May 15, 2024

Thurston makes it 2 from 2 in BRCA 1:8 Onroad C/ship

Alex Thurston continued his impressive 2024 season form making it 2 from 2 at the second round of the BRCA British 1:8 Onroad Nationals held at Adur over the weekend.  Winner of the season opener at the Cotswolds track last month, Thurston took his Ielasi Tuned powered YMC Racing Mugen Seiki to the top of the times in all four qualifier and starting from the TQ went on to win the final by 2 and a half laps setting the fastest lap in the process.  As at Round 1 of the 7 round Championship, reigning Champion Tim Wood was again on the podium but this time down in P3 behind team-mate & new Team Shepherd owner David Spashett who went from pitman at season opener to racer at Round 2 to claim a second place.  Currently Thurston leads three National Championships – 1:8 Onroad, 1:10 200mm Nitro Touring Car and the 1:10 Electric Touring Car having secured his first ever National win in the class at the season opener a weekend earlier.

Image: Alex Thurston [Facebook]


May 15, 2024

Holdsworth brothers join Xray for 1:8 Buggy

Xray and their British distributors RC Disco have announced that brothers Josh & Luke Holdsworth are joining Team Xray to race in the 1:8 Nitro Buggy class with the XB8’24 powered by FX Engines.  Josh and Luke are well known in 1:10 Offroad as leading National Championship drivers and European Championship Finalists, so Xray are happy to welcome them to race alongside their already formidable British 1:8 Offroad team.  Both already showed their pace at last weekend’s BRCA 1:8 Nationals by making the Semi Finals with Josh just missing a Top 3 Podium at their first big race with the new cars.

Source: Xray [teamxray.com]


May 14, 2024

Ultimate Racing MXR Ceramic 3 Transfer .21 Offroad

Spanish based brand Ultimate Racing has launched their new MXR Ceramic 3 Transfer .21 Offroad Competition Engine.  Like its predecessor the MXS, this engine is manufactured by the prestigious Japanese brand O.S. Engines and in this case based on their square stroke Speed B21 engine.  Apart from the modifications that the MXS already had, such as the crankshaft and back plate, the sleeve of the MXR has been modified, modifying the ports to be able to vary the inlet and exhaust timing.  The inner head has also been modified and includes the innovative FlowMax venturi to improve performance, more specifically, to achieve greater power without compromising fuel consumption. This engine provides a really good power band with a ton of usable power.  It has a smooth bottom end which worked well on the bumpy track and then has a lot of mid-range pop and feel to it.  This engine is also available as Team Edition (broken in) and Combo with both, the 2141 and the 2142 pipes.

View more images here


May 14, 2024

Raiola crowned Italian 1:10 Nitro Touring Champion

Infinity’s Carmine Raiola was the crowned the 2024 AMSCI Italian National 1:10 Nitro Touring Champion over the weekend at the Roger Track 2.0 in Marigliano.  Qualifying for the title race would see Raiola secure the TQ, after topping 3 of the four rounds, ahead of team-mate Dario Balestri.  An impressive qualifying performance by the BMT of Ciro Mollo would secure him third on the grid for the 45-minute final.  Continuing his form into final setting the fastest lap, Raiola would cruise to victory over the Xray of Mario Spiniello by almost 2-laps, Spiniello having a strong final having qualified P9.  Unfortunately for Balestri and Mollo their races would end prematurely, the pair making contact and eventually retiring within 1-minute of each other as the race entered the final 5-minutes.  In the end it was the Xray of Francesco Pierella which completed the podium.  In the Sport Category, it was Ciro Borrelli who took the title also driving an IF15-2.

Image: Carmine Riola [Facebook]


May 14, 2024

RC Upgrade AE Arm Mount Insert Box

New from RC Upgrade is their Arm Mount Insert Box for 1:8 Team Associated vehicles.  Inside, you’ll find 20 individual compartments each of which is specifically designed to accommodate an Arm Mount Insert.  With these compartments, you can neatly organize your Arm Mount Inserts by size so whether you’re fine-tuning your suspension setup or swapping out inserts for different track conditions, having them neatly stored and easily accessible is essential.  The box features a sliding lid, which makes it incredibly convenient to access its contents.  No more fumbling around when you need to grab an insert quickly.

View another image here


May 14, 2024

Boots gets first win of BRCA title defence

Round 2 of the BRCA 1:8 Nitro Buggy British National Championship took place in Shrewsbury over the weekend where Sworkz’s Elliott Boots registered the first win of his title defence.  In qualifying it was the Xray of season opener winner Jonathan Skidmore who would take TQ just as he did at Round 1 with Boots 2nd and the Team Associated of Neil Cragg third.  In the Semi Finals, the event would come to an early finish for Skidmore who misjudged the back step up, brushed the wooden board and broke the car just 5 laps in.  With Boots winning his Semi final he took up pole position for the final ahead of the WIRC of Lewis Jones, Cragg and Michael Lewis.  Just as the 45-minute final had started Boots hit trouble.  A flameout caused by a stone on Lap 1 meant he was in the pits and despite the fast reactions of his pitman, the former European Champion found himself rejoining 2-laps down.  Making a charge back through the field, with 8-minutes to go he had worked his way back to the front eventually crossing the finish line 2-laps clear of Cragg with the HB of Graham Alsop completing the podium.  A five round championship, Brookthorpe is the next stop for drivers with the third round taking on June 15/16.

Image: Elliott Boots [Facebook]

 


May 13, 2024

2024 IFMAR 1:10 Nitro Touring World Championship – Stage 1 Report

The Stage 1 Report for the IFMAR 1:10 Nitro Touring World Championship which takes place later this year in Costa Rica has been published.  The event is scheduled to take place at the Mini Autodromo La Cruces track from November 14-24 and will mark the 10th running of the championship.  Expected to be supported strongly by drivers from across Central and South America, it appears the classes declining popularity and the duration of the race, 9 days of track time, mean international entries could be limited.  Red RC reached out to a number of manufacturers regarding their attendance plans with two responding that they are still undecided on whether they will send drivers.  One manufacturer confirmed that they will not be sending any official factory drivers from either its Japanese, European or American teams.  Infinity are the reigning champions thanks to Tadahiko Sahashi win in Thailand in 2022.  The team enjoyed a dominant performance in Bangkok filling 9 of the 10 spots, Capricorn the only other brand in the final at RC Addict.  After such a result and also winning the title at the previous Worlds with Naoto Matuskura, the Japanese manufacturer has little to prove by attending with a large team.  EFRA has reportedly received interest from around 10 drivers seeking to attend the race.  Having covered the last 7 runnings of the 1:10 Nitro Touring World Championships, it is Red RC’s intentions to travel to Costa Rica to report on the race.  View Stage 1 Report by clicking here.

Source: EFRA [Facebook]


May 13, 2024

T-Works RC10 B7 Carbon Fibre Servo Chassis Weight

T-Works has added a Carbon Fibre Servo Chassis Weight for the Team Associated B7RC10 to its range of aftermarket parts for the hugely popular 1:10 2WD Buggy.  The lightweight carbon fibre chassis plate will give racers the option of tuning different weight bias to suit your rear traction needs on different track conditions.  Additionally the Carbon Fibre Servo Chassis Weight adds rigidity.

Source: T-Works [rc-tworks.com]