Red RC

March 1, 2024

Coelho holds overnight TQ in Bangkok

With Day 1 of qualifying at the 20th edition of the TITC complete it is Bruno Coelho who holds the overnight TQ in Bangkok. The Xray driver would take both rounds of qualifying on today’s schedule helped by top seed Ronald Volker having a 360 spin while on TQ pace run in Q2. The second of the four qualifiers would be a repeat of the opening round in terms of the Top 3 with Alexander Hagberg 3rd fastest having been the pace setter for a time during the 5-minute run. After an early mistake and a bad set-up choice in Q1, Naoto Matsukura would get a P4 on his second attempt ahead of Souta Goto driving the new Tamiya TRF421 which is making its race debut here. With many of the leading drivers having moments it was the Xray of Shin Sawada who was running in the second fastest along with Goto who completed the Top 6.

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March 1, 2024

Gens Ace Redline 2.0 Series batteries

Gens Ace has introduced its latest competition battery packs with the release of the Redline 2.0 Series. With a discharge rate of 140C, the Redline 2.0 series surpasses their 1.0 series (130C), offering faster response times and a competitive edge on the track. The second generation batteries also feature lower internal resistance, ensuring a stable and enduring discharge for consistent power delivery throughout your race, without any drop-offs. Additionally, the Redline 2.0 series boasts increased capacity compared to its predecessor, providing more power for longer run times. Offering 11 pack options in the series, all have earned both EFRA and ROAR certifications, guaranteeing the highest standards of performance and safety.

Source: Gens Ace [gensace.com]

March 1, 2024

Coelho takes opening qualifier at TITC

Bruno Coelho has kicked off the defence of his TITC title in the best way possible by TQ’ing the opening round of qualifying at the iconic Bangkok race. Second behind Ronald Volker in the single seeding round yesterday evening, the Xray driver reversed the order in the first of the four qualifiers by topping the round by 7/10th over the Mugen driver. Held just after midday local time on a very hot track, behind the Top 2 there was a considerable gap. The third fastest time was set by Alexander Hagberg who was closely followed by Marc Rheinard and Akio Sobue, the Top 5 all previous winners of what is widely regarded as the most difficult race in the world. Making it five different manufacturers in the Top 6, Xpress team driver Yugo Nagashima put in the sixth fastest time.

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March 1, 2024

JConcepts RC10B7 precut chassis protective sheet

JConcepts continues its tradition of making tape since 2008 with the newest release of the RC10B7 | RC10B7D chassis protective sheet. Pre-cut to perfection, lining up to the popular new buggy, the abstract design catches the eye and carries on a legacy of high-end chassis protectors. The 2-piece design, which includes three separate rear chassis pieces features italicised graphics in a high-speed fashion, embodies all that is great about competition. The chassis protective sheet is produced in a highly durable material making it ideal for carpet, turf, and dirt off-road racing. The profile lines the chassis shape and tucks into the front kick-up of the chassis and rests underneath the bumper to limit forward edge access. Out of the JConcepts Speed Laboratory, the neutral colours and layout match any racing scheme at the track and looks quick while doing it. With 2 complete sheets included per package, the durable and resilient material fits each chassis layout like a glove and adds protection and style in one easy package. While it’s not easy to re-invent the chassis sheet, JConcepts, along with Ryan Maifield, also offer a ‘No Apologies’ RM2 version of the sheet.

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February 29, 2024

Volker top seed at TITC

Ronald Volker is the top seed going into qualifying at the TITC, the Mugen Seiki driver fastest over 3-laps from defending Champion Bruno Coelho. With just a single round of seeding practice determining the heats for the four rounds of qualifying, most drivers completed the minimum laps possible needed to secure a place in the top while also saving tyres. Running in the second fastest practice heat due to his B-Final appearance at last year’s event, Volker took two goes at setting a time. It was his second 3-consecutive laps that counted with him fastest by 16/100th of a second over Coelho, the Xray driver making just one attempt to post a time. One of the few drivers to run the entire 5-minutes along with team-mate Akio Sobue, Axon’s Hayato Ishioka set the third fastest time with 2-time TITC winner Sobue ending up 7th. Infinity’s Naoto Matsukura posted the fourth fastest time ahead of the Awesomatix pairing of Lucas Urbain and Marc Rheinard.

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February 29, 2024

Bruno Coelho – ‘Completely different race to any other. It’s one of the best in the World’

Red RC attended its first TITC in 2017. It was always a bucket list event but it was the meaning of the win on the Sunday that really endorsed for us that this is one of the greatest touring car races. The emotion of the win was powerful and that winner was Bruno Coelho who gave us the headline for our final report that read, ‘Coelho takes TITC with ‘hardest win’ of career’. Seven years on and catching up with Bruno before he took his flight to the Thai capital to defend his title, the World Champion still rates the race as ‘one of the best in the World’ adding it is ‘a completely different race to any other’. Chasing a record equaling fourth win that would put him on par with TITC Master Atsushi Hara, a driver widely acknowledged for putting the race on the world stage, as we will find out Bruno isn’t driven by records but very much being the best on the day. He knows this is one race where ever detail is critical be successful at ‘one of the most challenging races’ in the world while on the flip side offers ‘one of the best race atmosphere’ you can experience.

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February 29, 2024

Xray X4 UAM Anti-Roll Bars

New from Xray for its X4 Electric Touring Car is their UAM (Under arm mounting) front and rear anti-roll bars designed to work with the lower suspension arms. Mounted under suspension arms for ultra-low CG, the anti-roll bar system is mounted to the bulkheads via bearings from outside for extra-smooth movement and for quick & easy changes and adjustment. The roll bar turns in ball-bearings for maximum precision and free movement and the height is adjustable via a screw making adjustments quick & easy. Each anti-roll bar has laser-engraved stripes (corresponding to bar thickness) for easy identification.

Source: Xray [teamxray.com]

February 28, 2024

Atsushi Hara – TITC is ‘toughest race in the World’ and ‘most difficult to win’

Every sport has its legends and for me personally the greatest of all is Atsushi Hara. Before I knew I would ever work in the RC Industry and well before a thing called ‘social media’ would consume our daily lives, there was one driver dominating the track. You couldn’t open an RC Magazine without Hara featuring as a race winner or in an ad for the brands he represented. For our younger generation of followers I should explain that an RC magazine was a thing made of paper pages that had kit reviews and reports & photographs (that you can’t zoom in on) from major RC races a few months after they happened. He was an influencer before influencers were a thing. Hara was a truly global star and was the only racer I found myself slightly star struck on first meeting him at the DHI Cup in 2008. It was also Hara who many attribute to putting the TITC on the World stage and on my bucket list of races to attend and to this day, as we approach the 20th running, he is still the Master of it. As the most winning driver in its history, Hara is the ultimate authority to be able to label this iconic race the ‘toughest race in the World’ and one he believes is the ‘most difficult to win’.

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