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February 12, 2026

No surprises in Bangkok, Orlowski Top Seed at TITC

Michal Orlowski is the Top Seed at the TITC, the Schumacher driver clearly having the edge on his rivals in Bangkok. Topping the first of the two seeding rounds in the middle of the day, the driver who stole the show on his debut at the iconic race last year, would prove he had an even greater advantage as the day concluded in the cooler ‘Happy Hour’ evening conditions. Having been Orlowski’s closest challenger in the first round, that high traction in Round 2 would catch out Bruno Coelho, the Infinity driver traction rolling to outside the track fencing, as Marc Rheinard claimed the No.2 seeding for tomorrow’s qualifying with his time. Rheinard’s fastest 3-consecutive laps would be over 3/10ths of a second off his good friend Orlowski and 17/100ths better than Coelho’s effort, the World Champion’s roll happening 2-minutes into the 5-minute run by which time most drivers had already got the best from their tyres. With seeding seeing the Top 7 times come from Round 2, Xray’s Jin Sawada claiming P8 as he failed to better his CP1, it was Infinity’s Naoto Matsukura who set the 4th fastest time having struggled with too much steering in the first one. Another big improvement and relieved to put himself in the top heat for qualifying as the No.5 car was Lucas Urbain, the Awesomatix driver having had a good showing last year to qualify 4th. Carrying the hopes of loyal Tamiya fans around the world, after a strong CP1, Souta Goto kept his TRF421X inside the Top 6 with an improved CP2 ahead of the Mugen Seiki of Ronald Volker. In Open Brushless, the grid attracting a strong European contingent, after a delay in publishing the ranking after a timing glitch in the second round it was local racer Mongkolphan Lomrose who is the top seed for RC Xpress ahead of Awesomatix’s Olivier Bultynck and Xray’s Adam Izsay who has podiumed the last two years. It is a rule that once a drivers wins Open Brushless they can’t return to the class. 2024 Champion and reigning Pro Stock World Champion Simon Lauter acquitted himself well last year making the Modified A-Main and back this year the German will go into qualifying as the 14th seed just ahead of former 1:8 Buggy World Champion David Ronnefalk.

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February 12, 2026

Orlowski tops opening seeding practice at TITC

Schumacher’s Michal Orlowski has topped the opening round of seeding practice at the TITC, the defending Champion remaining the man to beat in Bangkok having been the benchmark for a week of free practice. With practice fatigue starting to kick in around the pits, the first of the two rounds of seeding brought a sense of excitement as it would allow everyone to see where they and their rivals are at. While Orlowski appeared to lose some of his pace advantage in the final practice run that opened Day 1 of the race, it appeared to be only a temporary glitch with the Pole laying down the fastest 3-consecutive laps but Infinity’s Bruno Coelho was only 7/100ths of a second off Orlowski’s 42.406 pace. Despite suffering from heat stroke, an impressive showing from Xray’s Jin Sawada would see the Japanese driver set the third fastest time ahead of the Awesomatix of Marc Rheinard, the pair over 2/10th of a second off the current pace. Putting Tamiya in the final last year, Souta Goto ran the 5th fastest while 2-time Champion Akio Sobue made it 6 different manufacturers in the Top 6 with his Axon, the Japanese driver switching between two different cars here at RC Addict, one with new parts and the other with parts they ran at the FEMCA Championships in preparation for the upcoming Worlds at the same track.

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February 12, 2026

2026 New Zealand 1:10 EP Onroad C/ship – Report

The 2026 NZRCA 1:10 EP Onroad New Zealand Championship, presented by Power HD, concluded last weekend, and while entry numbers were modest, the intensity on the track was at an all-time high, with seven classes of competition providing world-class door-to-door action. Gael Bueno Ware was the man to beat in the premier classes, securing a “double-double” by taking the TQ and overall win in both Modified and 13.5 Touring. In Modified Touring, the Yokomo teammate duo of Bueno Ware and Logan Toia put on a masterclass. The highlight of the weekend was a thrilling A2 main where Toia pushed Bueno Ware to the absolute limit. The race was decided by a final-lap dash to the line in what was described by many as the race of the event. Toia would settle for second, with Simon Noton piloting his Tamiya TRF 421 to the final podium spot. Bueno Ware repeated his dominance in 13.5 Touring Stock. Despite a strong challenge from recent standout Will Sloane, Gael’s consistency proved insurmountable. Sloane showed impressive pace as a class debutant, but a series of errors allowed the veteran to pull away. Kenley Brown rounded out the podium in third.

