration performance.  Other changes over the standard SO2.0 include a ball differential that is now included as standard equipment for improved traction and control.  The Dirt Edition comes with newly developed springs specially designed springs tailored for dirt track conditions.  Included in the kit is JConcept F2 Body plus a 7-inch Astro High Clearance Wing providing improved downforce and stability. Combined these updates make the SO2.0 Dirt Edition uniquely suited for dirt track racing.

View more images here


August 16, 2024

MR33 Horizontal Body Mounting Tool

MR33, in collaboration with BOOM RC, has released this Horizontal Body Mounting Tool to make customising your 1:10 scale touring car body a safe and easy task.  The MR33 Horizontal Body Mounting Tool consists of high-quality 3D-printed components and is assembled according to a modular system.  This means you can use it with the most important 1:10 touring car bodies and always mark and drill your horizontal holes perfectly.  The base part is printed in such a way that it can be placed perfectly on the rear wing brackets of the corresponding body.  This means that everything is perfectly centred right from the start. Use the enclosed full-surface plastic washers to set the desired distance between the body holes (measured downwards from the spoiler mount).  Most teams already have specifications here that you can use as a guide.  The marking plate screwed to the base part indicates the perfect hole positions that you need to mark by means of the exact hole spacing.  Then all you have to do is drill the holes and that’s it.  Sounds simple – and it is.  With the MR33 Horizontal Body Mounting Tool, shaking or marking the holes at an angle is practically no longer possible.  Different versions (with different inserts) are available, and MR33 has also prepared the marking plates for different touring car models.

View more images here


August 16, 2024

Monsanto track ready to become World stage once again

It’s the track that one of the great talents of our sport calls home and it’s where our own Events Editor experienced the unique & heightened atmosphere of an IFMAR World Championship for the very first time, so it is great to see Monsanto track in Portugal looking glorious once again and ready to become a world stage for our sport again.  Where a young Bruno Coelho honed his driving skills, the track is located in the picturesque setting of Monsanto Forest Park in the capital city of Lisbon and was the host of the 2008 IFMAR 1:10 200mm Onroad World Championship.  A time when the category was on the crest of a wave, the race attracting drivers from 28 countries, it was Bruno’s father Cesar who organised the 3rd edition of these World Championships.  In qualifying it was to be Jilles Groskamp, driving a Sirio powered Kyosho, who took the TQ while a young Bruno, then driving a Mugen, ended up 77th out of 137 strong entry.  In the final it was the Picco powered Kyosho of Daniele Ielasi who took the World title from American Chris Tosolini with Martin Hudy completing the podium on his Worlds Final debut.  Currently in a time when unfortunately we hear of tracks being forced to close around the world, it is great to see Monsanto, after a lot of hard work by the club, being brought back to its glory days with a brand new asphalt surface.  With the latest IFMAR 1:10 200mm Onroad World Championship coming up in November at Huge RC in Thailand, it will be the turn of Europe & EFRA to host the next edition in 2026.  Are we looking at the ideal host track?  Who knows we might even get Bruno to return to his nitro racing roots and have a go at adding a ‘home’ World title to his CV!

View aerial photo & a young Bruno at Monsanto in 2008 here


August 16, 2024

Serpent F190 1:8 EP Formula 1

Serpent has just announced the brand new and innovative F190 1:8 4WD Electric Formula 1 Chassis.  With the excitement and growth of Formula 1 as it continues  to soar across the globe, Serpent introduces the new kit which was inspired by the legendary Formula 1 cars of the early 2000s.  The Serpent F190 embodies the perfect fusion of nostalgia and cutting-edge technology.  With its meticulously crafted aerodynamic body, precision-engineered chassis, and high-performance components, the F190 is engineered to dominate the track with unparalleled speed, agility, and style.  The F190’s carbon fibre chassis offers the perfect balance of strength and lightweight design, ensuring optimal durability while maintaining agility during high-speed manoeuvres.  This advanced material provides the foundation for superior handling and responsiveness, allowing drivers to push the limits with confidence and precision.  The F190 has been strategically engineered with a 4WD configuration to conquer every type of racing condition, whether on the track or the street.  At the core of the F190 lies a meticulously crafted drive train, where every component is  designed to deliver maximum power and responsiveness. The use of high-quality spring steel and 7075-T6 aluminium ensures exceptional strength and resilience, providing a solid foundation for transferring power from the motor to the wheels with minimal loss. With this combination of materials the Serpent F190 offers uncompromising performance and reliability on the track, battery after battery.

View more images here


August 15, 2024

Dai crowned Chinese Touring Car Champion

Xray’s Jerry Dai is the new 2024 CMAC 1:10 Modified Electric Touring Car Chinese National Champion.  With a weather storm washing out practice, drivers faced into very low grip conditions at FSR International Race Track for qualifying the next day.  At the conclusion of the 3 rounds of qualifying it would be the Yokomo of Fong King from Hong Kong who took the TQ ahead of Dai.  Over the triple A-Main, the first encounter would see King make an aggressive move that resulted in contact with Dai that saw them finish 3rd and 2nd respectively.  In A2 King would retire after the first minute as Dai took the win from the Xray of Ren Jing Feng who qualified 5th on the grid.  While King finally converted pole position into the win in A3 on this occasion from Feng with Dai P3, overall however second in A1 and the win in A2 was enough for Dai to take over the title of Chinese National Champion from Fangzhou “Rocket” Zhang who won on the return of the Nationals last year after a 3-year absence of the event.  One point behind, King took second on tiebreaker from Feng who completed the podium.

Image: Jerry Dai [Facebook]