2WD Buggy World Champions TLR have released a brand new t-shirt to commemorate the 2023 IFMAR World Championship title won by team driver Tater Sontag last September in Chandler, Arizona. The Next Level Apparel Unisex Cotton t-shirt is a 4.3-ounce 90% cotton/10% poly blend and features TLR team branding on the front while a large rear print marks the teenager’s win ahead of outgoing 2 time World Champion Spencer Rivkin.
Source: TLR [horizonhobby.com]
They are two of the biggest names in offroad racing and represent two of the biggest manufacturers on the international stage but last week both Team Associated’s Spencer Rivkin and TLR’s Dakotah Phend became RC teachers for a day as part of two different events. Two time World Champion Rivkin was taking part in the launch of Hobbywing Tech Explorers. Held at World Championship venue Hobby Action Raceway, it marked the first collaboration with a school outreach program. Rivkin touched on his journey with RC, overcoming challenges, and dreaming big. He also discussed the mechanics, electrical aspects, and disciplines of the hobby, along with the incredible values it’s brought into his life – from friends, mentors, and unforgettable experiences. On his social media Rivkin said he was ‘So thankful to have had the opportunity to hold my first public gathering and launch a new program with Hobbywing North America called Tech Explorers! Meeting and seeing these kids remind me what it was like when I first laid eyes on RC cars. I want to personally thank Larry and Hobby Action RC Raceway for letting us utilise the track and rental cars. I’m totally looking forward on doing many more of these!’ Phend brought his 1:10 Electric and 1:8 Nitro buggies to a middle school as part of a career day where he shared his story with pupils. On his Facebook page he posted, ‘I was able to be apart of career day earlier this week at Angola Middle School. I went over how I was able to turn a passion into a career. There are a lot of great and unique opportunities in today’s world!’. It is great to see both drivers promoting RC racing in this way and well done to everyone involved in inspiring the future generation.
View Mr.Phend taking his class here
Following the 43rd running of the U.S. Indoor Champs Presented by Hobbywing onroad event, it was the turn of the offroad racers to race in Cleveland over the weekend where Schumacher’s Ryan Cavalieri and TLR Aaron Kothman took the wins. The 3rd running of the US Carpet Offroad Champs, in 4WD Buggy it was the Team Associated of Brandon Foote who edged out the field to take the overall TQ spot. Foote would continue with his journey battling with current IFMAR 2WD World Champion, Tater Sontag in A1 to take the first win by less than a second at the finish line. In A2, a familiar name would rise to the front of the pack as 4-time World Champ Ryan Cavalieri would claim the A2 win with a flawless 24-lap run. Cavalieri would do it again in A3 taking the overall win keeping the title for Schumacher which had won the even tlast year with Michal Orlowski. On a tiebreaker Foote would take second with Sontag completing the podium. In 2WD, Kothman took the overall TQ before going on to dominate both A1 and A2 for the overall win. With the win in A3 Cavalieri who claim second with foot also enjoying a podium double in Ohio with 3rd overall.
Source: USCOC [Facebook]
While Red RC’s first encounter with Joe Pillars was in 2010 when he was Team Manager for Kyosho and mechanic for the Japanese company’s star driver Jared Tebo, he was also a very capable driver. To mark it being 20-years since he made his World Championship debut he has just completed a personal project of building a replica of his TLR 1:10 2WD Buggy which he put into the A-Main. Sharing photos of the buggy on social media, Joe outlines the story behind the build, ‘2023 marked 20-years since I attended my first IFMAR World Championships at MINNREG in Largo, Florida. At the time I was 21 yrs old and working for Team Orion/Peak Racing building motors for the team and was also sponsored by Team Losi. I went onto qualify 7th and finished 8th overall, being my best result in R/C as a driver. A few months ago I had the idea to build a replica car like what I ran and today it’s finally finished! A big thank you goes out to Larry Doe for most of the help sourcing parts! Thanks to Kris Norlock for helping with the LRP Q2 ESC! Thanks to David Goss for the red Matt Francis ball cups that were impossible to find! I only had 1 Team Orion V2 Motor left after all these years, no better place to have it! Cavalieri Edition.’
A new 2WD Offroad World Champion has been crowned in Arizona with 16-year-old Tate Sontag becoming the 14th different winner of the sport’s most prestigious Title with a flawless win in A2 ahead of outgoing Champion Spencer Rivkin. Showing moments of promise in 4WD but just missing cut with P11 in qualifying, when the event switched to 2WD the Team Losi Racing driver found a form that put the American right in the mix with the World’s RC establishment. Two TQ runs in qualifying en-route to becoming overall Top Qualifier was an indication of what was to come. Winning A1, the nerves of the big occasion highlighted by some mistakes he would survive, that result just sent his confidence even higher. Despite the pressure of Rivkin and newly crowned 4WD Champion Davide Ongaro taking turns at chasing him down, Tater drove a near perfect race to secure the World Title on his Championship debut. A3 would decide who joined him on the podium at Hobby Action RC Raceway, second place qualifier Rivkin dominating from the front to lock in 2nd overall. Holding off Schumacher team-mate Ryan Cavalieri for second in A3, Broc Champlin completed the all American podium line-up.
Tater Sontag will line-up as Top Qualifier on his 2WD World Championship debut, the 16-year-old securing pole for the title deciding A-Main with a P3 for the fifth & final round of qualifying this morning in Arizona. With several drivers desperate for a strong round this morning to make the cut for the A-Main, it would be Broc Champlin who came out fastest from Davide Ongaro and Sontag. Reigning European Champion Marcus Kaerup had been on target to TQ the round until he came upon traffic. With no call from the race control, onlooker calling for the call to be made by officials for the traffic to open on, as the Dane tried to execute a pass they tangled. Losing almost 2-seconds, a clearly frustrated Kaerup would finish P5 for the round. Having TQ’d the opening qualifier Dakotah Phend would need to be marshalled and Q4 pace setter Spencer Rivkin would have a mistake meaning they didn’t better their points tally. Overall Rivkin will try to defend his World Title from P2 behind Tater and ahead of newly crowned 4WD Champion Ongaro who lines up third followed by Champlin.
16-year-old Tater Sontag’s talent shown through in the second round of qualifying at the 2WD Worlds with the TLR driver putting in a TQ run ahead of Broc Champlin and Aydin Horne. Going over a second quicker than the pace set by team-mate Dakotah Phend in the opening qualifier, Sontag was 8/10th quicker than Champlin’s Schumacher in a round that saw the Top 3 from Q1 all have bobbles. Phend would need to be marshalled in the front of the driver’s stand, Spencer Rivkin would fly off the track at the end of the straight and Ongaro also had a lap that cost him 3-seconds. The Italian ended up best of the trio with a P7 for the round behind 2017 Champion Ryan Maifield.
Dakotah Phend has taken the opening round of qualifying at the 2WD World Championship in Arizona. Having just scrapped into the top heat after setting the 10th fastest time in yesterday’s two seeding rounds, the TLR driver would TQ the first of the five scheduled rounds of qualifying from reigning World Champion Spencer Rivkin and newly crowned 4WD Champion Davide Ongaro who sat at the top of the timing screen for much of the opening round. The Top Seed for qualifying Aydin Horne would open his account with a P7 behind former World Champions Ryan Cavalieri (P6) and Ryan Maifield (P5) with young TLR driver Tater Sontag fourth fastest.
