Red RC » Events

June 5, 2023

Balestri wins EFRA GP at Lostallo

Infinity’s Dario Balestri has made it two from two after winning the latest EFRA GP International race which took place at the iconic Lostallo circuit in Switzerland over the weekend. Winner of the EFRA GP in Leno, Italy back in April, the former World Champion was fastest in qualifying with a best time of 12/4:00.363 set in the final of his three attempts. His closest rival would be team-mate Carmine Raiola whom he held over a 1-second advantage. Lamberto Collari, who claimed the most recent of his record nine 1:8 Onroad World Championship titles at the same circuit back in 2009, would qualify third ahead of Capricorn’s Mirko Salemi. In the half hour final, Balestri posted the fastest lap of the race on his way to victory with Collari in second just 4-seconds back. With Riola retiring after 10-minutes, Salemi would complete the podium ahead of the Mugen of Massimo Aliprandi.

Image: Dario Balestri [Facebook]

June 4, 2023

Phend & Maifield lift ’23 ROAR Fuel National titles

Dakotah Phend and Ryan Maifield lifted this year’s ROAR 1:8 Fuel Offroad National titles, Phend successfully defending his Buggy crown but hitting late issues that denied a repeat of the TLR driver’s 2022 double Tekno’s Maifield would take the Truggy win. Hosted by AMain Hobbies’ Silver Dollar RC Raceway in Chico, California, qualifying saw Phend secure the overall TQ honours for both categories. In Buggy it was Xray’s Ty Tessmann who was his closest challenger as the only other driver to register a TQ run in the four rounds. Truggy saw Seth Vandalen secure P2 after coming out top of a three way tie-breaker with Spencer Rivkin (P3) and Jared Tebo (P4). With the 45-minute Truggy Main up first, Phend was on target to retain his title but clutch issues in the final two laps dropped him to third allowing 5th place qualifier Maifield, who mounted a challenge for the lead earlier in the race, to come through to lift his 7th National Truggy Championship 4.7-seconds ahead of Tebo. After the disappointment of Truggy, Phend was able to convert his qualifying form into victory winning the 1-hour encounter from Maifield with the Team Associated of Rivkin completing the podium. In the 1:8 Buggy Junior Final Team Associated’s Jonah Wilson took the win from Top Qualifier Andrew Beauchamp with Phi Long Nguyen third.

Image: JConcepts [Facebook]

June 4, 2023

Orlowski wins ETS Season opener

Schumacher’s Michal Orlowski has won the opening round of the ETS at Apeldoorn in the Netherlands. Having claimed his first ever win in the series at last season’s finale in Daun back in January, the Polish driver registered his first outdoor win ahead of the Awesomatix of Lucas Urbain and Mugen of Erik Dankel as reigning champion Ronald Volker kicked off his title defence with a fourth place. Getting qualifying underway with a TQ run, Orlowski would start the finals from P2 behind Top Qualifier Marc Rheinard, the Awesomatix driver topping two of the four rounds, while Q2 pace setter Urbain secured 3rd on the grid. In the opening A-Main, Rheinard would take the win ahead of Urbain and Dankel with Orlowski retiring from the race. In A2, Rheinard would suffer a spin allowing Orlowski to go to the front and claim a win that put everything on the line in A3. Leading away the field, Rheinard would suffer an early issue that would allow Orlowski to the front where he would stay to secure the overall win. Holding second, few laps later, Rheinard’s car came would come to stop at the end of the straight ending his race and leaving the German with only a P7 for his weekends’s efforts. In Pro Stock Olivier Bultynck enjoyed the best start possible to the season as he took the TQ and win with Lukas Ellerbrock and Max Machler making it an all Awesomatix podium.

May 31, 2023

Lucas Grainer doubles at Slovakian Nationals Rd2

The second round of the Slovakian 1:10 Offroad National Championships took place over the weekend where the Team Associated of Lucas Grainer took the double win. Racing at the RCcomorra track which is located in Komarno in the South West of the country, in qualifying Grainer secured the TQ in both classes. The Xray of Roman Dero Pavlus would be his closest challenger in the finals finishing runner-up in both 2WD and 4WD. In 2WD the Team Associated of Michal Nagy completed the podium while in 4WD the Top 3 was rounded out by the Xray of Lacko Toth.

