Red RC » Xray

December 8, 2024

Coelho Top Qualifier at FEMCA Championship

Bruno Coelho is the Top Qualifier at this year’s FEMCA ISTC Championship, the Xray driver picking up where he left off yesterday to top the third round of qualifying this morning in Foshan, China. Faced with low traction conditions for the 3rd of the 5 scheduled qualifier, this would prove to be Coelho’s slowest TQ run so far with the World Champion unable to match the two 25-lap runs he posted in yesterday’s opening two qualifiers around the GDC Indoor track. Again it was Infinity’s Naoto Matsukura who presented the biggest challenge, the gap however at the end of the 5-minutes still significant at 3.3-seconds this time round. After a slow opening lap, Shin Sawada would recover to complete the Top 3 times, the Xray driver benefiting from his fellow countryman Kouki Kato rolling his Infinity on the curbing coming onto the main straight on lap 16 which cost him over 2.5 seconds. Behind Kato, the Awesomatix of Rocket Zhang led the home challenge, the well known Chinese driver rounding out the Top 5 ahead of the similar car of Maxim Laverychev.

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December 7, 2024

Coelho holds overnight FEMCA TQ in China

Bruno Coelho holds the overnight TQ at the FEMCA ISTC Championship in China, the Xray driver topping the opening two rounds of qualifying today at the GDC Indoor track in Foshan. Having topped seeding, the World Champion would take the first of the 5 scheduled qualifiers ahead of Naoto Matsukura and it looked it was going to be a similar result in Q2 until the Japanese driver’s Infinity got stopped suddenly in its tracks by the foot of a marshal. While Matsukura would eventually continued to claim a P4 run, it was his team-mate Koki Kato and Xray’s Shin Sawada who would benefit to end the round with the 2nd & 3rd fastest times respectively. Overall however Matsukura still holds P2 going into tomorrow morning’s final 3-rounds of qualifying despite ending the day on 6-points together with Kato & Sawada.

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December 7, 2024

Coelho tops seeding in Foshan

Bruno Coelho is the top seed at the FEMCA Championship for Electric Touring Car in Foshan City, China, the Xray driver laying down his fastest time in the third & final round of practice at GDC. With the indoor carpet track getting faster and faster each round as the hard compound controlled Rush tyres come in, Coelho’s time was 7/10ths of a second quicker than his near rival Naoto Matsukura over his 3-consecutive with Infinity team-mate & fellow countryman Koki Kato completing the Top 3 a further 3/10ths down. A Spec class finalist at the recent IFMAR ISTC World Championships in California, the Xray of Shin Sawada would post the fourth fastest time ahead of the similar car of Chinese National Champion Jerry Dai who claimed 5th at last year’s FIRC.

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December 7, 2024

Coelho opens FEMCA C/ship at top of SP1

After a very impressive ceremony this morning at GDC to officially open the 2024 FEMCA ISTC Championship in Foshan, China, it was the Xray of Bruno Coelho that set the opening pace when cars hit the track at midday. After his well executed speech during the opening ceremony, getting up on stage probably the most daunting things the World Champion has faced so far, the Portuguese returned to the environment he is far more comfortable with to set the fastest 3-consecutive laps of the first seeding round ahead of the Infinitys of Naoto Matsukura and Koki Kato. A driver who took part in the inaugural FIRC race last year, Maxim Laverychev would take his Awesomatix to the fourth fastest time ahead of the Xray of Japanese driver Shin Sawada with top Indonesian driver Bowie Ginting completing the Top 6 for the first of the three seeding rounds.

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December 5, 2024

World Champions tour Foshan ahead of FEMCA C/ships

It’s not just all racing duties when you are a World Champion! When you have 2 multiple World Champions in town you want to make the most of the opportunity to help promote RC Racing. Well, that is exactly what happened today with Bruno Coelho and Naoto Matsukura ahead of this weekend’s FEMCA ISTC Championships in Foshan, China. With his GDC Indoor Race Club track hosting this year’s FEMCA race that will crown the Touring Car Champion of Asia, Gavin Kwok took a number of the visiting drivers to the City’s Nanfeng Ancient Kiln which was built during the Ming Dynasty. The oldest existing active ceramic wood-burning dragon kiln in the world it has a history of more than 500 years. Accompanied by a photographer & videographer to capture the visit, there was an interesting and novelty electric bus ride from the track to the city’s major tourist site. With Matsukura sitting up front in the bus beside the driver it was a very entertaining ride and one which highlight that the Japanese racer could have a career as a tourist guide once he decides to hang up his radio!! With a day of free practice ahead of drivers tomorrow (Friday), the FEMCA Championship gets underway in earnest on Saturday morning with seeding followed by qualifying before finals on Sunday decide the new FEMCA Champion. You can follow all the action from GDC here on Red RC over the next 3-days.