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February 11, 2026

TITC Rewind – a quick look back on recent moments from the world’s greatest race

In 2003 when the first edition of the Thailand International Touring Car Championship was held no one could have ever imagined what this race would become. For sure the fact that the first ever 1:10 Electric Touring Car World Champion Surikarn Chaidajsuriya won it as the reigning World Champion brought attention to the race and got it off on the right footing, but over the 20 editions held since it has established itself into one of the races that every great driver of our sport wants to claim. Like the Monaco Grand Prix, the Indy 500, Le Mans, and the Dakar Rally, are to full size motorsport, the TITC is iconic and one of the most coveted wins there is in Electric Touring Car and RC racing in general. Manufacturers of all sizes flock to it such is its significance and only an IFMAR World title trumps it in terms of prestige but for that you must wait 2-years between attempts. For drivers it is not a case of flying out a day or two early to get into the swing of driving around the Infinity RC Addict track in conditions that are always changing due to the Thai heat & humidity. Drivers pretty much relocated themselves in Bangkok in search of finding that little something that might help them come out victorious at the end of what is officially only a 4-day event, all else going well because it can be a cruel race. Australian racer Michael Stone made his TITC debut last year and asking him on our arrival to cover the 2025 action how he was finding the experience his reply summed it up perfectly, ‘I am coming for longer next year.’ The race hadn’t even officially started at that stage but it highlights the unique atmosphere that you have to actually experience to truly appreciate. On the eve of the official action getting underway and the 22nd edition attracting the greatest media attention the TITC has ever seen, including its first proper livestream production by our friends RC Race Media, we want to rewind a little and take a look back at some of the more recent editions of the TITC as we look forward to telling the story of our sixth TITC.

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February 9, 2026

TITC coverage presented by Cayote | Gens ace

Race week has arrived for the world’s most important annual touring car race and Red RC is excited to announce we are teaming up with electronics manufacturer Cayote and battery manufacturer Gens ace to bring you coverage from the legendary TITC in Thailand. The 22nd edition of the race, this being Red RC’s sixth time to attend, it has become the most significant Modified Touring Car race in world coming second only in prestige to the IFMAR ISTC World Championship. An event that brings together all the right elements that make for a truly unique racing atmosphere – location, track, ever changing conditions, and the buzz in the busy pits – it sees manufacturers & drivers bring their A-game as they seek to claim a coveted TITC title. Last year we experienced the hugely impressive TITC debut of Michal Orlowski and the Schumacher star is back to try & defend his title, a feat that has only ever been achieved by World Champions. Surikarn Chaidajsuriya won the first running of the race in 2003 and again a year later. Atsushi Hara won in 2005 before going back to back in 2010. Winning again in 2013, Hara together with Bruno Coelho are the race’s most winning drivers with 4 wins each. The reigning World Champion, Coelho made his debut for Infinity at RC Addict last year. Racing a brand new prototype car he couldn’t quite complete three in a row finishing second to Orlowski, but now firmly settled in with his new team he will be a serious contender to become the races most winning driver but the best n the world have their own plans to be on the top step of the podium. With many drivers already well settled-in in Bangkok and clocking up mileage, some very heavy rain showers halting the action but hopefully not going to effect the race program, our coverage will start when the 2026 TITC officially gets underway on Thursday and concludes with the latest entry into the race’s Roll of Honour on Sunday.

