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March 10, 2024

Wins for Kaerup & Coelho at British Offroad Grand Prix

Team Associated’s Marcus Kaerup and Xray’s Bruno Coelho took the wins at this year’s BRCA British Offroad Grand Prix in Milton Keynes. The annual 1:10 carpet track event which takes place in the Centre:MK shopping centre and attracts a strong international field saw last year’s double winner Michal Orlowski head the entry. The Schumacher driver would get his weekend off to a good start securing the 2WD TQ. Behind European Champion Kaerup secured second with Coelho completing the Top 3 after the 5 rounds of qualifying. In the opening final, Schumacher driver Ben Smith capitalised on errors from the leaders to secure the win ahead of Coelho. In A2 and A3, Kaerup took charge winning both encounter as Orlowski grip rolled out of the lead in both and that gave the Dane the overall win with Orlowski and Smith completing the podium. In 4WD, Coelho secured the TQ with 3 TQ runs compared to Orlowski’s two while Kaerup made up the Top 3. Leading the field in A1, a moment on the track’s big table top for Coelho allowed Orlowski through for the win but the former World Champion made amends in A2 & 3 staying at the front for the overall win. Once again it was the runner-up spot for Orlowski with team-mate Daniel Kobbevik completing the podium.

Image: Xray [Facebook]

March 10, 2024

Phi-Long Nguyen crowned FEMCA Champion

Up & coming offroad star Phi-Long Nguyen added the most significant win yet of his promising career with the Kyosho driver taking the 2024 FEMCA 1:8 Offroad Championship title today in Vietnam. The 12-year-old secured the overall TQ during qualifying where youth and the promising talent pool of Asia shown through at the front of the field. Going on to win his Semi Final from second place qualifier Hyunkyu Jung from Korea, the Vietnamese born & now American based driver secured pole position for the 1-hour final at the L.A Track. In the other half hour Semi, former Nitro Onroad World Champion Meen Vejrak from Thailand took the win ahead of third place qualifier & another of the championship’s young guns Christian Wolhuter. In the title deciding final, Nguyen would take his Ielasi Tuned powered MP10 TKI3 to victory recording the fastest lap of the race as he lapped the field up to second place which would go to Team Associated’s Jung. Getting his Sworkz passed Vejrak, 17-year-old Australian Wolhuter would complete the podium which has a combined age of just 42-years!

Image: Martin Wolhuter

March 9, 2024

Hotrace announced as 1:10 IC Worlds tyre supplier

The organisers of this year’s IFMAR 1:10 Nitro Onroad World Championship to be held in Costa Rica have announced Hotrace Tyres as the official controlled tyre supplier. Scheduled to take place from November from 14-24 at the Mini Autodromo Las Cruces just outside the capital city San Jose, the Italian manufacturer will supply a 37sh front and a 40sh rear tyre for 10th running of the championship which was first hosted in 2004 in Brazil. While still to finalise the best diameter for the tyres, it is 90% expected that based on information provided by the track that they should be 64mm rears and 62mm fronts. This will be second consecutive 1:10 Nitro Onroad World Championship that Hotrace has been awarded the supply of the controlled tyre. In 2020, Nicola Marrone’s company supplied the tyres for event when it was held at RC Addict in Thailand where Infinity’s Tadahiko Sahashi gained Nitro Onroad’s elusive ‘Double Champion’ status with victory over Dominic Greiner and Jilles Groskamp.

Source: 2024 IFMAR 1/10 Touring World Championship [Facebook]

March 9, 2024

Phi-Long Nguyen TQ at FEMCA Championship

Kyosho’s Phi-Long Nguyen is the Top Qualifier at the 2024 FEMCA 1:8 Nitro Offroad Championship which is taking place at the L.A Track in Vietnam. The federation race crowns the Champion of Asia with this year attracting an impressive entry of more 110 drivers from across the largest continent in the World. Counting Atsushi Hara and Kyle McBride amount its past champions and this year it appears to be a battle of the future stars of the sport in qualifying. Over the six rounds 12-year-old Nguyen topped four qualifiers to secure the overall TQ with 17-year-old Australian Christian Wolhuter getting P2 after topping Q2 & Q3 with his Sworkz. Completing the Top 3 for qualifying would be new Team Associated signing Hyunkyu Jung, the Korean teenager having finished runner-up at last year’s championship in Taiwan. With reigning FEMCA Champion Jeff Wang not present in Vietnam the race will decide a brand new champion.