Image : Thomas Grainer

May 30, 2023

BRCA 2WD Onroad Nationals Round 2 – Report

The second round of this year’s BRCA 2WD Onroad Championship took place at the West London Racing Centre. Both Saturday’s Practice and Sunday’s race day saw the drivers greeted with sunny, warm conditions which were ideal for what was to prove to be some very close racing. The first of the FWD qualifiers went to Ben Moorey’s Awesomatix from Ben Cosgrove’s Xray and with our Dutch visitor, Robin Van Gog, in third with another Awesomatix. Ben C took round 2 from Dale Burr’s Awesomatix and Andy Faulke’s Destiny. Round 3 went the way of Schumacher’s Andy Murray with the new FT8 from Ben C and Ben M. So, it was Ben C who took pole from Ben M, Dale and Andy. The first leg of the final’s saw Ben M take the win by three-tenths from Andy, Ben C and Dale. The second leg saw a win for Ben C from Ben M by less than four-tenths with Dale in third, so it was all down to the final leg to decide it. It was Ben C who took the win with Ben M recovering to take second from Andy and Dale. So, the overall win went the way of Ben C and his Xray from Ben M’s Awesomatix and Andy’s Schumacher.

F1 report and podium photo here

May 29, 2023

Volker wins EC Warm-up Race at Türkheim

Mugen’s Ronald Volker took victory at the official Warm-Up Race for this year’s EFRA Electric Touring Car European Championship. Top Qualifier in Türkheim, the 7-time champion took the win ahead Awesomatix’s Marc Rheinard with Xray’s Marco Kaufmann completing the podium. Only the second time Germany will host the European Championships for the category, it was the Türkheim circuit in the south of the country that also hosted that event when Andy Moore lifted the 2006 title. One notable absentee from the small Modified entry over the weekend was that of back to back reigning champion Bruno Coelho who was racing in the US at the Warm-up Race for the IFMAR 1:10 Offroad World Championships. Alexander Hagberg attended the race for Xray finishing 5th sandwiched between the Mugens of Eric Dankel and Robert Pietsch. In Stock, 2018 Champion Max Machler took his Awesomatix to the win ahead of Simon Lauter and Adam Izsay.

Image: Marc Rheinard [Facebook]

May 29, 2023

Rivkin does double at Worlds Warm-up

The official Warm-up Race for this year’s IFMAR 1:10 Offroad World Championship took place over the weekend with reigning 2WD World Champion Spencer Rivkin doing the double. With the event at Hobby Action also doubling up as the 1up Buggy Challenge, the Warm-up Race had a limited international entry with just Xray having a major team presence as many team drivers had already attended the track’s high profile annual Desert Classic event back in March. In qualifying it was Team Associated’s Aydin Horne who took the 2WD TQ ahead of Rivkin with that order reversed in 4WD, while Schumacher’s Broc Champlin completing the Top 3 in both. In 2WD Rivkin opened with a win but Champlin got the win in A2. Rivkin would get the A3 win as Top Qualifier Horne dropped to P7 for a final podium line-up of Rivkin with the win from Champlin with Horne third. In 4WD, Rivkin sealed the deal with wins in A1 & 2 while victory in A3 gave Horne second from Champlin with Dustin Evans P4.

Image: JConcepts [jconcepts.net]

May 29, 2023

Isaacs defends ROAR Electric Onroad Paved National title

Sam Isaacs has successfully defended his ROAR Electric Onroad Paved National title, the Awesomatix driver taking the win from the Mugen of Jacob Cruz and Xray’s Keven Hebert. Racing at Coral Springs RC Track in South Florida, Isaacs dominated qualifying taking all four rounds to secure the overall TQ from Hebert, Xpress driver Felix Law and Cruz. Continuing his form in the finals, Isaccs wrapped with the title with wins in A1 & 2 allowing him to sit out A3. While Hebert would take that win, second places in all three mains was enough for Cruz to secure the runner-up spot with Hebert having to settle for the final podium placing.

Image: Jacob Cruz [Facebook]