Red RC » Events

September 4, 2026

2 from 2 for Iivonen as last lap error costs Bernadzik Q2

Mayako’s Pekko Iivonen made it 2 from 2 on the opening day of qualifying at the fourth & final round of the Asian Buggy Championships in Indonesia, the Finn taking Q2 after a late mistake by Top Seed Alex Bernadzik. Having topped the opening qualifier, Iivonen set the early pace of the afternoon run but again setting the fastest lap of the round Bernadzik’s Team Associated went to the top of the timing screens 2-minutes into the 5-minute qualifier. On the final lap however a mistake from the Australian would see him drop 1-second on his previous lap time, allowing Iivonen to top times by 1.061 of a second. Behind it was Korean teenager Hyunkyu Jung who posted the third fastest time ahead of Jason Nugroho and Sparko’s Jayden Edmunds.

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September 4, 2026

Iivonen takes opening ABC qualifier in Jakarta

Mayako’s Pekko Iivonen has TQ’d the opening qualifier at the concluding round of the 2026 Asian Buggy Championships in Jarkata, Indonesia. The Finn took the first of the five scheduled qualifiers at West Side Raceway ahead of Top Seed Alex Bernadzik, the Team Associated driver 2.7-seconds off the TQ pace after a slow start on new tyres. Making it three different manufacturers in the Top 3, Sparko’s new FEMCA Champion Jayden Edmunds was a similar margin off his fellow countryman Bernadzik to open with a P3 effort. While taking the opening TQ in eBuggy ahead of Edmunds with his Team Associated, Hyunkyu Jung encountered traffic on the opening laps of his first nitro qualifier hampering his chances of a double, but it was a costly mistake on the teenager’s penultimate lap that meant the 4th fastest for Q1. Infinity’s Jason Nugroho upheld home honours as he set the fifth fastest time ahead of the Mugen Seiki of Australian teenager Zac Foster.

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September 4, 2026

World Champion Takahata confirmed for Singapore International Nitro GP

Mugen Seiki’s reigning 1:8 Onroad World Champion Shoki Takahata has been confirmed for October’s Singapore International Nitro Grand Prix. The Japanese driver joined a very exclusive club in Chile last December when he won the IFMAR World title for a second time having previously won in 2019 in the United States. Takahata joins Infinity’s defending Singapore International Nitro GP Champion Dario Balestri, the duo having held the World No.1 status between them for the last 9-years, for what will be an extra special edition of the race as it celebrates its 20th anniversary. Taking place on October 10-11, the same weekend as the Singapore F1 Grand Prix, over the last two decades the Radio Control Modellers’ Club’s annual international race has welcomed numerous World Champions. 2026 looks like attracting its most World Champion stack field yet.

Source: RCMC Singapore [Facebook]

September 4, 2026

2026 Tamiya C/ship Series National Finals – Report

The 2026 Tamiya Championship Series National Finals concluded last weekend with a fantastic return to SCOR Raceway in Anaheim, California. 126 drivers took part in the 31st running of TCS for a total of 202 entries across GT-Pro Spec “Porsche Cup”, M-Chassis, GT-2, GT-1, F1, GT-E, Euro Truck, and GT Novice which made up the eight classes run at the event. The “Ticket to Japan” trip classes this year were again GT-2, M-Chassis and GT Pro-Spec “Porsche Cup” with those races being among the most exciting at the event (with the Triple A-Main format). In the end, Brian Shook triumphed to take the GT-2 title, Tom Aakre waited to the third main to decide the M-Chassis title and Justin Bamberger also left it to the third main event to seal the deal in the GT Pro Spec “Porsche Cup” title! All three champions will be representing the USA at the Tamiya World Championships in November at Tamiya’s headquarter in Japan. World-famous race announcer Scotty Ernst returning to his racing roots to come back to announce this year’s TCS Finals, 2026 marking 30 years since Ernst won the Tamiya 4WD TCS class running a TA-03 at the 2nd annual TCS Finals.