Image: Martin Wolhuter

March 7, 2024

Introducing the ‘Michal Orlowski Column’

We have had the pleasure of following his career from his early days of racing a Tamiya TT02 and all the way through to being in Florida last December to finally witness him become a World Champion. Last year on the way to the 1:10 Offroad World Championships in Arizona, we both endured a lengthy 4-hour delay to our connecting flight in Washington and it was during that conversation and the sharing of many stories that the idea was born for a regular column from one of the most travelled racers in the business. To be honest, not expecting a great reaction to asking any driver to commit to writing regularly about their racing adventures both and off the track, we got Chris Ashton of his main sponsor Schumacher to ask the question, and, he jumped at the opportunity. So with out further a do we’ll hand you over to the newest member of the Red RC editorial team (well so sort). Michal Orlowski take it away……

Click here to read Michal first of hopefully many columns

March 7, 2024

2024 TITC Chassis Focus Index

Last weekend thanks to the support of Hobbywing, Red RC made a return to the TITC for the 20-edition of this legendary Bangkok race. The biggest one yet, it has truly become the most significant annual electric Touring Car race in the World. It was extremely positive for the category to see so much manufacturer support for the race. Of all the major car brands, only Schumacher had no official team presence but here’s hoping the British manufacturer gives us the opportunity to see Michal Orlowski take on the challenging RC Addict track conditions for the first time next year. Such was the quality of the field, the B-Main was full of World Championship Finalist drivers and it was great to see six different manufacturers represented in the A-Main of Modified. Call us old school, but putting the iconic Tamiya logo in our results graphic was a nostalgic moment. In another positive for electric touring car we had three new cars at the race. We had the latest prototype from Yokomo, the Japanese brand going for a name change as the BD name is dropped in favour of MS for Master Speed. Nicolas Lee did try to get us permission for a chassis focus but we couldn’t get it across the line. Kyosho had two prototypes of what is expected to be their TF8. That news generated massive excitement, so much so Kyosho requested we take down the story we ran on their return to the category. Finally Ryan Maker debuted his exciting new SP1 that will see him realise the dream of his RC Maker brand becoming a fully fledged car manufacturer. While both RC Maker and Kyosho allowed us to look at their new creations, we were not granted permission to photograph them for a Chassis Focus which we fully understand given the cars’ designs are still to be fully finalised. Over the event we did however photograph 12 cars from seven different manufacturers and we have compiled them all here in our latest Chassis Focus index.

View Chassis Focus Index here

March 3, 2024

Record equalling 4th TITC win for Coelho

Bruno Coelho has taken a record equalling fourth TITC win but his victory at the 20th edition of the race is set to be remembered for incidents rather than the result equalling record achieved in Bangkok. Having qualified second behind Top Qualifier Ronald Volker, the Xray driver would make contact with his Mugen Seiki rival in the opening two A-Mains resulting in a wide open race going into A3. This time however Volker would spin on his own early on allowing Coelho to take the leg ahead of team-mate Alexander Hagberg, winner of A2. Giving Xray an overall 1-2 in the legendary touring car race, it also sees Coelho join Atsushi Hara as the races most winning driver. The benefactor of the Top 2 qualifiers’ clash in A1 but retiring from A2, Marc Rheinard would complete the podium at RC Addict for Awesomatix with a P3 in the final encounter ahead of Volker. For Volker, the high of taking the TQ honours after his B-Main appearance last year was overshadowed by the disappointment of being classified 6th overall. As a race that has become the most significant in the World for touring car racing & its manufacturers, and which is on par if not exceeding the dept of competitiveness of the World Championship, going forward it might be time for ‘the World’s biggest local race’ to consider appointing a referee to ensure the amazing atmosphere that surrounds the TITC is not overshadowed by incidents on track.

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March 3, 2024

Coelho & Volker clash again handing Hagberg A2 win

Having made contact in A1 and handed the win to Marc Rheinard, A2 at the TITC once again saw a clash between Bruno Coelho and Ronald Volker only this time it was Alexander Hagberg who was there to pick up the pieces. A result that leaves the 20th edition of the legendary Bangkok based race wide open going into A3, the second encounter saw Top Qualifier Volker and Coelho again the class of the field with a much improved Hagberg able to hang with them as they pulled clear. Watched on by a huge crowd at RC Addict, as the race approached the final minute mark, Coelho was putting huge pressure on Volker who ran wide in a number of corners. As they exited the S section on the right side of the track on Lap 15, Coelho attempted a pass on the inside of the German with a tighter line but as they got on the power contact was made sending both cars into a spin. While Coelho again allowed Volker to resume position, with Hagberg going by to take lead, another broken anti tuck rod meant Volker’s race was done. Pulling up in front of the drivers stand the former World Champion vented his anger & frustration at Coelho, the current World Champion and defending TITC Champion continuing the final to finish P2 ahead of Infinity’s Naoto Matsukura.

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