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December 1, 2024

Hebert and Lia win at U.S. Indoor Champs

The 44th running of the U.S. Indoor Champs Presented by Hobbywing saw Xray’s Keven Hebert defend his title in Modified Touring Car while Awesomatix’s Donny Lia took the win in 1:12 at the Cleveland, Ohio, classic. In Touring Car Qualifying, it was the fourth & final round of qualifying that proved the fastest round with Hebert 6/10ths of a second faster than Awesomatix’s 2022 Champion Sam Isaacs with team-mate Kemp Anderson securing P3 on the grid. With a single A-Main, Hebert set the fastest lap of the race to win by a 3.3-second margin over Isaacs with Anderson finishing a further 1-second back to complete the podium. In Mod 1:12 qualifying it was defending Champion Isaacs that took the overall TQ, his Awesomatix fastest in Q4 from MonTech NYGP winner Anderson with Lia third fastest, his best time coming in Q3. In the triple finals, Isaacs managed to convert in A1 as Lia got by Anderson for second but in A2 the Top Qualifier caught a corner that allowed Anderson to the front but he then had a mistake 2 and a half minutes in allowing young Stuart Mason to the lead ahead of Lia where he would stay to the finish. Bringing the 2024 edition of the World’s longest running RC race to a close, in A3 Isaacs had the early lead but under intense pressure from Anderson there was contact with the boards for Isaacs that broke his car and put him out of the race. With Anderson leading, as the race came to a close Lia started pushing him hard and on the last lap executed a great pass to take the win and the title. Mason would finish runner-up with final step on the podium going to Isaacs.

View 1:12 podium here

November 14, 2024

Xray XB4 ’25 1:10 4WD Buggy

After the release of their 1:10 2WD Buggy at the start of the month, Xray has now unveiled details of its European Championship title holding 4WD challenger the XB4’25. The Slovakian manufacturer’s latest creation headed up by Martin Bayer, features a new chassis and aligned front bumper improve ground clearance. It also gets 3mm wider front suspension arm holders (A and B) for increased stability & cornering speed. Wide rear suspension arm holders (C and D) also increase stability & cornering speed. Longer front 84mm drive shafts accommodate wider geometry from the new arm holders. Available as a Dirt or Carpet edition kit, the XB4C comes with Graphite front lower suspension arms to improve high traction performance. The XB4D kit includes hard front lower suspension arms to create increase traction. Graphite C-hubs improve response & consistency. Also new on the 25 model are the front steering blocks with external adjustable carbon steering plates for extended tuning options. Elsewhere the buggy get redesigned front and rear anti-roll bar geometry with super easy adjustment from top. Shorter 113mm rear central dogbone drive shaft in the XB4D kit are for short wheelbase configuration suggested for lower traction conditions

View the full XB4’25 presentation here

November 8, 2024

Coelho again in Q2 as young Cruz stars

Xray’s Bruno Coelho picked up where he left off yesterday to open Day 2 of qualifying at the IFMAR Electric Touring Car World Championship with another TQ run but it was Mugen Seiki’s Jacob Cruz whose performance was the highlight of the Q2, the up & coming talent posting the fourth fastest time. The first of 4 rounds of qualifying on today’s schedule, Coelho and Michal Orlowski where once again the class of the Modified field with both drivers upping the 5-minute pace to register 29-lap runs, the pair separated by just half a second. A run which would see Marc Rheinard hit the boards and break his Awesomatix while holding P3, it was the Mugen Seiki of Ronald Volker who completed the Top 3 ahead of his young team-mate Cruz. As the ROAR National Champion, Awesomatix’s Sam Isaacs produced a strong run to the fifth fastest time ahead of the Axon of 2022 Worlds Podium finisher Akio Sobue.

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