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March 4, 2026

Neumann joins XTR for accessories & fuel

Spanish brand XTR has announced that new WIRC signing Joern Neumann will use their accessories and Shoot fuel as part of his race program for the upcoming seasons. The highly accomplished offroad racer and former 1:8 GT World Champion, joined Italian manufacturer WIRC for 2026 after an 8-year stint with Taiwanese manufacturer Sworkz. Running Reds Racing engines, Neumann joins multiple time European Champions Elliott Boots and Reno Savoya in representing XTR and running Shoot fuel.

Source: XTR Racing [xtr-rc.com]

March 3, 2026

Canas wins Spanish Nationals opener

Champion of the highly competitive AECAR 1:8 Nitro Buggy Spanish National Championship, Sworkz’s Juan Carlos Canas opened his 2026 campaign with a TQ and win. The Circuito RC Fernando Robles track in San Jose de la Rinconada played host to the first race of the 4-round championship with Canas taking 4 of the 5 qualifiers. Behind Robert Batlle made it an Sworkz 1-2 with a string of P2 runs while Tekno’s Joao Figueiredo completed the Top 3 having TQ’d the final qualifier. Winning his Semi final from Mugen Seiki’s David Todd Nieto, winner of the 2025 season opener, Figueiredo, and Sparko’s Daniel Pariente, winner of 2025 season finale, it was Canas who would start on pole, the Top 4 on the grid coming from the Semi A. Winner of the Semi B, Battle would line up P5. In the 45-minute final, Canas steered his Reds Racing powered Sworkz to the victory half a lap clear of Mugen’s Jose Miguel Sanchez with Adrian Pariente’s Sparko completing the podium ahead of Battle and Xray’s Oscar Baldo with Todd Nieto finishing sixth. In F2 category, the race attracting a combined 81 entries between F1 and F2, Saul Ordonez Ortiz made it a double celebration for Sworkz by also taking the TQ and win.

Image: Sworkz [Facebook]

March 3, 2026

Elias doubles at South American Championships

Brazilian Nitro Onroad stalwart Flavio Elias completed a double at the long running South American Championships winning both the 1:8 Onroad and 1:8 GT titles in Argentina over the weekend. Going into this year’s event as the defending GT champion having won that title, and finished 3rd in 1:8 Onroad, at the World’s host track CACH in Chile in 2025, the Capricorn/Ielasi Tuned driver kicked off the action at the Mendoza track by securing the GT TQ from Chile’s Alvaro Jara. In 1:8 Onroad he would also take the TQ this time ahead of Argentina’s Emilio Lanzilotta. In the 45-minute GT final, the 2025 IFMAR GT World Championship podium finisher would take a dominant win ahead of Jara who had a close battle with third place Franco Anderlucci. The 1:8 Onroad final would also see the 1:8 Onroad World Finalist be the class of the field to lead home Lanzilotta with Alexandro Giardino completing the podium.

Image: Ielasi Tuned [Facebook]

March 2, 2026

Noble wins Asian Buggy C/ships opener in New Zealand

Sworkz’s Caleb Noble has won the opening round of the fourth season of the the Team Cayote and VP-Pro backed Asian Buggy Championships which was hosted by New Zealand’s Counties RC over the weekend. Having top qualified three classes, Noble went on to win all three – Nitro Buggy, eBuggy, and Nitro Truggy. It was a powerful performance from the Australian marking his move to Sworkz and JConcepts over the off-season. Noble led home Sworkz teammate, New Zealand’s Jayden Jamieson, in both buggy classes, and Kiwi Hotbodies driver Shane O’Connor in Truggy. The Nitro Buggy final was a straight shootout between Noble and Jamieson, with Jayden grabbing an early lead before Noble struck back on the cusp of the first fuel stop and, from there, driving away to a one-lap win. Kiwi veteran Mike Stratford drove a brilliant race from 9th on the grid to round out the podium and make it an Sworkz sweep. eBuggy was an easy win for Noble, dominating A1 and A2, with Jamieson trailing him home, and countryman Jonathan Coluccio (WIRC) an excellent third. Darren Perry (Masters 45+ EP and Nitro) and Shane O’Connor (eTruggy) were the other class winners. The series now moves to Malaysia’s Lap Paradise RC Raceway for April’s second round of the 2026 series.

