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November 17, 2025

Inaugural Asia 1:8 GT Nitro C/ship – Announcement

Continuing its roll out of Asia Championship title races, FEMCA has announced the inaugural 1:8 Nitro GT Championship for 2026. The Far East Model Car Association (FEMCA), the governing body for RC racing that represents 15 nations in Asia and Australasia, has awarded the first 1:8 GT title race to the very impressive X-RC Complex in Lam Dong, Vietnam. An event that crowns the ‘Champion of Asia’, while titled the Asia 1:8 GT Nitro Championship, alongside the nitro cars the event will also cater for Electric GT. With GT crowning only its third World Champion this year in Chile, Raptor/Gimar driver Alessio Mazzeo doing the double, the first Asian Champions are set to be crowned between July 17-19th, 2026. FEMCA will publish further details on the championship in due course.

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November 11, 2025

Pequito defends World title at PNWC

Xbility driver & designer Jose Pequito has successfully defended his 2WD Open World title at the PN Racing World Cup in Colorado. Winning the 1:28 title last year in France, then racing for RC Atomic, the Portuguese driver would repeat the feat with his own car this year taking the ‘One’ to victory in 2WD Open at 5280 Raceway in Denver. In qualifying it would be Reflex Racing’s John Dickson who secured the TQ ahead of Pequito and PN Racing’s Mathieu Da Rocha, the latter taking the TQ & win in the AWD Open class. With Dickson suffering a DNF in A1, Alex Soto-Pagan took the win ahead of Pequito before the World Champion came good in A2 & 3 to win both and retain his title. Soto-Pagan would fill the second step on the podium which was completed by Marka driver Guillaume Loie. Counting a 6th from A2 and a 3rd in A3, Dickson would finish 5th. In 2WD Stock Chris Lemaire had the perfect weekend topping qualifying and taking the win while in Formula 1 EJ Courtemanch covnerted his TQ after turning around an A1 DNF to win the next two for the title.

Image: MOD Live Media [Facebook]

November 11, 2025

Apolaro & Ernst claim Infinity double at Cow Patty Classic

DJ Apolaro and Scotty Ernst gave Infinity a double win at the annual Cow Patty Classic at the Nuggets Ranch Raceway in Arcadia, Florida. One of the US nitro onroad race majors and run by US nitro onroad stalwart Greg Esser and his family, the 14th edition not only attracted the Top US Nitro racers but also a group of European visitors. In qualifying, each driver’s fastest time determining the order, after the 6 rounds it was Apolaro who secured the TQ ahead of the Capricorn of German’s Thilo Diekmann and former Nitro Touring Car World Champion Ralph Burch. In the 1:8 Masters class it was Robert Ronas who took the TQ ahead of Ernst. With a 40-minute final determining the Masters result, Ernst would set the fastest lap with with his Kabuto powered IF8-3 and take the win after Ronas’ race came to an end with 6 minutes to go. Behind Ernst, Donna Garcia and Peter Berton completed the Masters Top 3. With a 45-minute Main for 1:8 Open concluding the weekend’s action, Apolaro would be kept on his toes by Diekmann, the two very evenly matched on outright pace, Apolaro’s best lap a 15.063 compared to Diekmann’s 15.093. With Burch retiring from the race, in the end Apolaro took the win by under 10-seconds from Diekmann with Joachim Bruneau taking the final step on the podium while Ersnt backed up his early win with a P5 in Open. In Nitro Touring Michael Palazzola took the TQ and win ahead of Alex Eesser while in 1:8 GT Nitro the Raptor of World Championship finalist Carlie Lopez took the win.

Image: Cow Patty Classic

November 10, 2025

Takahata takes MRX7 to JMRCA Japanese National title

With Mugen Seiki having only officially released their latest 1:8 Onroad Chassis at the end of last month, their factory driver Shouki Takahata gave the Robert Pietsch designed MRX7 its first major title by winning the 2025 JMRCA 1:8 Onroad Japanese National Championship. With a field stacked with World Champions, it was the 2019 World Champion secured the TQ at the K2 International Circuit ahead of multiple World Champion Naoto Matsukura while Infinity team-mate & defending Champion Takaaki Shimo ended up 3rd. While the Top 2 directly went to the 45-minute final, Shimo and 1:12 World Finalist Hayato Ishioka won the Semi finals to progress along with the other 6 drivers to make up the Main grid. In the final Takahata would take back he last held in 2024 with his Max powered MRX7 setting the fastest lap on his way to the win with the rest of the podium a repeat of last year – Matsukura second and double Nitro Onroad World Champion Tadahiko Sahashi third from 5th on the grid. Unfortunately Shimo would retire from the final just before the half way point. For Takahata the result is a nice boost ahead of the upcoming IFMAR 1:8 Onroad World Championships in Santiago, Chile.