February 9, 2026

Mod Champion to be decided at EWS Finale – R4 Report

The penultimate round of the Essex Winter Series took place this Sunday, and confirmed that the LRP Modified champion would once again be crowned in the Series Finale next month! Kyle Branson opened proceedings, setting the best times in Q1 and Q2. The ToniSport-backed driver had now chosen to run a Mugen MTC-3 chassis for the rest of the winter, and it was a Mugen 1-2 as he led Alex Thurston in both the opening runs. Chris Grainger seemed to have re-found his form after a tough start to the winter by taking third in the first round and fourth in the second qualifier. Elliott Harper, a championship contender alongside Kyle and Alex, seemed on the back foot after a fifth and third place scores. However, for Q3, Elliott found some pace with his Schumacher, posting a new fastest time to top the round ahead of Kyle and Alex, before a tight final qualifier again saw Elliott lead Kyle and Alex to secure the overall pole position. Chris would line up fourth with his Reedy Power-backed Schumacher, with Bailey Graves (Schumacher) rounding out the top five. The A Final ultimately turned in to a dominant drive from Elliott, with the top three breaking away from the rest of the field in the opening laps, before Elliott then pulled away further to leave the two Mugen cars to fight over second and third. At the half-distance mark, Kyle made a small mistake, leaving just enough space for Alex to pounce and move up to second. However, a few laps later, a lapped car then took out Alex, allowing Kyle back up into second in the race. That was the order they finished, with Elliott making it back-to-back wins and moving into the championship lead. However, Kyle’s gift of second place leaves him tied with Elliott, and now Alex two points behind – meaning the championship will be decided in March.

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February 9, 2026

Lemieux doubles at JConcepts INS16 opener

Xray’s Chase Lemieux has opened the 16th season of the JConcepts Indoor National Series with a double win at his home track of Trackside Hobbies in Wisconsin. The first stop on the 5 round calendar, Lemieux would secure the TQ in both 2WD and 4WD. In 2WD his closest challenger would be Team Associated’s Aydin Horne, winner of the race 12-months earlier, and Xray team-mate Dakotah Phend, each driver posting a TQ run over the three quali rounds. In 4WD, it was Schumacher’s reigning double INS Champion, and winner of the race in 2025, Broc Champlin who lined up P2 with Phend again P3 ahead of Team Associated’s Spencer Rivkin. In the finals Lemieux would need just the opening two A-Mains to wrap up both overall wins. In 2WD Horne won A3 to finish second with Phend completing the podium ahead of Tom Rinderknecht. In 4WD Champlin took A3 to finish second with Rivkin getting onto the podium with P2 finishes in A2 & 3. Round 2 of the JConcepts INS16 takes place on May 1-3 at RC One Racing in Macomb Township, Michigan.

Image: JConcepts [jconcepts.net]

February 9, 2026

Bruneau wins 50th anniversary Florida WinterNats

One of the world’s longest running nitro onroad races and celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2026, Joachim Bruneau has taken the 1:8 Open win at the end of the high rate of attrition 45-minute Florida WinterNats final. Hosted at Greg Esser’s Nuggets Ranch Raceway in Arcadia, after the four rounds of qualifying it was Infinity’s Teemu Leino who secured the TQ honours ahead of new Mugen Seiki signing Diego Morganti, Lazaro Alonso JR, former 1:10 Nitro Touring World Champion Ralph Burch and 2017 WinterNats Champion DJ Apolaro. With Morganti getting an early lead over Leino, the Finn having issues with his brakes, while pair would be the only drivers to run 13-seconds lap times during the race, unfortunately neither would go the distance. After just 5-minutes Leino was out with a throttle servo failure with Alonso JR next to go out 3-minutes later. Winner of November’s Cow Patty Classic, Apolaro wouldn’t get back to back wins at the track, the former ROAR Champion out at the 20-minute mark. He would be followed to the sidelines at 36-minute by another contender Burch. All the time it was Morganti who was out front and looking on target to add a 6th title to the family name, his father Paolo a 5-time Winternats Champion. With just over 5-minutes to go however a rear belt failure would put the 21-year-old out handing Cow Patty Classic podium finisher Bruneau the win. Some distance back Rafael Angula and Dutch visitor Gertjan Van Schaik completed the podium. In 1:8 Masters it was a Dutch win, as Infinity driver Arie Manten took victory from P5 on the grid. The 1:8 GT win went to Serpent’s Jose Almonte, Top Qualifier & World Championship Podium finisher Carlie Lopez having issues and dropping out of contention eventually finishing P10 with his Raptor. In 1:10 Nitro Touring, Apolaro brought home the win after getting passed Top Qualifier & defending Champion Michael Palazzola with Jerry Guerra completing the podium.

Image: Dan Lester [Facebook]