Source: Asian Buggy Championships [asianbuggychamps.com]

February 28, 2026

Noble TQs Asian Buggy C/ships opener in New Zealand

Round 1 of the Team Cayote and VP-Pro backed Asian Buggy Championships is underway this weekend at Counties R/C Car Club, just outside Auckland, New Zealand, where Sworkz’s Caleb Noble has secured the TQ. It’s the third time the series has visited Counties for it’s season opener, with its old-school loamy clay track, and Australian Noble has been the star of the show in qualifying. Sweeping all four rounds across Nitro Buggy, eBuggy and Nitro Truggy he’ll start the A-Mains for all three classes from the TQ position. In Nitro Buggy, it’s his Sworkz teammate, New Zealand’s Jayden Jamieson who’ll line up behind Noble for Sunday’s 45-minute encounter, ahead of countryman, Mayako’s Dylan Toia, and Hotbodies’ Shane O’Connor. For Noble, it’s his first run with new chassis sponsor Sworkz, the switch for the new season also accompanied by a move to JConcepts. In eBuggy, a dominant Noble will line up in front of Jamieson, with Logan Toia (Mayako) starting out third ahead of younger brother Dylan. Mike Stratford has top qualified both 45+ Masters classes, and Shane O’Connor the eTruggy category. The series next moves to Malaysia’s Lap Paradise RC Raceway in late April, with Scotty Ernst today opening entries for Round 2 of the popular high profile Asian based four-round series.

Source: Asian Buggy Championships [asianbuggychamps.com]

February 25, 2026

O.S. Engines announces Kaerup signing

Iconic Japanese engine manufacturer O.S. Engines has announced that electric offroad World Champion Marcus Kaerup has joined its official factory team. With 2026 a World Championship year for Nitro Buggy, the reigning 1:8 eBuggy and 1:10 4WD World Champion joins defending Nitro Buggy World Champion & Team Associated team-mate Davide Ongaro in using O.S. engines to power his nitro programme. The Danish teenager had been running Ruddog Racing branded engines and his new deal with O.S. is a significant one ahead of the 20th running of the IFMAR 1:8 Nitro Buggy World Championships which will be hosted by Thornhill Racing Circuit in Texas and run from September 26th to October 3rd.

Source: O.S. Engines [oos-engines.co.jp]

February 23, 2026

2026 IFMAR 1:10 IC Track World C/ship Stage 1 Report

IFMAR, the World governing body of RC racing, has published the Stage 1 report for the 2026 1:10 Nitro Touring Car World Championship which will be hosted by Club Automodellistico 5 Colli a decade after the iconic track staged the previous European hosting of the race. The 11th running of the championships, it will take place from September 4th to 12th in the medieval town of Gubbio in central Italy and given the nations unofficial title as ‘the world capital of nitro onroad racing’ it is expected to attract a large and competitive entry. In 2016 it was Dominc Greiner who became World Champion with a flawless drive ahead of then Serpent team-mate Alessio Mazzeo, who gave the local crowd plenty to cheer about, with then reigning 1:8 World Champion Simon Kurzbuch completing the podium for Shepherd just ahead of Bruno Coelho. Since then the track has hosted the 2022 IFMAR ISTC World Championship, Coelho taking the win on that occasion, with the club highly regarded for its strong organisation and presentation of races. The previous two 1:10 Nitro Touring Car World Championships where staged in Thailand, the 2024 race held at Huge RC in Bangkok after original host Costa Rica hit issues surrounding noise. Jilles Groskamp would take a hugely popular victory at the former ISTC World Champion Surikarn Chaidajsuriya owned track, to become only the second driver to win the biggest prize in both Electric and Nitro Touring Car. View the full 2026 Stage 1 Report here.

Source: IFMAR [ifmar.org]

February 13, 2026

Hongyu GDC announce 2nd edition of Asia Nitro Party

Chinese track Hongyu GDC has announced that following the hugely successful inaugural hosting of the Asia Nitro Party race last month that they will host a second edition of the race in 2027. An event for 1:8 GP, 1:8 GT, and 1:10 Nitro Touring Car, it will also officially become a 3-day race event with January 15-17th already fixed as the 2027 date. The first edition of the Asia Nitro Party attracted a stacked international entry with visitors impressed not only by the Hongyu GDC facility but also their experience of visiting the city of Foshan. In 1:8 GP it would be Infinity’s Naoto Matsukura who took the win ahead of Xray’s Filippo Domanin and Serpent’s Andrea Catanzani. In 1:8 GT, Bernard-Alain Arnaldi took the win for Genius ahead of the Raptors of World Champion Alessio Mazzeo and Natanaele Senesi. With mild weather in Southern China in January, 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 has already made a mark on establishing itself as a major annual event on the international nitro onroad race calendar.

Source: Hongyu GDC [Facebook]