Source: Tamiya USA [tamiyausa.com]

September 3, 2026

Bernadzik tops first seeding in Indonesia

Alex Bernadzik topped the opening round of seeding at the season finale of the Asian Buggy Championships today in Indonesia, the Australian heading a 1-2 for Team Associated. Over the 41-seconds West Side Raceway lap, he would have a 4/10ths of a second advantage over team-mate Hyunkyu Jung as each drivers best two consecutive laps were recorded. A more technical track layout than the Championships’ previous 2024 visit to the dirt track, traffic seemed to be the biggest challenge for drivers in the randomly created seeding groups. Completing the Top 3 for the first of the two seeding rounds, the second getting Friday’s action underway here in Jakarta, was Mayako’s Pekko Iivonen who was 7/10ths off Bernadzik’s pace. The Sparko of Jayden Edmunds was next up, the Australia fourth fastest ahead of the Infinity of Jason Nugroho, one of the few drivers not to sauce his tyres, and the Sworkz of fellow Indonesian Adrian Wicaksono.

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September 2, 2026

Asia Nitro Party 2027 – Announcement

Having kicked off the 2026 season with the successful staging of the inaugural Asia Nitro Party, the Hongyu GDC track in Foshan, China, has announced that it has now locked in the weekend of January 15-17, 2027, as the date for the 2nd edition of the international nitro onroad race. Expanding to a 3-day event, the organisers have also confirmed the event will see racing for nitro onroad’s three main categories – 1:8 Onroad, 1:8 GT, and 1:10 Onroad, the latter set for one of its biggest World Championship entries next week in Italy. Attracting high quality entry for the first edition, with the multi circuit facility making a major impression on those visitors, it was Infinity’s Naoto Matsukura who took the 1:8 Onorad win from Italian Xray driver Filippo Domanin and Serpent’s Andrea Catanzani. In 1:8 GT, Frenchman Bernard-Alain Arnaldi took the win for Genius ahead of the Raptors of World Champion Alessio Mazzeo and Natanaele Senesi. With Southern China experiencing mild weather in January, the timing of the Asian Nitro Party is the perfect opportunity for European nitro racers to break-up the traditional Winter off-season and compete at an event that has already made a mark on establishing itself as a major annual event on the international nitro onroad race calendar. China also offers visa-free entry to most European passport holders, and Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport (CAN) is one of the country’s main international airports making attending the race very accessible.

Source: Hongyu GDC [Facebook]

September 2, 2026

Hudy Balkan Series Round 2 Bulgaria – Report

The second round of the 2026 Hudy Balkan Series took place recently at the Slivnitsa RC Track in Bulgaria where it would be Xray’s Christian Kostadinov who pulled off the doubled on a weekend that saw every Top Qualifier converted to race wins. Located around 30km outside Sofia, the event would attract 37 entries over four classes and qualifying counted for everything. The Elceram Modified class produced the closest qualifying with Kostadinov and Razvan Stroe both scoring a perfect 100 but the TQ went to Kostadinov on countback with Boyan Stamenov securing third. Come the finals, winner of Round 1 of the series back in June, Kostadinov took A1 and A2 for what would be his second win of the weekend, and Stroe’s A3 victory enough for second overall. Stamenov completed what would be his second podiums of the day.

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September 1, 2026

Smith crowned double British 1:10 Offroad Champion

Ben Smith is the new double British 1:10 Offroad Champion, the Schumacher driver claiming his first ever National title success on Saturday with a 2WD podium finish and then doubling up on Sunday to take the 4WD title in style with victory at the season finale hosted by Batley Model Car Club. Having finished runner-up to Team Associated’s Tommy Hall in both championships last year, Smith lifted the 2WD title by 2-points from Hall with 5-points separating the Top 2 in 4WD. The sixth & final round of the championship would see Scotland’s Daniel Pole secure the 2WD TQ and win for Associated. Becoming the fourth different winner of 2026, his first win of the season came ahead of Luke Holdsworth and Smith. In 4WD, it was the perfect weekend for Smith as he secured the TQ ahead of Hall with Josh Holdsworth lining up third for Schumacher. In the finals they would finish as they started.

Image: Schumacher [Facebook]