Red RC » Events

November 8, 2025

SIGP Day 2 qualifying opens with another Kato TQ run

Day 2 of qualifying at the SIGP in China has opened with Infinity’s Kouki Kato laying down another TQ run, the Japanese driver carrying the form that saw him top seeding and Q1 yesterday into another very hot day in Xiamen. Managing to better his Q1 time by 3.5 seconds, Kato would lead an Infinity 1-2 as Bruno Coelho set the second fastest time 2.5-seconds adrift of his team-mate. Having opened qualifying with a P2 yesterday evening, David Ronnefalk looked to be close to challenging Kato this morning but on his fuel stop in lap his edgy looking Xray crashed and needing to be marshalled he lost over 7-seconds to drop back to record the third fastest time. After his P4 in Q1, round 2 would end up being a throw away for Pekko Iivonen, the Mayako driver entering the pits with caution after yesterday’s timing issues but finding a new bump that caused him to crash which he then followed up with a far more spectacular crash exiting the pits. This allowed Indonesian Infinity driver Jason Nugroho to record the fourth fastest time ahead of Team Associated’s young Korean talent Jung Hyunkyu with Mr. Mayako Joseph Quagraine completing the Top 6.

Continue reading here

November 7, 2025

Kato tops seeding at SIGP in China

Japan’s Kouki Kato is the top seed at the SIGP Offroad Race in Xiamen, the Infinity team having the early advantage in China on the challenging 3-Circles track as team-mate Bruno Coelho managed to set the second fastest 3-consecutive laps. Over the two rounds of controlled practice Kato would set his best time in CP1 while Coelho would top the second round improving on his earlier time but unable to better that of Kato. Fresh from his double win last weekend at the new Hongyu GDC track in Guangzhou, Xray’s David Ronnefalk completed the Top 3 with his opening effort. Building his confidence on the bumpy track, Korean youngster Jung Hyunkyu took his Team Associated to the fourth fastest time ahead of Mayako pairing Pekko Iivonen and Joesph Quagraine.

Continue reading here

November 7, 2025

Hongyu GDC to add permanent indoor carpet track

Having had the opportunity to inspect in person the very impressive new Hongyu GDC earlier this week on our way to cover this weekend’s SIGP Offroad race in Xiamen, the World Class facility has announced plans to add a permanent indoor carpet carpet track. Originally consisting of an outdoor asphalt track, a covered dirt offroad track (which hosted its opening race last weekend), and a covered asphalt track, it is the latter that will be redeveloped as the new indoor carpet track. The host venue for next year’s 2026 IFMAR 1:12 & ISTC World Championships, with 1:12 requiring to be run on carpet in a climate controlled area, Hongyu GDC has decided to create a more permanent track that meets these requirements and which can host future electric onroad race offering a replacement for the old GDC indoor track. With new transparent material sides (not glass) enclosing the original structure, based on the attention to detail in the rest of the facility, they will then lay and finish the carpet track to cover all the needs electric onroad racers would have. With the track work beginning imminently, the new track will open with the hosting of the 1:12 Asian Championships on December 4-7th, these followed the next weekend by the Asia Touring Car Championships. With no official Worlds Warm-up Race, the Asian Championships will be an opportunity for racers to test at the new carpet facility before the Worlds at the the end of March. As part of the new carpet track build Hongyu GDC has a number of billboards available to manufacturers. Registration for the 1:12 Asia Championships can be made here for Stock & here for Modified.

View more track renders here

November 2, 2025

Ronnefalk doubles at Hongyu GDC opening Offroad race

The Offroad track at the impressive new Hongyu GDC multi track facility in Foshan, China, hosted its opening race over the weekend where Xray’s David Ronnefalk completed the double winning both 1:8 Nitro and 1:8 Electric Buggy. The first race on the roof covered dirt track, the layout the work of Spanish track builder Miguelo Izquierdo Rodriguez, it would attract a number of international entries with Ronnefalk the benchmark in qualifying. In Nitro, the Swede took 3 of the 4 rounds to secure the TQ ahead of the Infinity of Asian Buggy Championships Champion Kouki Kato, the Japanese driver fastest in the opening qualifier. Finland’s Pekko Iivonen would secure third with his Mayako ahead of the Team Associated of Korea’s Jung Hyunkyu with Infinity’s Bruno Coelho rounding out the Top 5. With 2016 World Champion Ronnefalk locked-in for pole in Main final, a Semi win for Coelho lined him up P2 while winning the other Semi Kato started P3 ahead of Hyunkyu. Leading from start to finish over the 45-minutes, Ronnefalk would win by over a lap from Coelho while finishing on the same lap as the Portuguese driver Hyunkyu took the final podium step ahead of Iivonen. Problems for Kato saw him retire and classified P9. Setting the fastest times in all 4 rounds of eBuggy qualifying, Ronnefalk was the Top Qualifier ahead of Iivonen and Kato. He would go on to secure the overall win after taking the first two 5-minute encounters. Winning A3, Kato took second overall ahead of Coelho.