Image: Mugen Seiki [Facebook]

November 10, 2025

Asian Buggy Championships announce 2026 calendar

With their new 2025 Champion Kouki Kato taking a thrilling win at the Sunpadow International Grand Prix in China over the weekend, the organisers of the Team Cayote Asian Buggy Championships have announced the venues & dates for the 2026 Championship. Set to enter into its fourth season, the 1:8 Offroad championship will again consist of 4-rounds that visit four countries across the Asia-Pacific region, including three returning tracks and one new destination. Again the ‘ABC’ will kick off in New Zealand, the opening round set for the end of February/start of March. With the championship growing out of Asia’s most famous annual offroad race, the Philippine Masters, after the hugely popular Circulo Verde track closed following the 2025 edition, the Philippines will opt out of the schedule for 2026 with racers instead travelling to new territories and the LAP Paradise RC Raceway in Johor Bahru, Malaysia, for Round 2. Attracting its biggest international entry this year, Pine Hills Dirt Racing track in Brisbane, Australia, hosts Round 3 in the middle of July. The championship, which has enjoyed growth each season, will then conclude at West Side RaceWay in Jakarta, Indonesia, which proved a massive hit with racers on its ABC debut. With championship points accrued across all four races, the best three of four rounds will crown the 2026 champions. Details on race entry, including classes for each round, will be announced shortly.

View 2026 Calendar here

November 9, 2025

Kato takes thrilling last lap SIGP victory in China

Infinity’s Kouki Kato has just taken one of the most exciting wins of his career, the Japanese driver winning the Sunpadow International Grand Prix after a thrilling last lap duel with Top Qualifier & majority race leader David Ronnefalk following 45-minutes of racing around the very challenging 3 Circles track in Xiamen. With Chinese host track of the 2017 1:10 Offroad World Championships famed for its challenging bumpy conditions, it looked like Ronnefalk had taken control of the race with the main battle being for second place between Kato and his team-mate Bruno Coelho. However a track that even the world’s best respect as being one of the most challenge there is, it didn’t take much for Ronnefalk’s lead to be eroded. Passed by Kato on lap 56 of 80, the 19-year-old with hold the former World Champion at bay for 9-laps until a mistake with 7-minutes remaining, the local crowd invested in the racing and providing exciting audio as the leading drivers fell foul of track conditions. Back in front and with the clock ticking down, Ronnefalk would again get tripped up by the track on the penultimate lap. Coming of the main straight side by side to start the final lap, just as the computer signalled the finish of the 45-minutes, the pair took the jump on to the back straight and touched in the air both buggies tumbling but Kato having the better luck landing on his wheels. While Ronnefalk tried to get back in touch over the remainder of the 34-seconds lap it wasn’t to happen and Kato took the win, the crowd appreciative of the thrilling finish. Behind, by over 8-seconds, it was once again Coelho, winner of the eBuggy finals, who completed the nitro podium while Pekko Iivonen and Jung Hyunkyu were best of the rest in fourth & fifth.

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November 9, 2025

Coelho takes eBuggy win at SIGP

Bruno Coelho has taken the eBuggy win at the annual Sunpadow International Grand Prix, the Infinity driver pocketing himself almost $2,800 for his efforts around the challenging 3 Circles track in Xiamen, China. Lining up as the Top Qualifier, the Portuguese driver taking pole position counting 2 TQ runs & a P2 from the 5-rounds of qualifying, it would be the Xray of 2024 winner David Ronnefalk who would be his biggest challenger in the finals. Starting from P2 on the grid having topped 2 qualifiers together with a P3, Ronnefalk would have the fastest car in A1 and while the Swede piled the pressure on Coelho he couldn’t find a way to the front, a number of mistake meaning he had to catch back up for repeated attempts. In A2 again Coelho wasn’t the outright fastest on the bumpy track but he had the consistency and after some early challenges from Ronnefalk he would take win to wrap up the overall victory. Ronnefalk’s challenge ultimately ended when he tangled with third place qualifier Kouki Kato, waiting on the Japanese driver who needed to be marshalled after the contact. With Kato’s Infinity recording the fastest lap he would finish 2nd ahead of Ronnefalk as they both retook the Mayako of Pekko Iivonen who buckled under the pressure while holding second going into the final stages of the race. With Coelho using A3 as a test session and not taking up pole position, the race would see Ronnefalk take the win ahead of Iivonen and Kouki, the latter have a costly off while holding second and having to work his way back up in to the Top 3. This result meant Ronnefalk (2nd) and Kato (3rd) would join Coelho on the eBuggy podium while Iivonen claimed fourth ahead of Team Associated’s Jung Hyunkyu and SIGP regular Joseph Quagraine.

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November 8, 2025

Ronnefalk is Top Qualifier at SIGP as Coelho takes Q5

David Ronnefalk is the Top Qualifier at the 2025 Sunpadow International Grand Prix, the Xray driver securing his direct stop in tomorrow’s 45-minute Main in Xiamen, China, thanks to his outright fastest TQ run in the penultimate qualifier. With it all to play for going into the fifth & final qualifier, Ronnefalk and Infinity’s Kouki Kato both having two TQ runs each and a second, neither would be able to deliver a third TQ run. Instead that would come from Bruno Coelho, the Infinity driver appearing to have finally found his way just in time for finals. After a trouble start to the day, with Q2 & 3 becoming throw outs, Pekko Iivonen was another to conclude qualifying on a positive as he set the second fastest time in Q5 with his Mayako. Overall while Ronnefalk doesn’t have the worry of Semi finals, the TQ secured on the tiebreak, in the final qualifying order it was Kato who ended up second to give the Japanese driver pole in the second of the 25-minute Semis, while Coelho’s 3rd overall means he lines up on pole for the first Semi. Iivonen’s strong finish to the day bumped him up to 4th ahead of leading Team Associated contender Jung Hyunkyu while Jason Nugroho made it three Infinity IFB8s in the final Top 6 qualification ranking.

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