Image: Hongyu GDC [Facebook]

November 2, 2025

Lee & Stone crowned Australian Touring Car Champions

Xray’s Nicholas Lee and Michael Stone are the new RCRA Speedy Australian National Champions in Electric Touring winning the Modified and Stock titles respectively. Singapore’s best known international racer, Lee would secure the TQ at West Coast Model RC in Perth as he topped 3 of the 5 qualifiers. Fastest in Q4, ARC’s Brayden Stanley would qualify second ahead of the RC Maker of Jeffrey Mackie who TQ’d the second round of qualifying. Team-mate Damon Davis-Perry and Yokomo’s Antoni Caretti completed the top half of the A-Main grid. In the triples finals Lee opened with a win ahead of the RC Maker of Jeff Hamon who qualified 6th. Hamon would go one better in A2 to take the win ahead of Stanley as Lee finished third. In the decider, Lee managed to stay out front when it counted most to secure the overall win. While a bad A3 for Hamon, the Brisbane driver would finish runner-up, with 2nd in A3 giving Caretti the final step on the podium ahead of 2024 podium finisher Stanley. In Stock, after a bad start to the finals, Stone was able to win A2 & 3 to claim the title ahead of the ARC of A1 winner Marcus Askell with the RC Maker of 2024 Champion Lincoln Codd completing podium.

Image: Nicholas Lee [Facebook]

October 31, 2025

Asia Championships ’25 – 1:12 & Touring Car Information

With the first of FEMCA’s newly rebranded Asia Championships title deciders just over a month away, the Bloc that represents 15 nations in Asia and Australasia has published details for the 1:12 and Touring Car events that will take place at the 2026 World Championship venue of Hongyu GDC in Foshan, China. With no official Warm-up Race for the World Championships, which move from the traditional end of year date to the early part of the season, December’s Asia Championships is attracting a strong international entry. Unlike some IFMAR’s other Bloc title races, the Asia Championships, formerly know as the FEMCA Championships, allows international drivers to compete for the title with current IFMAR Touring Car World Champion Bruno Coelho also the reigning FEMCA ISTC Champion. FEMCA has published the details for the of both 1:12 event, which caters for Modified and Stock classes and runs from December 5-7th, and Touring Car Event, which has classes for Modified, Stock, and Youth, and runs from December 12-14th.

View Championship information for each category here

October 27, 2025

Polito crowned Italian eBuggy National Champion

Sworkz’s Mattia Polito is the 2025 AMSCI Italian eBuggy National Champion after taking victory at the single race title decider at the Pista Offroad Campogalliano track in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. Also hosting the fourth & final round of the 1:8 Nitro Buggy National Championship, that title wrapped up for a 10th consecutive time at the previous round by World Champion Davide Ongaro, qualifying for the eBuggy title would see Turkish driver Burak Kilic and his Mugen Seiki secure the overall TQ honours head of Ongaro’s Team Associated after the championship visitor topped 3 of the 4 qualifiers while Ongaro went fastest in Q3. Polito would line-up 3rd ahead of Berkan Kilic’s Mugen Seiki and the Kyosho of Riccardo Berton. In the triple finals there would be three different winners, the Xray of 7th place qualifier Alex Zanchettin a surprise winner of A1 ahead of Polito and Berton. A2 would see Burak convert the TQ into a win after he failed to finish A1. With Polito getting the better of Burak to win A3 by a 1/10th of a second, both ended up on the same points but it was the Italian who took the win on tiebreak. Berkan made it a podium double for the Kilic brothers to finish third ahead of Ongaro. In the Nitro encounter, Ongaro completed the perfect season with win number 4 from 4. It was Polito who claimed the TQ from the Kyosho of Marco Baruffolo, Berkan, and Ongaro. With Polito a DNF in his Semi, and having to win the Last Chance Final to make the Main, it was Ongaro who started the 45-minute encounter on pole. Working his was from 13th on the grid, Polito would finish second with Berkan completing the Nitro podium.

View Round 4 Nitro Buggy Podium here

October 27, 2025

Nitro Party 2026 China – Race Announcement

The brand new world class Hongyu GDC RC facility in Foshan, China, has announced an exciting new annual race for Nitro Onroad racing which it has titled ‘Nitro Party’. Scheduled for January 24-25, 2026, and with categories for 1:8 Nitro Onroad, 1:8 Nitro GT, 1:10 Nitro Touring Car, and Spec Kyosho FW06 Nitro Touring Car, the timing of the race is the perfect opportunity for European nitro racers to break-up the traditional Winter off season and compete at an event that the track intends to build up into a major annual event on the international nitro onroad race calendar. Racing will take place on the facility’s main 80m X 43m asphalt circuit on which the next IFMAR ISTC World Champion will be decided next April. With China lifting Visa entry requirements for many European countries and Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport (CAN) one of the country’s main international airports attending the race is very accessible. The Hongyu GDC facility is also within walking distance of a number of hotel options for visiting drivers.

View track images here